Trecastagni: what to know before buying a home
A municipality in the province of Catania, Sicilia. Official data on earthquakes, population, services and transport.
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Search for an address in Trecastagni
The report looks at the exact point: landslide and flood risk, seismic zone, price per square metre for the area, services and nearby stops.
For example: Via Francesco Crispi 1, Trecastagni.
Trecastagni, vineyards and extinct cones on Etna's southern slope
At about six hundred metres on the southern slope of Etna, Trecastagni looks down over the Catania plain and the sea. The landscape is vineyards, orchards and woods growing on old lava flows, with small extinct volcanic cones dotting the hillside. Across the province the town is known for the sanctuary of Saints Alfio, Filadelfo and Cirino and for its May festival, which draws pilgrims from many Etna villages.
Over recent decades Trecastagni has become one of the places people choose when they leave Catania for a bigger house and cooler air. Next to the old centre, with its lava-stone houses, detached houses and villas with gardens have gone up along the roads climbing towards the volcano. Average declared incomes are above the provincial average. The climate is zone D in the national heating classification: winters are cool and heating is needed more than in the city.
The town is growing and getting younger. Istat, the national statistics office, counted 11,313 residents in 2023, up 7.9% since 2011, with an estimated average age of 43.5 and over-65s at 20.0%, both below the provincial figures. Foreign residents make up 1.9%. There are more supermarkets per head than the provincial average, but fewer recorded school sites.
The slopes of Etna have their own earthquakes, linked to the volcano, on top of those that affect eastern Sicily. Trecastagni is in zone 2, like 53 other municipalities in the province, but its expected ground acceleration of about 0.229 g is high for that class. For a villa or a lava-stone house, ask for the structural design, the year of construction and any strengthening.
The volcano also brings ash, which now and then settles on roofs and gutters, and a lava-flow hazard that depends on where you are on the slope. The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) publishes the cadastral maps and the report reaches the plot; landslides and flooding along the gullies are checked for the address.
Key points
- On Etna's southern slope above Catania, among vines and extinct cones.
- Population up 7.9% since 2011; over-65s at 20.0%.
- Seismic zone 2, expected acceleration about 0.229 g.
- Average incomes above the provincial average.
Overview
Trecastagni is a municipality in the province of Catania, in Sicilia. At the end of 2023 it had 11,313 residents, ranked 26 of 58 municipalities in the province.
Earthquakes
For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Trecastagni is in seismic zone 2, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible. Most municipalities in the province (54 of 58) are in the same zone.
In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.229 g, a medium-high value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.
For anyone buying in Trecastagni, the building matters a great deal: ask for the design year, whether it met the 2008 seismic standards, and whether any seismic retrofit has been carried out.
Population
Compared with the 2011 census, the resident population has grown by 7.9%. The estimated average age is 44 years, in line with the province. 20% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 23%). Foreign residents make up 1.9% of the population. On average, a household has 2.3 members.
Income and climate
In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Trecastagni declared an average taxable income of 24,463 euros, above the provincial average (20,793 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.
Trecastagni is in climate zone D, with 1,445 heating degree days: heating may be switched on from 1 November to 15 April, for up to 12 hours a day. The same table puts the town hall at 586 metres above sea level.
Services
In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Trecastagni has 6 schools and 3 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 9 grocery shops and supermarkets, 5 healthcare facilities, 8 sports facilities and 1 green area.
There are 0.5 schools per 1,000 residents, fewer than the province average (0.9).
Public transport
We do not yet have open public transport timetables for this municipality: the report says so explicitly, without inventing distances.
How built-up it is
Buildings, roads, car parks and other sealed surfaces cover 16.8% of the land in Trecastagni, compared with 8.0% in the province and 6.6% in the region. In 2024 built-up land stayed almost the same.
Radon and contaminated sites
According to the ISPRA map, the estimated radon emission in the municipality is medium. Radon varies from building to building and can only be known by measuring it, especially on ground floors and in basements.
Official databases list no contaminated sites in Trecastagni.
Landslides and flooding
Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Trecastagni: the report checks the address against the ISPRA maps.
House prices
The Revenue Agency's price ranges per square metre (OMI) apply to zones, not to whole municipalities: the report gives the range for the address's zone.
Land registry
The cadastral maps for Trecastagni are public: from the address the report finds the sheet and parcel number.
Liveability area by area
The Vicinalia liveability index runs from 0 to 100 and looks at the place, not the people who live there: services within walking distance, transport, green space, natural hazards, air, quiet, buildings and connection. Here it is worked out at the centre of each of the 27 inhabited census areas in Trecastagni. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 74 or more.
Residents by band
- fair 2.1%
- good 76.7%
- very good 21.2%
Vicinalia index by census area, licence CC BY-SA 4.0. Data: IdroGEO ISPRA (2026), Istat, INGV, EEA, AGCOM, Overture Maps and OpenStreetMap.
The colour is the value at the centre of the area. For an exact address, search for it above: the free check looks at that exact point. How the index is worked out
Data sources
- Seismic classification of municipalities, Dipartimento della Protezione Civile. Licence CC BY 4.0, updated to 2025-05.
- MPS04 seismic hazard model, INGV. Licence CC BY 4.0, 2004 model.
- Data by census section, Istat. Licence CC BY 4.0, residents at the end of 2023, compared with the 2011 census.
- Places, Overture Maps Foundation. Licence CDLA Permissive 2.0 and others depending on provider, release 2026-10-21.0.
- Income and main IRPEF variables by municipality, MEF, Dipartimento delle Finanze. Licence CC BY 3.0 IT, tax year 2024.
- Climate zones and heating degree days of municipalities (Presidential Decree 412/1993, Annex A), Normattiva. Licence CC BY 4.0, current text.
- Land take, territorial dynamics and ecosystem services, ISPRA e SNPA. Licence CC BY 4.0, 2024 data.
- Predictive radon map by municipality, ISPRA. Licence CC BY 4.0, version 2022-11.
- Contaminated sites, ISPRA, MOSAICO - Banca dati nazionale dei siti oggetto di procedimento di bonifica. Licence CC BY 4.0, updated to 12 November 2026.
- Liveability index by census area, Vicinalia, from the data in the report sections. Licence CC BY-SA 4.0, worked out on 30 September 2026.
- List of Italian municipalities, Istat. Licence CC BY 4.0, updated to 21 February 2026.
ISTAT code 087050. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.