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Tusa: what to know before buying a home

A municipality in the province of Messina, Sicilia. Official data on earthquakes, population, services and transport.

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Tusa

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 Alesina 1, Tusa.

Tusa, from the hill village to Castel di Tusa by the sea

Tusa lies on the Tyrrhenian coast of the province of Messina, in the area where the Nebrodi mountains meet the Madonie. The old village is on a hill looking out to sea; below it is Castel di Tusa, the coastal hamlet with holiday homes and some of the works of Fiumara d'Arte, the open-air sculpture park along the Tusa riverbed. The municipality also holds the remains of the ancient city of Halaesa.

House hunters find two different markets. In the upper village there are stone houses on several levels, often needing work, with alleys and flights of steps; in Castel di Tusa and along the coast, flats and small villas used mainly in summer. The main road and the Palermo-Messina railway run close to the sea and make the coast easier to reach than the hills.

The village is losing people. Istat, the national statistics office, counts 2,540 residents in 2023, 16.7% fewer than in 2011, with an average age of 50.0 (provincial figure 46.7) and 29.9% over 65. Foreign residents make up 1.7%.

Northern Sicily is an earthquake area: Tusa is in seismic zone 2, with an expected ground acceleration of 0.179 g. For old masonry houses in the upper village, have a surveyor or engineer assess floors and roof before signing.

The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) cadastre is published. Between hills, riverbed and coast, the report reads the official landslide and flood maps for the address.

Key points

  • Hill village plus Castel di Tusa on the sea
  • Fiumara d'Arte and ancient Halaesa
  • 2,540 residents, 16.7% fewer than in 2011
  • Seismic zone 2, expected acceleration 0.179 g

Overview

Tusa is a municipality in the province of Messina, in Sicilia. At the end of 2023 it had 2,540 residents, ranked 46 of 108 municipalities in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Tusa is in seismic zone 2, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible. Most municipalities in the province (91 of 108) are in the same zone.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.179 g, a medium-high value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.

For anyone buying in Tusa, 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 fallen by 16.7%. The estimated average age is 50 years, higher than the province average (47). 30% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 23%). Foreign residents make up 1.7% of the population. On average, a household has 2.1 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Tusa declared an average taxable income of 18,973 euros, below the provincial average (20,687 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Tusa is in climate zone D, with 1,676 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 614 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Tusa has 6 schools and 2 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 1 grocery shop and 1 sports facility.

The data shows no healthcare facilities within the municipality, against a provincial average of 0.8 per 1,000 residents.

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 5.0% of the land in Tusa, compared with 6.0% in the province and 6.6% in the region. In 2024 built-up land stayed almost the same.

Radon and contaminated sites

Official databases list no open contaminated sites in Tusa; one has been cleaned up or closed.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Tusa: 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 Tusa 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 15 inhabited census areas in Tusa. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 72 or more.

Residents by band

  • modest 18.5%
  • fair 20.4%
  • good 61.1%

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

ISTAT code 083101. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.