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Bianchi: what to know before buying a home

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

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Bianchi

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: Frazione Palinudo 1, Bianchi.

Bianchi, Cosenza's mountains between the Sila and the Savuto

Chestnut and oak woods surround Bianchi, a mountain village in the province of Cosenza, on the high ground between the Sila plateau and the Savuto valley. At this altitude, above eight hundred metres, winters are cold (climate zone E) and snow is not unusual. Cosenza and Lamezia Terme are the towns for work, the hospital and transport links, both reached by car on mountain roads down to the motorway.

The village has emptied quickly: 1,174 residents in 2023, 193 fewer than in 2011, a fall of 14.1% according to Istat, the national statistics office. The average age is 50.4 against 46.1 in the province, with over-65s at 31.3% against 24.4%; foreign residents are very few, 1.4%. Declared incomes are below the provincial average.

For buyers, the homes available are mostly masonry houses in the centre, often shut up for some time, and a few country houses. The purchase price matters less than the work: roof, services, insulation and, above all, the safety of the structure.

That is because Bianchi is in seismic zone 1, the highest in the national classification set by the Civil Protection department, together with 64 other municipalities in the province of Cosenza, and the expected ground acceleration in the village is 0.276 g. Before signing, find out when the house was built, whether it has had documented strengthening work and what state the floors and load-bearing walls are in, with a surveyor's opinion.

Cadastral data is available: the Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) publishes the maps and the report traces the land parcel. On steep slopes and near streams, landslides and floods are checked on the official maps for the exact address.

Key points

  • Cosenza mountains between the Sila and the Savuto valley.
  • Seismic zone 1, expected acceleration 0.276 g.
  • Population down 14.1% since 2011.
  • Houses long shut up: structure and roof before price.

Overview

Bianchi is a municipality in the province of Cosenza, in Calabria. At the end of 2023 it had 1,174 residents, ranked 103 of 150 municipalities in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Bianchi is in seismic zone 1, the highest-risk zone, where very strong earthquakes are possible. Only 65 of 150 municipalities in the province are in zone 1.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.276 g, a high value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.

For anyone buying in Bianchi, 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 14.1%. The estimated average age is 50 years, higher than the province average (46). 31% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 24%). Foreign residents make up 1.4% of the population. On average, a household has 2.2 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Bianchi declared an average taxable income of 15,792 euros, below the provincial average (18,237 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Bianchi is in climate zone E, with 2,448 heating degree days: heating may be switched on from 15 October to 15 April, for up to 14 hours a day. The same table puts the town hall at 825 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Bianchi has 3 schools and 1 pharmacy. The Overture Maps data also lists 1 grocery shop.

The data shows no healthcare facilities within the municipality, against a provincial average of 0.6 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 2.8% of the land in Bianchi, compared with 4.4% in the province and 5.1% 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 open contaminated sites in Bianchi; one has been cleaned up or closed.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Bianchi: 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 Bianchi 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 Bianchi. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 57 or more.

Residents by band

  • fair 100.0%

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 078016. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.