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Boca: what to know before buying a home

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

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Boca

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 Angelo Valazza 1, Boca.

Boca, Nebbiolo vineyards and Antonelli's sanctuary

Between Borgomanero and the Valsesia, in the hilly north of the province of Novara, Boca stands at around 390 metres among woods and vineyards. The village name is also that of a DOC wine, a red made mainly from Nebbiolo grapes. Just outside the centre is the sanctuary of the Santissimo Crocifisso, whose church was designed by Alessandro Antonelli, the architect of the Mole Antonelliana in Turin.

Borgomanero is the nearest town for shops, schools and the hospital, while for Novara or the Milan area you need a car. The village offers detached houses, villas with gardens and a few old stone houses to restore, as well as plots and farm buildings among the vineyards. Declared incomes are below the provincial average.

The number of residents has fallen to 1,156 in 2023, 71 fewer than in 2011 according to Istat, the national statistics office. The average age is 48.4 against 46.7 for the province of Novara; over-65s are 26.0% and foreign residents 5.0%.

All 87 municipalities in the province are in seismic zone 4, the lowest class in the Civil Protection Department's national scheme, and in Boca the expected ground acceleration is 0.039 g. Earthquakes therefore weigh little in the decision; insulation, the state of the roof and damp, common in houses close to the woods, matter more.

The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) publishes cadastral maps and the report traces the address to its land parcel. In the hills, among woods and streams, landslide and flood hazard is checked on the official maps for the chosen house.

Key points

  • Hills between Borgomanero and the Valsesia, home of Boca wine.
  • All 87 municipalities in the province in seismic zone 4.
  • Population down 5.8% since 2011.
  • Houses near the woods: check damp and roof.

Overview

Boca is a municipality in the province of Novara, in Piemonte. At the end of 2023 it had 1,156 residents, ranked 58 of 87 municipalities in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Boca is in seismic zone 4, the lowest-risk zone, where strong earthquakes are very rare. All 87 municipalities in the province are in the same zone.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.039 g, a low value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.

In zone 4 the risk is low, but for an older building it is still worth asking about the state of the structure.

Population

Compared with the 2011 census, the resident population has fallen by 5.8%. The estimated average age is 48 years, higher than the province average (47). 26% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 27%). Foreign residents make up 5.0% of the population. On average, a household has 2.3 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Boca declared an average taxable income of 23,802 euros, below the provincial average (26,949 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Boca is in climate zone E, with 2,810 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 389 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Boca has 1 school and 1 pharmacy.

The data shows no grocery shops and supermarkets within the municipality, against a provincial average of 0.5 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 11.2% of the land in Boca, compared with 11.2% in the province and 6.7% in the region. In 2024 built-up land grew by 0.7 hectares.

Radon and contaminated sites

Boca is not among the radon priority areas designated by the Regione Piemonte in 2023. 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 one contaminated site, or site still under investigation, in Boca, and one more has been cleaned up or closed. The report tells you whether one is close to the address.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Boca: 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 Boca 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 19 inhabited census areas in Boca. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 58 or more.

Residents by band

  • fair 59.0%
  • good 41.0%

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 003019. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.