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Boves: what to know before buying a home

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

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Boves

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 Santuario 2, Boves.

Boves, at the foot of the Bisalta just outside Cuneo

Look south from Cuneo and the mountain closing the horizon is the Bisalta; Boves lies at its foot. The town is at around 590 metres, about ten kilometres from the provincial capital, where the Cuneo plain gives way to the first Alpine valleys. Its hamlets, such as Fontanelle and Rivoira, are scattered among meadows, chestnut woods and slopes. Its history is bound to the massacre of September 1943, when German troops set the town on fire, and the memory of those days is still very much alive.

Many residents work in Cuneo and choose Boves for a house with a garden and the mountains close by. The housing ranges from stone houses in the hamlets to detached homes and blocks built after the war around the centre. The climate zone is F, the coldest: insulation, windows and the boiler weigh on household costs more than on the plain, so read the energy rating before the price. In winter, orientation matters too, as some areas stay in shade for many hours.

At the end of 2023 there were 9,653 residents, a tiny fall of 0.7% since 2011. The estimated average age is 45.9 against 46.3 for the province, over-65s are 23.7% and foreign residents 6.1%. Declared incomes are a little below the average for the province, which locals call the Granda, "the big one".

The town is in seismic zone 3 on the Civil Protection scale, like 141 of the 247 municipalities in the province, but the expected ground acceleration of about 0.134 g is among the higher values in the area, because of the nearby Alps. In stone houses, it is worth having a surveyor check the walls and roof.

On the slopes the report checks landslide hazard and along the streams flood hazard, always at the exact address and with the land parcel found on the Revenue Agency's cadastral maps.

Key points

  • At the foot of the Bisalta, about ten kilometres south of Cuneo.
  • Seismic zone 3, expected acceleration about 0.134 g.
  • Climate zone F: insulation and heating matter a lot.
  • 9,653 residents, average age 45.9.

Overview

Boves is a municipality in the province of Cuneo, in Piemonte. At the end of 2023 it had 9,653 residents, among the most populous in the province (10 of 247).

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Boves is in seismic zone 3, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible but rare. The region uses a finer breakdown: here the classification is 3S. Most municipalities in the province (141 of 247) are in the same zone.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.134 g, a moderate value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.

Even in zone 3, seismic standards apply to new buildings: for an older building, ask about the design year and any structural work.

Population

Compared with the 2011 census, the number of residents is nearly unchanged. The estimated average age is 46 years, in line with the province. 24% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 27%). Foreign residents make up 6.1% of the population. On average, a household has 2.3 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Boves declared an average taxable income of 23,746 euros, in line with the province (24,913 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Boves is in climate zone F, with 3,047 heating degree days, with no limits on when heating may be used. The same table puts the town hall at 590 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Boves has 7 schools and 3 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 10 grocery shops and supermarkets, 2 healthcare facilities, 6 sports facilities and 1 green area.

There are 0.2 healthcare facilities per 1,000 residents, fewer than the province average (0.6).

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 7.6% of the land in Boves, compared with 5.3% in the province and 6.7% in the region. In 2024 built-up land stayed almost the same.

Radon and contaminated sites

Boves 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 no contaminated sites in Boves.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Boves: 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 Boves 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 110 inhabited census areas in Boves. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 76 or more.

Residents by band

  • fair 8.0%
  • good 60.3%
  • very good 31.6%

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 004028. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.