Casale Monferrato: what to know before buying a home
A municipality in the province of Alessandria, Piemonte. Official data on earthquakes, population, services and transport.
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Search for an address in Casale Monferrato
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: Corso Valentino 2, Casale Monferrato.
Casale Monferrato, the Po, the castle and the asbestos legacy
Casale Monferrato stands on the right bank of the Po, where the plain meets the first hills of the Monferrato. It was the capital of the Marquisate of Monferrato, later ruled by the Gonzaga, and the centre shows it with the castle, the cathedral of Sant'Evasio and a sixteenth-century synagogue that is among the best known in Italy.
There is one issue buyers here cannot ignore. For decades Casale was home to the Eternit plant, which made asbestos-cement sheets and pipes, and the town still bears the health consequences. The area is a national remediation site and roof removal has been going on for years. Even so, before buying have roofs, flues, tanks and old floor tiles checked, especially in farmhouses, sheds and homes in the outlying hamlets.
The population is falling. Istat, the national statistics office, counted 32,220 residents in 2023, 7.4% fewer than in 2011. The average age is 48.8, similar to the province, over-65s make up 27.9% and households are small, 1.99 people on average. Foreign residents account for 11.3%. Sports and healthcare facilities are above the provincial average per resident, at 1.61 and 1.12 per 1,000 residents.
In the province of Alessandria, 127 municipalities are in seismic zone 3 and 60 in zone 4 on the Civil Protection scale. Casale is in zone 4, the lowest, with an expected ground acceleration of about 0.039 g. In the town's older houses, damp, the roof and the building systems matter more.
The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) land registry maps are published and the report traces the address to its plot. Near the Po and its embankments flood hazard is the first thing to check; on the hills of the hamlets, landslides count too.
Key points
- Former capital of the Monferrato, on the right bank of the Po.
- Asbestos: have old roofs and fittings checked before buying.
- 32,220 residents, down 7.4% since 2011.
- Seismic zone 4, expected acceleration about 0.039 g.
Overview
Casale Monferrato is a municipality in the province of Alessandria, in Piemonte. At the end of 2023 it had 32,220 residents, the second most populous in the province.
Earthquakes
For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Casale Monferrato is in seismic zone 4, the lowest-risk zone, where strong earthquakes are very rare. Only 60 of 187 municipalities in the province are in zone 4.
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 7.4%. The estimated average age is 49 years, in line with the province. 28% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 27%). Foreign residents make up 11.3% of the population. On average, a household has 2.0 members.
Income and climate
In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Casale Monferrato declared an average taxable income of 25,464 euros, in line with the province (25,143 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.
Casale Monferrato is in climate zone E, with 2,815 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 116 metres above sea level.
Services
In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Casale Monferrato has 29 schools and 13 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 20 grocery shops and supermarkets, 36 healthcare facilities, 52 sports facilities and 7 parks and green areas.
There are 1.1 healthcare facilities per 1,000 residents, more than the province average (0.7).
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 14.1% of the land in Casale Monferrato, compared with 7.2% in the province and 6.7% in the region. In 2024 built-up land grew by 3.3 hectares.
Radon and contaminated sites
Casale Monferrato is not among the radon priority areas designated by the Regione Piemonte in 2023. Radon varies from building to building and can only be known by measuring it, especially on ground floors and in basements.
Official databases list 5 contaminated sites, or sites still under investigation, in Casale Monferrato, and 5 more have 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 Casale Monferrato: 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 Casale Monferrato 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 266 inhabited census areas in Casale Monferrato. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 67 or more.
Residents by band
- modest 4.6%
- fair 35.3%
- good 60.1%
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
- 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.
- Radon priority areas (Legislative Decree 101/2020), Regione Piemonte, national list compiled by ARPA Lombardia. Licence Atto pubblico (art. 5 L. 633/1941), 2023.
- Contaminated sites, Regione Piemonte, Anagrafe regionale dei siti contaminati (ASCO). Licence CC BY 4.0, updated to 9 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 006039. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.