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Castel Vittorio: what to know before buying a home

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

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Castel Vittorio

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 Vitt. Emanuele 1, Castel Vittorio.

Castel Vittorio, a stone village in the upper Val Nervia

Inland from Ventimiglia, the Val Nervia climbs from the sea towards the Ligurian Alps, and Castel Vittorio sits in its upper part at around four hundred metres. It is a compact medieval village built along a ridge, with stone houses packed tightly together and covered passages between the lanes. Until the nineteenth century it was called Castelfranco; the present name honours King Victor Emmanuel II. The slopes around it are terraced or wooded.

Buying here usually means a village house, often on several floors and reachable only on foot, or a country cottage to restore. Before making an offer, work out how you get there by car, where you can park and how the roof has been looked after over the years. For shops, schools and the hospital you drive down the valley to the western Riviera coast.

The population is old: an estimated average age of 56.7 against 48.7, and over-65s at 43.5% compared with 28.5% in the province of Imperia. In 2023 Istat, the national statistics office, counted 248 residents, down 24.6% since 2011, and foreign nationals make up 14.5%. Average declared incomes are well below the provincial average.

Castel Vittorio is in seismic zone 3 of the Civil Protection classification, like 36 of the 66 municipalities in the province, with an expected ground acceleration in the village of about 0.160 g. Western Liguria has had damaging earthquakes in the past, so in the stone buildings of the old centre ask whether work has been done on the floors and on tying the walls together. The land registry is the Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) one, with published maps, and the report checks slope and landslide maps for the address.

Key points

  • Medieval stone village in the upper Val Nervia, inland from Ventimiglia.
  • Over-65s at 43.5%, against 28.5% in the province.
  • 248 residents in 2023, down 24.6% since 2011.
  • Seismic zone 3, expected acceleration about 0.160 g.

Overview

Castel Vittorio is a municipality in the province of Imperia, in Liguria. At the end of 2023 it had 248 residents, ranked 58 of 66 municipalities in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Castel Vittorio is in seismic zone 3, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible but rare. Most municipalities in the province (36 of 66) are in the same zone.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.160 g, a medium-high 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 resident population has fallen by 24.6%. The estimated average age is 57 years, higher than the province average (49). 44% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 29%). Foreign residents make up 14.5% of the population. On average, a household has 1.6 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Castel Vittorio declared an average taxable income of 14,797 euros, below the provincial average (21,487 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Castel Vittorio is in climate zone E, with 2,143 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 420 metres above sea level.

Services

The data shows no schools within the municipality, against a provincial average of 1.0 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 2.0% of the land in Castel Vittorio, compared with 6.4% in the province and 7.3% in the region. In 2024 built-up land stayed almost the same.

Radon and contaminated sites

Castel Vittorio is not among the radon priority areas designated by the Regione Liguria in 2026. According to the ISPRA map, the estimated radon emission in the municipality is low. 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 Castel Vittorio.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Castel Vittorio: 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 Castel Vittorio 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 5 inhabited census areas in Castel Vittorio. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 59 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 008015. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.