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Gavardo: what to know before buying a home

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

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Gavardo

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 Giovanni Quarena 1, Gavardo.

Gavardo, on the Chiese at the mouth of the Valle Sabbia

Gavardo sits where the river Chiese leaves the Valle Sabbia and opens out towards the plain, east of Brescia and a few kilometres from Lake Garda. It is the town you pass through heading up the valley or towards Salò, and its hospital serves a wide area, from the valley to the Brescia shore of the lake.

The road is the only link: the railway does not reach Gavardo and the public transport data show no train stops. Brescia is reached by car along the main road, which also carries lorries bound for the valley's factories, so rush-hour journeys take longer. The centre lies on the banks of the Chiese, with newer districts and workshop areas spread across the valley floor and the first hills.

The population is growing. Istat, the national statistics office, counted 12,332 residents in 2023, up 5.5% on 2011. The average age (44.6) is below the provincial figure (45.4), over-65s make up 21.5% and foreign nationals 13.7%. Declared incomes are a little below the Brescia average.

Earthquakes should not be underestimated. The area between the Valle Sabbia and Lake Garda lies in the most seismic band of the province, and in 2004 a shock centred near Salò damaged houses and churches in the valley villages too. Gavardo is in seismic zone 2 of the Civil Protection classification, like 52 municipalities in the province, with an expected ground acceleration of about 0.159 g. For a house built before the latest earthquake-proofing rules, ask whether any structural work has been done.

The Chiese runs through the town, and this is also where the Naviglio Grande Bresciano, a canal fed by the river, begins. Areas near the river and the canals should be checked on the official flood maps, and the hillsides on the landslide maps. The report checks both at the address and finds the land parcel on the Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) cadastral maps.

Key points

  • At the mouth of the Valle Sabbia, with the area's hospital.
  • Residents up 5.5% since 2011, foreign nationals 13.7%.
  • Seismic zone 2, expected ground acceleration about 0.159 g.
  • No railway: Brescia by car or bus.

Overview

Gavardo is a municipality in the province of Brescia, in Lombardia. At the end of 2023 it had 12,332 residents, ranked 24 of 205 municipalities in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Gavardo is in seismic zone 2, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible. Only 52 of 205 municipalities in the province are in zone 2.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.159 g, a medium-high value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.

For anyone buying in Gavardo, 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 grown by 5.5%. The estimated average age is 45 years, in line with the province. 22% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 24%). Foreign residents make up 13.7% of the population. On average, a household has 2.4 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Gavardo declared an average taxable income of 24,468 euros, below the provincial average (26,155 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Gavardo is in climate zone E, with 2,494 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 199 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Gavardo has 10 schools and 3 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 8 grocery shops and supermarkets, 9 healthcare facilities, 8 sports facilities and 1 green area.

There are 0.2 pharmacies per 1,000 residents, fewer than the province average (0.3).

Public transport

The open timetables available for the area do not list any stops within the territory of Gavardo.

How built-up it is

Buildings, roads, car parks and other sealed surfaces cover 14.7% of the land in Gavardo, compared with 10.5% in the province and 12.2% in the region. In 2024 built-up land grew by 1.6 hectares.

Radon and contaminated sites

Gavardo is not among the radon priority areas designated by the Regione Lombardia 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 open contaminated sites in Gavardo; one has been cleaned up or closed.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Gavardo: 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 Gavardo 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 46 inhabited census areas in Gavardo. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 66 or more.

Residents by band

  • modest 2.6%
  • fair 27.3%
  • good 70.1%

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

ISTAT code 017077. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.