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Macra: 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 Macra

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: Borgata Camoglieres 1, Macra.

Macra, halfway up the Valle Maira by the river

Halfway up the Valle Maira, where the valley narrows between wooded slopes, Macra stretches along the main road and climbs the mountainside with its hamlets. The town hall is below nine hundred metres, lower than the villages of the upper valley, and the Maira river flows just below the houses.

Its position on the valley road is the main advantage for a buyer. You can drive down to services in the lower valley without the long hairpin stretches of the higher hamlets. The hamlets on the slopes, on the other hand, have steeper access and need assessing one by one. Houses are stone with slab roofs, often in need of restoration. The village is in climate zone F, the coldest band in Italy's heating classification.

According to Istat, the national statistics office, there were 45 residents in 2023, down 13.5% since 2011. The estimated average age is 52.8, against 46.3 in the province of Cuneo; over-65s make up 37.8% and foreign residents 8.9%. Declared incomes are below the provincial average.

Macra is in seismic zone 3, like 140 other municipalities in the province, with expected ground acceleration of about 0.138 g. Before buying a masonry house, find out whether and when structural work was done.

The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) publishes cadastral maps, and the report links the address to its land parcel. For houses near the river the first check is flooding; for those on the slopes, landslides and avalanches. The report checks them on the official maps at the exact address.

Key points

  • Halfway up the Valle Maira, on the main valley road.
  • 45 residents in 2023, down 13.5% since 2011.
  • Average age 52.8, foreign residents at 8.9%.
  • Seismic zone 3, expected acceleration about 0.138 g.

Overview

Macra is a municipality in the province of Cuneo, in Piemonte. At the end of 2023 it had 45 residents, among the smallest in the province (246 of 247).

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Macra 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 0.138 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 resident population has fallen by 13.5%. The estimated average age is 53 years, higher than the province average (46). 38% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 27%). Foreign residents make up 8.9% of the population. On average, a household has 1.5 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Macra declared an average taxable income of 18,802 euros, below the provincial average (24,913 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Macra is in climate zone F, with 3,400 heating degree days, with no limits on when heating may be used. The same table puts the town hall at 875 metres above sea level.

Services

The data shows no schools within the municipality, against a provincial average of 1.1 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 0.8% of the land in Macra, 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

Macra 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 no contaminated sites in Macra.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Macra: 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 Macra 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 11 inhabited census areas in Macra. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 62 or more.

Residents by band

  • fair 62.8%
  • good 37.2%

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 004112. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.