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Madonna del Sasso: what to know before buying a home

A municipality in the province of Verbano-Cusio-Ossola, Piemonte. Official data on earthquakes, population, services and transport.

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Madonna del Sasso

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 Leonida Ferrari 1, Madonna del Sasso.

Madonna del Sasso, the sanctuary above Lake Orta

The name comes from the sanctuary built on a granite spur that drops sheer to the western shore of Lake Orta, and that is the picture most people have in mind. The municipality itself, though, is a set of small hamlets scattered across the upland behind, above six hundred metres, among woods, meadows and old stone quarries. For services people go down to the lakeside towns and Omegna, or over towards Valsesia.

Buyers here usually want a stone house with a lake view or a summer home. Roads are mountain roads, narrow with hairpin bends, and in winter the altitude makes itself felt: the climate zone is F, so budget for heating from the start. For houses near rock faces or on a slope, the report checks the official landslide maps at the precise spot.

In 2023 there were 359 residents, 37 fewer than the 396 of 2011, a fall of 9.3% according to Istat, the national statistics office. The estimated average age is 50.5, against 49.0 in the province of Verbano-Cusio-Ossola, and over-65s make up 27.0%. Foreign residents are 10.3%. Declared incomes are in line with the province.

Seismic risk is low. The municipality is in zone 4, the calmest on the national scale used by the Civil Protection Department, like 45 other municipalities in the province, and expected ground acceleration in the built-up area is about 0.044 g. In older houses the roof, damp in the stone walls and the state of the systems matter more.

The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) publishes cadastral maps for Madonna del Sasso, and the report links the address to its land parcel.

Key points

  • Sanctuary on a granite spur above Lake Orta.
  • Scattered upland hamlets, climate zone F winters.
  • 359 residents, down 9.3% since 2011.
  • Seismic zone 4, the lowest: acceleration about 0.044 g.

Overview

Madonna del Sasso is a municipality in the province of Verbano-Cusio-Ossola, in Piemonte. At the end of 2023 it had 359 residents, ranked 60 of 74 municipalities in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Madonna del Sasso is in seismic zone 4, the lowest-risk zone, where strong earthquakes are very rare. Most municipalities in the province (46 of 74) are in the same zone.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.044 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 9.3%. The estimated average age is 50 years, higher than the province average (49). 27% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 27%). Foreign residents make up 10.3% of the population. On average, a household has 2.0 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Madonna del Sasso declared an average taxable income of 22,933 euros, in line with the province (23,146 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Madonna del Sasso is in climate zone F, with 3,209 heating degree days, with no limits on when heating may be used. The same table puts the town hall at 696 metres above sea level.

Services

The data shows no schools within the municipality, against a provincial average of 1.3 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 Madonna del Sasso, compared with 2.8% in the province and 6.7% in the region. In 2024 built-up land stayed almost the same.

Radon and contaminated sites

Madonna del Sasso 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 Madonna del Sasso.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Madonna del Sasso: 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 Madonna del Sasso 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 9 inhabited census areas in Madonna del Sasso. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 58 or more.

Residents by band

  • fair 65.0%
  • good 35.0%

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 103040. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.