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Menconico: what to know before buying a home

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

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Menconico

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 Capoluogo 1, Menconico.

Menconico, in the Oltrepò mountains above the Staffora valley

In the Oltrepò Pavese, the part of the province of Pavia south of the river Po, the vineyard hills give way southwards to the Apennines. Menconico is already in the mountains, above seven hundred metres, in the Staffora valley area above Varzi, with hamlets scattered among woods and meadows. The nearest services are in Varzi; Voghera and Pavia are a long way off, and life here is hard without a car.

Age is the figure that best describes the village. Istat, Italy's national statistics office, counted 339 residents in 2023, against 378 in 2011 (down 10.3%), with an estimated average age of 57.3, compared with 47.1 in the province. Over-65s make up 44.2% of residents, against 25.2% across the province, and households average 1.77 people. Foreign residents make up 4.1%. Incomes are below the provincial average.

For buyers, the market consists of stone houses in the hamlets, often large and on several levels, and a few small detached homes. Putting them right can take substantial work: in climate zone F you need good heating and good insulation, and roofs and gutters must be checked against snow. Ask how the roads are kept clear in winter.

Menconico is in seismic zone 3 on the Civil Protection scale, like 157 of the 184 municipalities in the province of Pavia, with an expected acceleration of about 0.099 g. In stone houses, ask how the walls and floors are tied together.

The slopes of this part of the Apennines are often clay. The report checks the official landslide maps for the exact address, and the Revenue Agency's cadastral maps are available.

Key points

  • Oltrepò mountains, above Varzi in the Staffora valley area.
  • Average age 57.3, with 44.2% over 65.
  • 339 residents in 2023, fewer than in 2011.
  • Seismic zone 3, expected acceleration about 0.099 g.

Overview

Menconico is a municipality in the province of Pavia, in Lombardia. At the end of 2023 it had 339 residents, among the smallest in the province (166 of 184).

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Menconico is in seismic zone 3, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible but rare. Most municipalities in the province (157 of 184) are in the same zone.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.099 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 10.3%. The estimated average age is 57 years, higher than the province average (47). 44% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 24%). Foreign residents make up 4.1% of the population. On average, a household has 1.8 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Menconico declared an average taxable income of 21,068 euros, below the provincial average (26,290 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Menconico is in climate zone F, with 3,420 heating degree days, with no limits on when heating may be used. The same table puts the town hall at 728 metres above sea level.

Services

The data shows no schools within the municipality, against a provincial average of 0.9 per 1,000 residents.

Public transport

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

How built-up it is

Buildings, roads, car parks and other sealed surfaces cover 4.3% of the land in Menconico, compared with 9.6% in the province and 12.2% in the region. In 2024 built-up land stayed almost the same.

Radon and contaminated sites

Menconico 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 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 Menconico.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Menconico: 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 Menconico 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 25 inhabited census areas in Menconico. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 56 or more.

Residents by band

  • modest 4.0%
  • fair 96.0%

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 018089. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.