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Nonantola: what to know before buying a home

A municipality in the province of Modena, Emilia-Romagna. Official data on earthquakes, population, services and transport.

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Nonantola

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 di Mezzo 1, Nonantola.

Nonantola, its abbey and the plain between Modena and the Panaro

Nonantola grew up around the abbey of San Silvestro, one of the leading Benedictine monasteries of medieval northern Italy, and its compact old centre still keeps its medieval towers. The town lies on the plain north-east of Modena, towards the border with the province of Bologna. Beyond the centre are housing estates built in recent decades and farmland with old farmhouses.

It is handy for anyone working in Modena, about ten kilometres away, and Bologna can be reached by car too. The market offers flats in newer blocks, terraced houses and farmhouses (case coloniche) to restore, sometimes subject to conservation rules on historic rural buildings.

Water is the issue to look at most carefully. The river Panaro runs close to the town, and its floods, like those of the lowland channels, have already reached parts of the municipality. The report checks official flood hazard maps for the individual address; for a house with ground-floor or basement rooms, it is also worth asking whether water has ever come in.

At the end of 2023 Nonantola had 16,110 residents, up 6.1% on 2011 according to Istat, the national statistics office. The estimated average age is 45.2 (45.8 in the province of Modena), over-65s make up 22.0% and foreign residents 10.1%. Incomes are in line with the provincial average.

The 2012 earthquake reminded the whole Modena plain that the ground can shake here too. Nonantola is in zone 3, but its expected ground acceleration of about 0.160 g is high for that zone, and 7 municipalities in the province are in zone 2. Buyers should ask whether the building was surveyed or strengthened after 2012. The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) publishes cadastral maps for Nonantola.

Key points

  • San Silvestro abbey and medieval towers in the centre.
  • The Panaro and lowland channels: check the flood hazard.
  • Up 6.1% since 2011, foreign residents 10.1%.
  • Seismic zone 3, yet acceleration of about 0.160 g.

Overview

Nonantola is a municipality in the province of Modena, in Emilia-Romagna. At the end of 2023 it had 16,110 residents, ranked 11 of 47 municipalities in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Nonantola is in seismic zone 3, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible but rare. Most municipalities in the province (40 of 47) 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 grown by 6.1%. The estimated average age is 45 years, in line with the province. 22% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 25%). Foreign residents make up 10.1% of the population. On average, a household has 2.3 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Nonantola declared an average taxable income of 27,484 euros, in line with the province (27,632 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Nonantola is in climate zone E, with 2,243 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 24 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Nonantola has 7 schools and 4 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 9 grocery shops and supermarkets, 7 healthcare facilities, 9 sports facilities and 3 parks and green areas.

There are 0.4 schools per 1,000 residents, fewer than the province average (0.7).

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 10.6% of the land in Nonantola, compared with 11.1% in the province and 9.0% in the region. In 2024 built-up land grew by 0.6 hectares.

Radon and contaminated sites

Nonantola is not among the radon priority areas designated by the Regione Emilia-Romagna in 2026. Radon varies from building to building and can only be known by measuring it, especially on ground floors and in basements.

Official databases list 3 contaminated sites, or sites still under investigation, in Nonantola. The report tells you whether one is close to the address.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Nonantola: 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 Nonantola 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 87 inhabited census areas in Nonantola. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 62 or more.

Residents by band

  • modest 5.5%
  • fair 59.5%
  • 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 036027. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.