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Ormea: 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 Ormea

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 Roma 1, Ormea.

Ormea, upper Val Tanaro on the road to Liguria

Ormea is a village in the upper Val Tanaro, in the province of Cuneo, on the road that climbs to the Colle di Nava pass and drops down to Imperia. The River Tanaro runs along the valley floor, the old centre huddles round the parish church and the surrounding peaks rise above two thousand metres.

The village has 44 recorded services, among shops, schools, pharmacies and businesses for summer visitors to the valley. The Ligurian coast can be reached by car over the Colle di Nava. For house hunters, the choice runs from stone houses in the centre, often on several floors with little outdoor space, to flats from the second half of the twentieth century, easier for parking and heating.

The population is very old: an average age of 55.7 against 46.3 for the province, and over-65s at 40.7% against 25.1%. There are 1,471 residents, down 14.6% since 2011. Foreign nationals are 7.4%.

The municipality is in seismic zone 3 on the Civil Protection scale, like 141 of the 247 municipalities in the province of Cuneo, with an expected ground acceleration of 0.114 g. For stone houses, the useful checks are the roof, the floors and how the walls are tied together, as well as insulation: winters are long here, climate zone F.

In a mountain valley with a river along its floor, the exact position matters. The report checks the official flood and landslide maps for the address, measures the gradient and gives the cadastral details of the land parcel.

Key points

  • Upper Val Tanaro village, on the road to Liguria.
  • Average age 55.7, over-65s at 40.7%.
  • 1,471 residents, down 14.6% since 2011.
  • Seismic zone 3, expected acceleration 0.114 g.

Overview

Ormea is a municipality in the province of Cuneo, in Piemonte. At the end of 2023 it had 1,471 residents, ranked 89 of 247 municipalities in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Ormea 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 0.114 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 14.6%. The estimated average age is 56 years, higher than the province average (46). 41% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 27%). Foreign residents make up 7.4% of the population. On average, a household has 1.7 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Ormea declared an average taxable income of 20,801 euros, below the provincial average (24,913 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Ormea is in climate zone F, with 3,122 heating degree days, with no limits on when heating may be used. The same table puts the town hall at 736 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Ormea has 4 schools and 2 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 3 grocery shops and supermarkets, 1 sports facility and 3 parks and green areas.

The data shows no healthcare facilities within the municipality, against a provincial average of 0.6 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 1.6% of the land in Ormea, 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

Ormea 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 Ormea.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Ormea: 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 Ormea 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 67 inhabited census areas in Ormea. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 57 or more.

Residents by band

  • modest 14.6%
  • fair 85.4%

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 004155. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.