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Pau: what to know before buying a home

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

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Pau

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 San Giorgio 1, Pau.

Pau, the obsidian village below Monte Arci

Monte Arci, inland from Oristano, is known for obsidian, the black volcanic glass that in prehistoric times was worked and traded across the western Mediterranean. Pau sits on its eastern side, facing the Marmilla area, and has a museum devoted to the subject. It is a small farming village of low houses, courtyards and fields rising towards the woods of the mountain.

For work, secondary schools and hospital care people head towards Oristano or Ales, and without a car life is hard. The climate is mild (climate zone C), so heating costs less than in mountain villages. If you buy a traditional house in stone or mud brick, have rising damp and the roof checked: these are the weak points of such buildings.

In 2023 Istat, Italy's national statistics office, counted 270 residents, 30 fewer than the 300 of 2011, a fall of 10.0%. The population is old, with an average age of 54.4 against 49.8 in the province and over-65s at 38.9% against 29.5%. Foreign residents account for 2.2%, and declared incomes are below the provincial average.

Earthquake risk is low. Pau, like all 87 municipalities in the province of Oristano, is in seismic zone 4 of the Civil Protection Department's scale, with an expected acceleration of about 0.050 g. Maintenance and the quality of past building work matter more than earthquakes. For houses on the lower slopes of the mountain, the report checks the official landslide and flood maps at the exact address.

Key points

  • Farming village on the eastern side of Monte Arci.
  • 270 residents in 2023, down 10.0% since 2011.
  • Over-65s at 38.9%, against 29.5% in the province.
  • All 87 municipalities in the province in seismic zone 4.

Overview

Pau is a municipality in the province of Oristano, in Sardegna. At the end of 2023 it had 270 residents, ranked 74 of 87 municipalities in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Pau is in seismic zone 4, the lowest-risk zone, where strong earthquakes are very rare. All 87 municipalities in the province are in the same zone.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.050 g, a moderate 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 10.0%. The estimated average age is 54 years, higher than the province average (50). 39% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 27%). Foreign residents make up 2.2% of the population. On average, a household has 2.0 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Pau declared an average taxable income of 16,295 euros, below the provincial average (19,764 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Pau is in climate zone C, with 1,380 heating degree days: heating may be switched on from 15 November to 31 March, for up to 10 hours a day. The same table puts the town hall at 315 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Pau has 1 pharmacy. The Overture Maps data also lists 1 grocery shop.

The data shows no schools within the municipality, against a provincial average of 1.2 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 2.1% of the land in Pau, compared with 3.4% in the region. In 2024 built-up land stayed almost the same.

Radon and contaminated sites

Pau is not among the radon priority areas designated by the Regione Sardegna in 2022. Radon varies from building to building and can only be known by measuring it, especially on ground floors and in basements.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Pau: 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 Pau 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 2 inhabited census areas in Pau. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 74 or more.

Residents by band

  • good 100.0%

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 115047. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.