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Pievepelago: 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 Pievepelago

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, Pievepelago.

Pievepelago, Modena's Apennines on the Abetone road

On the main road that climbs to the Abetone pass and Tuscany, Pievepelago is one of the towns of the high Modena Apennines, at around 780 metres. The area is woods, meadows and hamlets scattered along the valleys, and it includes Lago Santo Modenese, one of the best-known summer destinations in the area. Modena and the plain are an hour or more of bends away, so most residents work locally.

The housing market has two sides. There are homes lived in all year round, and many flats and houses used as second homes in summer and during the snow season. Before buying, look at insulation, heating and running costs: this is climate zone F, the one with the longest winters. Declared incomes are well below the average for the province of Modena.

Istat, Italy's national statistics office, counted 2,147 residents in 2023, down 4.2% on 2011. The mean age is 48.2, against 45.8 in the province; over-65s make up 26.9% and foreign residents 13.6%, a high share for a mountain municipality.

In the province of Modena 7 municipalities are in seismic zone 2, Pievepelago among them, with an expected ground acceleration of 0.196 g. For a stone or masonry house, ask when it was built and whether any structural work has been done.

The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) publishes the cadastral maps. The report starts from the address, finds the land parcel and reads slope and the official landslide and flood maps for that spot.

Key points

  • High Apennine town near Modena, on the way to Abetone.
  • Many second homes, long winters in climate zone F.
  • Population down 4.2% since 2011.
  • Seismic zone 2, expected acceleration 0.196 g.

Overview

Pievepelago is a municipality in the province of Modena, in Emilia-Romagna. At the end of 2023 it had 2,147 residents, ranked 40 of 47 municipalities in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Pievepelago is in seismic zone 2, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible. Only 7 of 47 municipalities in the province are in zone 2.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.196 g, a medium-high value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.

For anyone buying in Pievepelago, the building matters a great deal: ask for the design year, whether it met the 2008 seismic standards, and whether any seismic retrofit has been carried out.

Population

Compared with the 2011 census, the resident population has fallen by 4.2%. The estimated average age is 48 years, higher than the province average (46). 27% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 25%). Foreign residents make up 13.6% of the population. On average, a household has 2.0 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Pievepelago declared an average taxable income of 20,770 euros, below the provincial average (27,632 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Pievepelago is in climate zone F, with 3,299 heating degree days, with no limits on when heating may be used. The same table puts the town hall at 781 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Pievepelago has 6 schools and 1 pharmacy. The Overture Maps data also lists 2 grocery shops and supermarkets, 2 sports facilities and 2 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 3.3% of the land in Pievepelago, compared with 11.1% in the province and 9.0% in the region. In 2024 built-up land stayed almost the same.

Radon and contaminated sites

Pievepelago 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 no contaminated sites in Pievepelago.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Pievepelago: 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 Pievepelago 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 54 inhabited census areas in Pievepelago. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 59 or more.

Residents by band

  • modest 0.8%
  • fair 65.2%
  • good 34.0%

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 036031. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.