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Pigna: what to know before buying a home

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

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Pigna

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 Rocco 1, Pigna.

Pigna, a medieval Val Nervia village with sulphur springs

Pigna is a medieval village in the upper Val Nervia, inland from Ventimiglia and Bordighera on the far western Ligurian coast, built in concentric rings on the side of a hill, with narrow lanes, covered passages and stone houses packed against one another. The hamlet of Buggio, further up the valley, also belongs to the municipality, and within its boundaries are sulphurous springs known for spa use. The coast is reached by driving down the valley.

The village has lost many residents. Istat, the national statistics office, counted 894 residents in 2011 and 739 in 2023: 155 fewer, or 17.3%. The average age is 53.3 against 48.7 in the province of Imperia, and over-65s make up 37.1%, against 28.5%. Foreign residents account for 14.3%. Average declared income is below the provincial figure.

Houses in the old centre have the charm and the limits of Ligurian hill villages: no car at the door, stairs, small rooms, thick and sometimes damp walls. Before buying, check the roof, wiring and plumbing, drainage and any restrictions on building work. Outside the village there are rural buildings and houses with land on the terraces. This is climate zone D, with mild winters.

Pigna is in seismic zone 3, like 35 other municipalities in the province, with an expected ground acceleration of about 0.160 g. In the stone houses of the village, often joined to one another, the first check is to ask what work has been done on roofs and floors.

The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) cadastral maps cover the municipality, and the report links each address to its land parcel, checking landslides and mountain streams on the official maps.

Key points

  • Medieval village in the upper Val Nervia, with the hamlet of Buggio.
  • Sulphurous springs known for spa use.
  • Population down 17.3% since 2011.
  • Seismic zone 3, expected acceleration about 0.160 g.

Overview

Pigna is a municipality in the province of Imperia, in Liguria. At the end of 2023 it had 739 residents, ranked 32 of 66 municipalities in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Pigna is in seismic zone 3, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible but rare. Most municipalities in the province (36 of 66) 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 fallen by 17.3%. The estimated average age is 53 years, higher than the province average (49). 37% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 29%). Foreign residents make up 14.3% of the population. On average, a household has 1.8 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Pigna declared an average taxable income of 16,931 euros, below the provincial average (21,487 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Pigna is in climate zone D, with 1,860 heating degree days: heating may be switched on from 1 November to 15 April, for up to 12 hours a day. The same table puts the town hall at 280 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Pigna has 3 schools and 1 pharmacy.

The data shows no grocery shops and supermarkets within the municipality, against a provincial average of 0.9 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 Pigna, compared with 6.4% in the province and 7.3% in the region. In 2024 built-up land stayed almost the same.

Radon and contaminated sites

Pigna is not among the radon priority areas designated by the Regione Liguria in 2026. 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 Pigna.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Pigna: 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 Pigna 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 12 inhabited census areas in Pigna. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 57 or more.

Residents by band

  • fair 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 008043. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.