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Ponzone: what to know before buying a home

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

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Ponzone

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: Frazione Cimaferle 1, Ponzone.

Ponzone, scattered hamlets on the high ground above Acqui Terme

The municipality of Ponzone is large and spread out: the main village, at around 600 metres, and a string of hamlets set among chestnut woods, meadows and ridges on the high ground south of Acqui Terme, towards the Ligurian Apennines. Acqui is the town people rely on for services, secondary schools and the hospital, and the road down to the Bormida valley is the one they drive most.

This is climate zone F, the coldest: long winters, snow and heating on for many months. Many houses are built of stone, either standing alone or grouped in small clusters, and some are used as holiday homes. If you buy in one of the hamlets, factor in the distance to services, snow clearing on the roads and the cost of heating buildings that are often poorly insulated.

Ponzone's population is very old. The average age is 57.9, against 48.9 in the province of Alessandria, and over-65s are 43.1%, against 28.6%. Households are tiny, at 1.55 people on average, a sign that many residents live alone. In 2023 there were 982 residents, down 8.3% on 2011 according to Istat, the national statistics office. Foreign residents are 8.4%.

The municipality is in seismic zone 3, as classified by the Civil Protection Department, like 127 of the 187 municipalities in the province, and expected ground acceleration in the built-up area is 0.055 g, a modest value. In a stone house the roof, damp and the condition of the timber floors matter more than earthquakes.

Cadastral maps are published by the Revenue Agency for the whole area. The report finds the land parcel from the address, hamlets included, and checks the official landslide and flood maps for that spot.

Key points

  • Main village and scattered hamlets south of Acqui Terme.
  • Over-65s at 43.1%, against 28.6% in the province.
  • Climate zone F: long winters and heating for many months.
  • Seismic zone 3, expected acceleration 0.055 g.

Overview

Ponzone is a municipality in the province of Alessandria, in Piemonte. At the end of 2023 it had 982 residents, ranked 73 of 187 municipalities in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Ponzone is in seismic zone 3, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible but rare. Most municipalities in the province (127 of 187) are in the same zone.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.055 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 8.3%. The estimated average age is 58 years, higher than the province average (49). 43% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 27%). Foreign residents make up 8.4% of the population. On average, a household has 1.5 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Ponzone declared an average taxable income of 20,974 euros, below the provincial average (25,143 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Ponzone is in climate zone F, with 3,010 heating degree days, with no limits on when heating may be used. The same table puts the town hall at 629 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Ponzone has 2 schools and 1 pharmacy. The Overture Maps data also lists 1 grocery shop and 1 sports facility.

The data shows no healthcare facilities within the municipality, against a provincial average of 0.7 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 2.5% of the land in Ponzone, compared with 7.2% in the province and 6.7% in the region. In 2024 built-up land stayed almost the same.

Radon and contaminated sites

Ponzone is not among the radon priority areas designated by the Regione Piemonte in 2023. 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 Ponzone.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Ponzone: 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 Ponzone 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 57 inhabited census areas in Ponzone. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 59 or more.

Residents by band

  • fair 89.0%
  • good 11.0%

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 006136. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.