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Prazzo: 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 Prazzo

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 Ussolo 1, Prazzo.

Prazzo, mountain hamlets in the upper Maira valley

Prazzo is one of the municipalities of the upper Maira valley, an Occitan-speaking valley in south-western Piedmont that climbs from Dronero towards the French border. It is made up of stone hamlets at different heights, with the town hall at around 1,000 metres, surrounded by woods, pastures and mountains. For secondary schools, the hospital and shops people drive down the valley towards Dronero and Cuneo.

Prazzo has not lost residents: in 2023 there were 179, 2.3% more than the 175 of 2011, according to Istat, the national statistics office. The population is still old, though, with an estimated average age of 53.9 against 46.3 in the province of Cuneo and over-65s at 38.0%. Households average 1.74 people.

Buyers will find stone houses with slab roofs, often in the higher hamlets, and barns to convert. Building work costs more up the valley, because materials and builders come from far away and the working season is short. Climate zone F means long, snowy winters, so insulation, heating and winter access to the hamlet need clearing up before you sign. Tourism in the valley is mostly about walking routes and Occitan culture.

Prazzo is in seismic zone 3 under the Civil Protection classification, like 141 of the 247 municipalities in the province, with expected ground acceleration of about 0.131 g. With a stone house, ask whether the roof and floors have been redone and tied into the walls.

In the mountains, avalanches, landslides and flash floods vary from one hamlet to the next: the report checks the official maps for the address and finds the land parcel on the Revenue Agency's cadastral maps.

Key points

  • Stone hamlets in the upper Maira valley, an Occitan-speaking valley.
  • 179 residents in 2023, up 2.3% since 2011.
  • Average age 53.9, over-65s at 38.0%.
  • Seismic zone 3, expected acceleration about 0.131 g.

Overview

Prazzo is a municipality in the province of Cuneo, in Piemonte. At the end of 2023 it had 179 residents, ranked 205 of 247 municipalities in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Prazzo 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 0.131 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 grown by 2.3%. The estimated average age is 54 years, higher than the province average (46). 38% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 27%). Foreign residents make up 4.5% of the population. On average, a household has 1.7 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Prazzo declared an average taxable income of 16,629 euros, below the provincial average (24,913 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Prazzo is in climate zone F, with 3,592 heating degree days, with no limits on when heating may be used. The same table puts the town hall at 1,030 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Prazzo has 2 schools.

The data shows no pharmacies within the municipality, against a provincial average of 0.4 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 1.1% of the land in Prazzo, 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

Prazzo 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 Prazzo.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Prazzo: 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 Prazzo 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 16 inhabited census areas in Prazzo. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 60 or more.

Residents by band

  • fair 78.5%
  • good 21.5%

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 004174. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.