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Sala Biellese: what to know before buying a home

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

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Sala Biellese

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 Garibaldi 1, Sala Biellese.

Sala Biellese, on the Serra ridge between Biella and Ivrea

The Serra is the long moraine ridge, left by the ancient Dora Baltea glacier, that separates the Biella area from the Canavese around Ivrea. Sala Biellese lies on its slope at around 600 metres, among broadleaf woods, meadows and small clusters of houses. Biella is the reference town for work and services, and Ivrea, on the other side of the Serra, is also within driving distance.

The village is quiet and residential, with detached houses, small villas and old stone houses in the historic clusters. People who move here choose woodland and silence, but must reckon with climate zone F: long, damp winters and heating that weighs on costs. In a house surrounded by woods, also check for damp, drainage and the upkeep of nearby trees.

The population is falling: 539 residents in 2023 against 627 in 2011, a drop of 14.0%. The average age is 51.5, above the provincial 49.7, and over-65s make up 32.3%. Households are small, 1.83 people on average. Declared incomes are below the Biella average.

Sala Biellese is in seismic zone 3, together with 23 other municipalities in the province of Biella, while the rest are in zone 4; the expected ground acceleration in the village is low, about 0.042 g. For stone houses it is still worth asking whether the roof and floors have been redone.

The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) cadastral maps cover the municipality and the report traces the address to its parcel. On a hillside, slope and landslide hazard should be checked for the plot, as the report does with the official maps.

Key points

  • On the Serra, the moraine ridge between Biella and the Canavese.
  • 539 residents, down 14.0% since 2011.
  • Climate zone F: long winters, check for damp.
  • Seismic zone 3, low acceleration of about 0.042 g.

Overview

Sala Biellese is a municipality in the province of Biella, in Piemonte. At the end of 2023 it had 539 residents, ranked 53 of 74 municipalities in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Sala Biellese is in seismic zone 3, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible but rare. Only 24 of 74 municipalities in the province are in zone 3.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.042 g, a low 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 14.0%. The estimated average age is 52 years, higher than the province average (50). 32% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 27%). Foreign residents make up 5.2% of the population. On average, a household has 1.8 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Sala Biellese declared an average taxable income of 21,013 euros, below the provincial average (25,111 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Sala Biellese is in climate zone F, with 3,118 heating degree days, with no limits on when heating may be used. The same table puts the town hall at 626 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Sala Biellese has 1 school. The Overture Maps data also lists 3 parks and green areas.

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 4.1% of the land in Sala Biellese, compared with 8.0% in the province and 6.7% in the region. In 2024 built-up land stayed almost the same.

Radon and contaminated sites

Sala Biellese 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 Sala Biellese.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Sala Biellese: 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 Sala Biellese 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 6 inhabited census areas in Sala Biellese. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 63 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 096057. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.