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Salò: what to know before buying a home

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

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Salò

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 Pietro da Salo' 1, Salò.

Salò, the bay on the Brescia shore of Lake Garda

Salò curves around a bay on the western shore of Lake Garda, with its old centre squeezed between the water and the hills and a lakefront promenade you can walk from end to end. For many Italians the name recalls the Salò Republic of 1943-45, the Fascist puppet state that had some of its offices here; for residents it is mainly the service town of this stretch of shore, with secondary schools, offices and shops for the surrounding villages.

The housing market has two sides. On one there are lakeside flats and houses with views, sought after as holiday homes by Italians and foreigners alike; on the other there are residential areas in the hills and further inland, better suited to living here all year. In summer, traffic on the Gardesana lakeside road and parking are real problems, worth bearing in mind if the property has no parking space.

The population is older than average. The average age is 49.1 against 45.4 for the province of Brescia, and 28.7% are over 65, compared with 22.8%. Istat, the national statistics office, counts 10,385 residents, almost the same as in 2011 (up 0.3%), and foreign residents make up 8.3%. Declared incomes are above the provincial average.

The Brescia side of Lake Garda is the most earthquake-prone part of the province: 52 of its 205 municipalities are in seismic zone 2, Salò included, with an expected ground acceleration of about 0.158 g. In 2004 an earthquake struck this very area, damaging a number of buildings. For a house in the old centre, often old and built of stone, ask whether any structural work was done after that quake.

Near the lake and the streams that run down from the hills, the report checks the official flood maps, and on the slopes the landslide maps. The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) publishes the cadastral maps.

Key points

  • On the bay of Salò, the Brescia shore of Lake Garda.
  • 28.7% over 65, against 22.8% in the province.
  • Seismic zone 2, expected acceleration about 0.158 g.
  • Many holiday homes on the lake; incomes above the provincial average.

Overview

Salò is a municipality in the province of Brescia, in Lombardia. At the end of 2023 it had 10,385 residents, ranked 33 of 205 municipalities in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Salò is in seismic zone 2, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible. Only 52 of 205 municipalities in the province are in zone 2.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.158 g, a medium-high value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.

For anyone buying in Salò, 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 number of residents is nearly unchanged. The estimated average age is 49 years, higher than the province average (45). 29% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 24%). Foreign residents make up 8.3% of the population. On average, a household has 2.0 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Salò declared an average taxable income of 29,113 euros, above the provincial average (26,155 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Salò is in climate zone E, with 2,265 heating degree days: heating may be switched on from 15 October to 15 April, for up to 14 hours a day. The same table puts the town hall at 75 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Salò has 13 schools and 3 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 7 grocery shops and supermarkets, 9 healthcare facilities, 11 sports facilities and 4 parks and green areas.

There are 1.3 schools per 1,000 residents, more than the province average (0.8).

Public transport

The open timetables available for the area do not list any stops within the territory of Salò.

How built-up it is

Buildings, roads, car parks and other sealed surfaces cover 11.6% of the land in Salò, compared with 10.5% in the province and 12.2% in the region. In 2024 built-up land grew by 0.5 hectares.

Radon and contaminated sites

Salò is not among the radon priority areas designated by the Regione Lombardia 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 one contaminated site, or site still under investigation, in Salò. The report tells you whether one is close to the address.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Salò: 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 Salò 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 74 inhabited census areas in Salò. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 65 or more.

Residents by band

  • modest 1.6%
  • fair 41.0%
  • good 57.4%

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 017170. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.