San Benedetto Val di Sambro: what to know before buying a home
A municipality in the province of Bologna, Emilia-Romagna. Official data on earthquakes, population, services and transport.
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Search for an address in San Benedetto Val di Sambro
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 degli dei 1, San Benedetto Val di Sambro.
San Benedetto Val di Sambro, Apennines between Bologna and Florence
In the Bologna Apennines, halfway between Bologna and Florence, San Benedetto Val di Sambro takes its name from the stream running down its valley. The town hall stands at around six hundred metres, but the municipality is made up of many hamlets scattered across woods and ridges, among them Madonna dei Fornelli, a stop on the Via degli Dei, the walking route linking the two cities.
For getting around, the location is good for a mountain municipality. The A1 motorway crosses the area on its original route, and the Bologna to Florence Direttissima railway also crosses the municipality. It is still a place where you need a car: services, secondary schools and the hospital are down on the plain or in the larger towns of the valley.
The population is elderly and slowly falling: 4,216 residents in 2023, 4.0% fewer than in 2011, with an average age of 49.4 against 46.6 in the metropolitan city and over-65s at 29.1%. Foreign residents make up 10.0%. Average declared incomes are below the Bologna average. Some houses are used as second homes, in summer or at weekends.
On the clay slopes of the Apennines the most practical issue is landslides: the report checks the official maps for the address and measures the gradient of the ground. As for earthquakes, the metropolitan city has 12 municipalities in seismic zone 2 and 43 in zone 3 (classification by Italy's Civil Protection Department); San Benedetto is in zone 3, with an expected ground acceleration of about 0.173 g. For a stone house, ask about the condition of walls, roof and floors.
Climate zone E brings long winters, with snow at higher elevations. The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) cadastral maps are published and the report traces the plot.
Key points
- Apennine municipality of scattered hamlets on the Via degli Dei.
- Over-65s at 29.1%, average age 49.4.
- Seismic zone 3, expected ground acceleration about 0.173 g.
- Clay slopes: check landslides and gradient for the plot.
Overview
San Benedetto Val di Sambro is a municipality in the province of Bologna, in Emilia-Romagna. At the end of 2023 it had 4,216 residents, ranked 45 of 55 municipalities in the province.
Earthquakes
For Italy's Civil Protection Department, San Benedetto Val di Sambro is in seismic zone 3, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible but rare. Most municipalities in the province (43 of 55) are in the same zone.
In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.173 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 4.0%. The estimated average age is 49 years, higher than the province average (47). 29% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 25%). Foreign residents make up 10.0% of the population. On average, a household has 2.0 members.
Income and climate
In tax year 2024, taxpayers in San Benedetto Val di Sambro declared an average taxable income of 24,351 euros, below the provincial average (29,157 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.
San Benedetto Val di Sambro is in climate zone E, with 2,808 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 602 metres above sea level.
Services
In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, San Benedetto Val di Sambro has 6 schools and 2 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 5 grocery shops and supermarkets, 1 healthcare facility, 3 sports facilities and 1 green area.
There are 0.2 healthcare facilities per 1,000 residents, fewer than the province average (0.8).
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 5.3% of the land in San Benedetto Val di Sambro, compared with 9.0% in the province and 9.0% in the region. In 2024 built-up land grew by 1.1 hectares.
Radon and contaminated sites
San Benedetto Val di Sambro is not among the radon priority areas designated by the Regione Emilia-Romagna 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 open contaminated sites in San Benedetto Val di Sambro; one has been cleaned up or closed.
Landslides and flooding
Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within San Benedetto Val di Sambro: 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 San Benedetto Val di Sambro 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 78 inhabited census areas in San Benedetto Val di Sambro. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 57 or more.
Residents by band
- modest 3.9%
- fair 69.9%
- good 26.2%
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
- Seismic classification of municipalities, Dipartimento della Protezione Civile. Licence CC BY 4.0, updated to 2025-05.
- MPS04 seismic hazard model, INGV. Licence CC BY 4.0, 2004 model.
- Data by census section, Istat. Licence CC BY 4.0, residents at the end of 2023, compared with the 2011 census.
- Places, Overture Maps Foundation. Licence CDLA Permissive 2.0 and others depending on provider, release 2026-10-21.0.
- Income and main IRPEF variables by municipality, MEF, Dipartimento delle Finanze. Licence CC BY 3.0 IT, tax year 2024.
- Climate zones and heating degree days of municipalities (Presidential Decree 412/1993, Annex A), Normattiva. Licence CC BY 4.0, current text.
- Land take, territorial dynamics and ecosystem services, ISPRA e SNPA. Licence CC BY 4.0, 2024 data.
- Predictive radon map by municipality, ISPRA. Licence CC BY 4.0, version 2022-11.
- Radon priority areas (Legislative Decree 101/2020), Regione Emilia-Romagna, national list compiled by ARPA Lombardia. Licence Atto pubblico (art. 5 L. 633/1941), 2026.
- Contaminated sites, ISPRA, MOSAICO - Banca dati nazionale dei siti oggetto di procedimento di bonifica. Licence CC BY 4.0, updated to 12 November 2026.
- Liveability index by census area, Vicinalia, from the data in the report sections. Licence CC BY-SA 4.0, worked out on 30 September 2026.
- List of Italian municipalities, Istat. Licence CC BY 4.0, updated to 21 February 2026.
ISTAT code 037051. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.