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San Nazzaro Val Cavargna: what to know before buying a home

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

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in San Nazzaro Val Cavargna

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 Don Luigi Gabbani 12, San Nazzaro Val Cavargna.

San Nazzaro Val Cavargna, a valley near the Swiss border

Val Cavargna climbs from the Porlezza area, between Lake Lugano and the Swiss border, and San Nazzaro Val Cavargna is one of the villages on its slopes, at about a thousand metres. Stone houses are packed onto the hillside, with woods and summer pastures all around. It is an enclosed valley reached by a single mountain road.

Anyone thinking of buying here should allow for long journeys. For shopping and services you go down to Porlezza and the lake shore, and for anything else towards Menaggio or Como. There are no shops or schools in the village. Old houses need attention to roofs, damp and insulation, because this is climate zone F and winters are long.

Istat, Italy's national statistics office, counted 262 residents in 2023, against 338 in 2011, a fall of 22.5%. The estimated average age is 52.9, against 46.3 in the province of Como, and over-65s make up 36.6% against 24.1%. Foreign residents account for 1.1%. Declared incomes are well below the provincial average.

Earthquake risk is low: all 147 municipalities in the province of Como are in seismic zone 4 on the Civil Protection Department's scale, and expected acceleration here is about 0.039 g. On slopes this steep, the stability of the ground around the house matters more. The report measures the gradient and checks the official landslide maps for the address, starting from the Revenue Agency's cadastral maps.

Key points

  • Mountain village in Val Cavargna, above Porlezza.
  • 262 residents in 2023, down 22.5% since 2011.
  • Over-65s at 36.6%, against 24.1% in the province.
  • All 147 municipalities in the province in seismic zone 4.

Overview

San Nazzaro Val Cavargna is a municipality in the province of Como, in Lombardia. At the end of 2023 it had 262 residents, among the smallest in the province (135 of 147).

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, San Nazzaro Val Cavargna is in seismic zone 4, the lowest-risk zone, where strong earthquakes are very rare. All 147 municipalities in the province are in the same zone.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.039 g, a low value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.

In zone 4 the risk is low, but for an older building it is still worth asking about the state of the structure.

Population

Compared with the 2011 census, the resident population has fallen by 22.5%. The estimated average age is 53 years, higher than the province average (46). 37% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 24%). Foreign residents make up 1.1% of the population. On average, a household has 2.0 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in San Nazzaro Val Cavargna declared an average taxable income of 12,669 euros, below the provincial average (26,761 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

San Nazzaro Val Cavargna is in climate zone F, with 3,482 heating degree days, with no limits on when heating may be used. The same table puts the town hall at 995 metres above sea level.

Services

The data shows no schools within the municipality, against a provincial average of 0.9 per 1,000 residents.

Public transport

The open timetables available for the area do not list any stops within the territory of San Nazzaro Val Cavargna.

How built-up it is

Buildings, roads, car parks and other sealed surfaces cover 1.7% of the land in San Nazzaro Val Cavargna, compared with 12.3% in the province and 12.2% in the region. In 2024 built-up land stayed almost the same.

Radon and contaminated sites

San Nazzaro Val Cavargna is not among the radon priority areas designated by the Regione Lombardia in 2023. According to the ISPRA map, the estimated radon emission in the municipality is medium. 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 San Nazzaro Val Cavargna.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within San Nazzaro Val Cavargna: 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 Nazzaro Val Cavargna 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 8 inhabited census areas in San Nazzaro Val Cavargna. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 55 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 013207. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.