Sant'Olcese: what to know before buying a home
A municipality in the province of Genova, Liguria. Official data on earthquakes, population, services and transport.
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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 Giacomo Poire' 1, Sant'Olcese.
Sant'Olcese, salami country in the hills behind Genoa
Sant'Olcese is a hill municipality in the countryside behind Genoa, spread over the ridges that climb from the Val Polcevera towards the Apennines. There is no single town centre. Instead there are hamlets, clusters of houses and isolated homes among woods and old terraced plots, with the town hall at around a hundred and fifty metres and many houses much higher up. Outside Liguria the name is best known for Sant'Olcese salami.
Many residents work in Genoa and drive down to the valley and Bolzaneto every day. The roads are narrow and winding, so the journey into the city varies a lot from one hamlet to another, and it is worth trying it at rush hour before you buy. The narrow-gauge Genoa to Casella railway also crosses the municipality.
In 2023 there were 5,568 residents according to Istat, the national statistics office: 343 fewer than at the 2011 census, a fall of 5.8%. The average age of 49.4 is close to the province's already high figure of 49.0; over-65s make up 29.5% and households average 2.05 people. Foreign residents are only 2.9%. The data list 6 school sites and 4 supermarkets but just 2 healthcare facilities, so doctors and clinics mostly mean a trip down the valley.
Earthquake risk is modest. Sant'Olcese is in seismic zone 3 on the scale used by the Civil Protection Department, like 63 other municipalities in the province, with expected ground acceleration in the built-up area of about 0.079 g. The ground matters more than the earthquakes here: on steep, terraced slopes, look at retaining walls, rainwater drainage and any cracks that could point to a slope on the move.
The report checks the official landslide and flood maps at the exact address, because a house on a ridge and one by a stream face very different conditions. The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) publishes cadastral maps for Sant'Olcese, so the report can trace the address back to the building's plot.
Key points
- Scattered hamlets in the hills above the Val Polcevera, behind Genoa.
- 5,568 residents, down 5.8% since 2011.
- Average age 49.4; households of 2.05 people.
- Seismic zone 3: on slopes, retaining walls and drainage matter most.
Overview
Sant'Olcese is a municipality in the province of Genova, in Liguria. At the end of 2023 it had 5,568 residents, ranked 14 of 67 municipalities in the province.
Earthquakes
For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Sant'Olcese is in seismic zone 3, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible but rare. Most municipalities in the province (64 of 67) are in the same zone.
In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.079 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 fallen by 5.8%. The estimated average age is 49 years, in line with the province. 30% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 29%). Foreign residents make up 2.9% of the population. On average, a household has 2.1 members.
Income and climate
In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Sant'Olcese declared an average taxable income of 26,304 euros, in line with the province (26,655 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.
Sant'Olcese is in climate zone D, with 1,906 heating degree days: heating may be switched on from 1 November to 15 April, for up to 12 hours a day. The same table puts the town hall at 155 metres above sea level.
Services
In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Sant'Olcese has 6 schools and 2 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 4 grocery shops and supermarkets, 2 healthcare facilities, 3 sports facilities and 1 green area.
There are 0.4 healthcare facilities per 1,000 residents, fewer than the province average (0.9).
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 8.8% of the land in Sant'Olcese, compared with 8.0% in the province and 7.3% in the region. In 2024 built-up land stayed almost the same.
Radon and contaminated sites
Sant'Olcese is not among the radon priority areas designated by the Regione Liguria 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 contaminated sites in Sant'Olcese.
Landslides and flooding
Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Sant'Olcese: 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 Sant'Olcese 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 56 inhabited census areas in Sant'Olcese. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 59 or more.
Residents by band
- modest 7.6%
- fair 57.1%
- good 35.3%
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 Liguria, 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 010055. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.