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Vagli Sotto: what to know before buying a home

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

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Vagli Sotto

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 A. Vandelli 1, Vagli Sotto.

Vagli Sotto, a lake and Apuan marble in the Garfagnana

Lake Vagli is a reservoir created by a dam, and on its bed lies the drowned village of Fabbriche di Careggine, which reappears when the basin is emptied for maintenance. Vagli Sotto sits on its shores in the Garfagnana, the upper Serchio valley, on the side of the Apuan Alps, with marble quarries in the surrounding mountains and much of its land inside the Apuan Alps Regional Park.

It is a small municipality with a very old population. At the end of 2023 there were 787 residents, 204 fewer than the 991 of 2011, a drop of 20.6%. The average age is 55.1, against 48.1 in the province of Lucca, and over-65s are 38.5%, against 26.8%. Foreign residents make up 5.7%.

Buyers here mostly look for a stone house in the village or a holiday home near the lake. This is mountain country, with houses on slopes, narrow roads and climate zone E winters. For everyday services people go to Castelnuovo di Garfagnana and the towns of the Serchio valley. Inside the park, building work follows its own rules, which you should ask about before signing.

Vagli Sotto is in seismic zone 2, like 22 of the 33 municipalities in the province; the Garfagnana has a known history of earthquakes, so for masonry houses ask what work has been done on the walls and roof. The expected ground acceleration in the built-up area is about 0.191 g.

On steep slopes, landslides and rockfall are checked on the official maps for the exact address, along with flooding along the streams. The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) cadastral maps are published and the report links the address to its land parcel.

Key points

  • Garfagnana, on Lake Vagli below the Apuan marble quarries.
  • Over-65s at 38.5%, against 26.8% in the province.
  • Population down 20.6% since 2011.
  • Seismic zone 2, expected acceleration about 0.191 g.

Overview

Vagli Sotto is a municipality in the province of Lucca, in Toscana. At the end of 2023 it had 787 residents, among the smallest in the province (30 of 33).

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Vagli Sotto is in seismic zone 2, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible. Most municipalities in the province (22 of 33) are in the same zone.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.191 g, a medium-high value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.

For anyone buying in Vagli Sotto, 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 resident population has fallen by 20.6%. The estimated average age is 55 years, higher than the province average (48). 39% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 26%). Foreign residents make up 5.7% of the population. On average, a household has 2.1 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Vagli Sotto declared an average taxable income of 22,174 euros, below the provincial average (24,903 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Vagli Sotto is in climate zone E, with 2,903 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 600 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Vagli Sotto has 1 pharmacy.

The data shows no schools within the municipality, against a provincial average of 0.9 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 2.7% of the land in Vagli Sotto, compared with 9.2% in the province and 6.2% in the region. In 2024 built-up land stayed almost the same.

Radon and contaminated sites

Vagli Sotto is not among the radon priority areas designated by the Regione Toscana in 2025. 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 Vagli Sotto.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Vagli Sotto: 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 Vagli Sotto 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 10 inhabited census areas in Vagli Sotto. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 53 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 046031. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.