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Val Masino: what to know before buying a home

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

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Val Masino

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 Roma 1, Val Masino.

Val Masino, granite and the Val di Mello above Valtellina

Val Masino is the municipality covering a whole side valley of Valtellina, climbing from the Adda valley floor between granite walls towards the Rhaetian Alps. Higher up lies the Val di Mello, a nature reserve known to climbers across Europe for its boulders and slabs; lower down are the villages, the old spa of Bagni di Masino and a network of footpaths and mountain huts.

Tourism is the main engine and the figures show it: there are 19.35 places to eat per 1,000 residents, against 6.19 in the province of Sondrio. Alongside residents' homes there are also holiday homes.

Istat, the national statistics office, counted 827 residents at the end of 2023, down 11.9% since 2011. The average age is 50.0, against 46.8 for the province, and over-65s are 28.3%. Declared average income is below the provincial figure.

Buying in Val Masino means accepting real mountains: climate zone F, snow, mountain roads to drive in winter too, stone houses with heavy roofs. Before buying, find out about access, heating and utility connections.

Val Masino is in seismic zone 3 of the Civil Protection classification, like 64 of the 77 municipalities in the province, with an expected ground acceleration of about 0.061 g. In an Alpine valley, avalanches, landslides and stream floods weigh more, and the report checks them on the official maps for the address. The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) cadastre is published and the report goes down to the land parcel.

Key points

  • Side valley of Valtellina, home to the Val di Mello.
  • Places to eat: 19.35 per 1,000 residents.
  • Population down 11.9% since 2011.
  • Real mountains: check winter access, avalanches and streams.

Overview

Val Masino is a municipality in the province of Sondrio, in Lombardia. At the end of 2023 it had 827 residents, ranked 51 of 77 municipalities in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Val Masino is in seismic zone 3, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible but rare. Most municipalities in the province (64 of 77) are in the same zone.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.061 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 11.9%. The estimated average age is 50 years, higher than the province average (47). 28% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 24%). Foreign residents make up 1.9% of the population. On average, a household has 2.1 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Val Masino declared an average taxable income of 19,626 euros, below the provincial average (23,822 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Val Masino is in climate zone F, with 3,187 heating degree days, with no limits on when heating may be used. The same table puts the town hall at 787 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Val Masino has 2 schools and 1 pharmacy. The Overture Maps data also lists 1 grocery shop, 1 sports facility and 2 parks and green areas.

The data shows no healthcare facilities within the municipality, against a provincial average of 0.5 per 1,000 residents.

Public transport

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

How built-up it is

Buildings, roads, car parks and other sealed surfaces cover 0.7% of the land in Val Masino, compared with 2.7% in the province and 12.2% in the region. In 2024 built-up land stayed almost the same.

Radon and contaminated sites

Val Masino 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 Val Masino.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Val Masino: 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 Val Masino 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 Val Masino. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 58 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 014074. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.