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Valbrevenna: what to know before buying a home

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

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Valbrevenna

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: Localita' Clavarezza 1, Valbrevenna.

Valbrevenna, scattered hamlets in the Brevenna valley

Valbrevenna is a municipality made of hamlets: small clusters of stone houses spread along the Brevenna stream and over the slopes of its valley, a side valley of the Scrivia in the hills behind Genoa. The land is mountainous and wooded, with narrow roads running up the valley and linking one settlement to the next.

For buyers, the first question is exactly where the house is. Car access, sun exposure and distance from the main road all change; for a big shop and secondary schools people drive down to the towns of the Scrivia valley. Genoa can be reached by car, but with mountain-village journey times. Many houses are old and need work: roofs, dry-stone walls, systems to be replaced.

The figures also describe a mountain community. Istat, the national statistics office, counted 751 residents in 2023, 7.5% fewer than in 2011. The average age is 52.5, against 49.0 across the metropolitan area of Genoa, and over-65s make up 30.9%. Households are very small, 1.63 people on average, and foreign residents account for 1.7%. Average declared income is close to the provincial figure.

Valbrevenna is in seismic zone 3, like almost all of the metropolitan area (64 municipalities out of 67), with an expected ground acceleration of about 0.093 g. More than earthquakes, on these slopes landslides and mountain streams matter: the report checks the address on the official maps for both. This is climate zone E.

The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) cadastral maps cover the municipality, and the report links even an isolated house to its land parcel.

Key points

  • Municipality of hamlets in the Brevenna valley, off the Scrivia.
  • 751 residents, down 7.5% since 2011.
  • Small households: 1.63 members on average.
  • Seismic zone 3; landslides and streams worth checking.

Overview

Valbrevenna is a municipality in the province of Genova, in Liguria. At the end of 2023 it had 751 residents, ranked 51 of 67 municipalities in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Valbrevenna 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 0.093 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 7.5%. The estimated average age is 52 years, higher than the province average (49). 31% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 29%). Foreign residents make up 1.7% of the population. On average, a household has 1.6 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Valbrevenna declared an average taxable income of 25,488 euros, in line with the province (26,655 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Valbrevenna is in climate zone E, with 2,681 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 533 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Valbrevenna has 1 school and 1 pharmacy. The Overture Maps data also lists 1 sports facility.

The data shows no grocery shops and supermarkets within the municipality, against a provincial average of 0.5 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 3.1% of the land in Valbrevenna, 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

Valbrevenna 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 Valbrevenna.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Valbrevenna: 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 Valbrevenna 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 39 inhabited census areas in Valbrevenna. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 57 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 010065. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.