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Valdilana: what to know before buying a home

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

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Valdilana

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: Frazione Ponzone 1, Valdilana.

Valdilana, the wool-mill villages of eastern Biella

Valdilana is a new municipality with a long history. It was created in 2019 by merging Trivero, Mosso, Soprana and Valle Mosso, four villages in the east of the Biella area that have lived off wool for generations. The mills, some of them famous names in fashion, line the Strona stream and the side valleys. Above Trivero runs the Panoramica Zegna, a scenic road climbing into the Oasi Zegna, a protected area of woods and pastures.

This is mid-mountain country, with hamlets scattered at different heights and roads that climb and drop constantly. For buyers that means choosing between houses on the valley floor, near the factories and the road to Biella, and homes in the upper hamlets, quieter but further from services. Much of the housing is old workers' cottages or mill owners' villas, and plenty is on the market.

The population is falling sharply. In 2023 there were 10,044 residents, 16.8% fewer than the 12,067 the four villages counted together in 2011, according to Istat, the national statistics office. The estimated average age is 51.3, above the already high provincial figure of 49.7, and over-65s make up 33.1%. Foreign residents are 7.3%. Where population falls, prices tend to stay low, but budget for renovation and for heating large, older houses.

Earthquakes are not a concern here. Valdilana is in seismic zone 4, the lowest band in the Civil Protection classification, like 50 municipalities in the province, with expected acceleration of about 0.043 g. The roof, damp, wiring and insulation deserve more attention.

With steep slopes and deep stream beds, landslides and floods have to be read address by address, which is what the report does. The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) cadastral maps cover the new municipality, so the plot can be traced.

Key points

  • Created in 2019 from Trivero, Mosso, Soprana and Valle Mosso.
  • Population down 16.8% since 2011; over-65s at 33.1%.
  • Seismic zone 4, the lowest band.
  • Steep slopes and streams: check landslides and floods for each address.

Overview

Valdilana is a municipality in the province of Biella, in Piemonte. At the end of 2023 it had 10,044 residents, the third most populous in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Valdilana is in seismic zone 4, the lowest-risk zone, where strong earthquakes are very rare. Most municipalities in the province (50 of 74) are in the same zone.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.043 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 16.8%. The estimated average age is 51 years, higher than the province average (50). 33% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 27%). Foreign residents make up 7.3% of the population. On average, a household has 2.1 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Valdilana declared an average taxable income of 24,851 euros, in line with the province (25,111 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Valdilana is in climate zone F, with 3,182 heating degree days, with no limits on when heating may be used. The same table puts the town hall at 675 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Valdilana has 13 schools. The Overture Maps data also lists 5 grocery shops and supermarkets, 1 healthcare facility, 4 sports facilities and 3 parks and green areas.

The data shows no pharmacies within the municipality, against a provincial average of 0.4 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 6.6% of the land in Valdilana, compared with 8.0% in the province and 6.7% in the region. In 2024 built-up land stayed almost the same.

Radon and contaminated sites

Valdilana is not among the radon priority areas designated by the Regione Piemonte in 2023. 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 open contaminated sites in Valdilana; 3 have been cleaned up or closed.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Valdilana: 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 Valdilana 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 143 inhabited census areas in Valdilana. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 60 or more.

Residents by band

  • fair 89.0%
  • good 11.0%

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 096088. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.