Valfornace: what to know before buying a home
A municipality in the province of Macerata, Marche. 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 Roma 1, Valfornace.
Valfornace, Pievebovigliana and Fiordimonte in the Macerata Apennines
Valfornace has existed since 2017, when Pievebovigliana and Fiordimonte merged into a single municipality. It covers a stretch of the Apennines in the province of Macerata between Camerino and the Sibillini mountains: valley floors, hills given over to pasture and woodland, and hamlets higher up, with distances that you notice in winter. For secondary schools, the university and hospital, people look to Camerino and, further on, Macerata.
Buyers here are often after a stone house or a farmhouse with land. In this area the first thing to ask about is the building's earthquake history: whether it was damaged, whether it was repaired with public grants and under which permits, and whether any restrictions or files are still open. Read the paperwork before signing the preliminary contract, not afterwards.
The municipality has lost many residents: 893 in 2023, 15.0% fewer than the two former municipalities had together in 2011, or 158 people, according to Istat, the national statistics institute. The estimated average age is 49.8 (provincial figure 47.2) and over-65s are 29.6%, against 26.5% in the province. Foreign residents are 10.6%. Declared incomes are close to the provincial average, just below it.
The Civil Protection department places Valfornace in seismic zone 2, like 49 of the 55 municipalities in the province of Macerata, and the expected ground acceleration in the village is about 0.211 g, a high value. Budget for an engineer you trust to check structure, foundations and the ties between walls and floors.
Landslides on the slopes and flooding along the streams are checked for the individual address: the report consults the official maps. The Revenue Agency publishes the cadastral maps, so the report can find the land parcel.
Key points
- Created in 2017 by merging Pievebovigliana and Fiordimonte.
- Seismic zone 2, expected acceleration about 0.211 g.
- 893 residents, down 15.0% since 2011.
- Before buying: damage, repairs and the building's paperwork.
Overview
Valfornace is a municipality in the province of Macerata, in Marche. At the end of 2023 it had 893 residents, ranked 40 of 55 municipalities in the province.
Earthquakes
For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Valfornace is in seismic zone 2, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible. Most municipalities in the province (49 of 55) are in the same zone.
In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.211 g, a medium-high value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.
For anyone buying in Valfornace, 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 15.0%. The estimated average age is 50 years, higher than the province average (47). 30% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 26%). Foreign residents make up 10.6% of the population. On average, a household has 2.0 members.
Income and climate
In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Valfornace declared an average taxable income of 22,528 euros, in line with the province (23,312 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.
Valfornace is in climate zone E, with 2,305 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 569 metres above sea level.
Services
In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Valfornace has 3 schools and 1 pharmacy. The Overture Maps data also lists 2 sports facilities.
The data shows no grocery shops and supermarkets within the municipality, against a provincial average of 0.8 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 3.2% of the land in Valfornace, compared with 5.7% in the province and 7.0% in the region. In 2024 built-up land stayed almost the same.
Radon and contaminated sites
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 Valfornace.
Landslides and flooding
Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Valfornace: 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 Valfornace 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 31 inhabited census areas in Valfornace. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 69 or more.
Residents by band
- fair 21.0%
- good 79.0%
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
- 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.
- 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 043058. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.