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Venafro: what to know before buying a home

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

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Venafro

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 Colonia Giulia 1, Venafro.

Venafro, between Monte Santa Croce and the Volturno plain

In the western corner of Molise, near the borders with Campania and Lazio, Venafro rests on the lower slopes of Monte Santa Croce and looks out over the Volturno plain. After Isernia it is the largest town in the province. Its olive oil was already famous in Roman times, and olive groves still cover the hills. In town there is the Pandone castle, with horses painted on its walls, and a tight old centre beneath the mountain.

Daily life leans more towards Campania and Lazio than towards Campobasso: people commute and shop across the plain, where the industrial areas and larger services are. Buyers find two Venafros, the upper town with old stone houses and steep lanes, and the newer flat part with blocks of flats and detached houses. Declared incomes are above the average for the province of Isernia.

Istat, the national statistics office, counted 10,768 residents in 2023, down 4.2% since 2011, a modest fall compared with many inland villages in Molise. The population is younger than the province, with an estimated average age of 45.9 against 48.1, and over-65s at 23.5% against 27.6%. Foreign residents make up 5.6%. Venafro serves the surrounding villages, with 18 supermarkets and 13 healthcare facilities on record.

The whole province is seismic: 32 municipalities are in zone 1 and 20 in zone 2. Venafro is in zone 2, but its expected ground acceleration in the built-up area is among the highest for that zone, about 0.245 g. For a stone house in the old town, and for a block of flats from the 1970s or 1980s too, ask for structural surveys and records of work done before negotiating the price.

The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) publishes the cadastral maps, and the report finds the plot from the address. At the foot of the mountain the concern is landslides and mudflows, on the plain it is flooding; both are checked for the individual address.

Key points

  • Old town below Monte Santa Croce, newer districts on the plain.
  • Younger than the province: over-65s at 23.5%.
  • Seismic zone 2, expected acceleration about 0.245 g.
  • 18 supermarkets, a shopping centre for nearby villages.

Overview

Venafro is a municipality in the province of Isernia, in Molise. At the end of 2023 it had 10,768 residents, the second most populous in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Venafro is in seismic zone 2, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible. Only 20 of 52 municipalities in the province are in zone 2.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.245 g, a medium-high value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.

For anyone buying in Venafro, 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 4.2%. The estimated average age is 46 years, lower than the province average (48). 24% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 27%). Foreign residents make up 5.6% of the population. On average, a household has 2.4 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Venafro declared an average taxable income of 21,767 euros, above the provincial average (20,102 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Venafro is in climate zone D, with 1,492 heating degree days: heating may be switched on from 1 November to 15 April, for up to 12 hours a day. The same table puts the town hall at 222 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Venafro has 10 schools and 3 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 18 grocery shops and supermarkets, 13 healthcare facilities, 7 sports facilities and 3 parks and green areas.

There are 0.3 pharmacies per 1,000 residents, fewer than the province average (0.8).

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 8.0% of the land in Venafro, compared with 3.4% in the province and 4.0% in the region. In 2024 built-up land grew by 2.5 hectares.

Radon and contaminated sites

Official databases list one contaminated site, or site still under investigation, in Venafro. The report tells you whether one is close to the address.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Venafro: 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 Venafro 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 79 inhabited census areas in Venafro. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 70 or more.

Residents by band

  • modest 0.2%
  • fair 29.8%
  • good 63.2%
  • very good 6.8%

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 094052. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.