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Vergato: what to know before buying a home

A municipality in the province of Bologna, Emilia-Romagna. Official data on earthquakes, population, services and transport.

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Vergato

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 della Repubblica 1, Vergato.

Vergato, in the Reno valley on the Porrettana line

On the Porrettana, the railway and main road that climb the Reno valley from Bologna towards Tuscany, Vergato is the largest town in the middle valley, in the Apennine hills south of Bologna and roughly halfway between the city and Porretta Terme. The town sits on the valley floor, squeezed between the river and the slopes, surrounded by hamlets scattered over the hills and mountains.

For buyers the contrasts are sharp. In town and near the station there are flats in small blocks with services on foot: Overture Maps counts 8 school sites, more per resident than the provincial average, and a good number of bars and shops. In the hamlets there are stone houses and farm buildings with more space, but mountain roads, harder winters and services further away. The train to Bologna is the main draw for anyone working in the city.

The population has not changed: 7,645 residents at the end of 2023, according to Istat, the national statistics office, practically the same as the 7,642 of 2011. It is older than the province as a whole (average age 47.7 against 46.6, over-65s at 27.1%), with a share of foreign residents that is high for a mountain town, 16.3%. Declared incomes are well below the average for the province of Bologna.

Earthquake hazard in the Bologna Apennines should not be underestimated. Vergato is in seismic zone 3 of the Civil Protection Department's classification, with expected ground acceleration in the built-up area of about 0.160 g, a middling value. In old stone houses in the hamlets and in post-war blocks along the valley, ask whether any structural work has been done.

The most practical issue here is landslides. The clay slopes of the Bologna Apennines move, and many roads and houses in the hamlets sit on ground that needs checking; on the valley floor, look at the distance from the Reno. The report checks landslide and flood hazard for the address and, using the Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) cadastral maps, finds the plot.

Key points

  • Middle Reno valley, on the Porrettana railway and the SS64.
  • 7,645 residents, as many as in 2011; average age 47.7.
  • Seismic zone 3, expected acceleration about 0.160 g.
  • Clay slopes: landslides to check house by house.

Overview

Vergato is a municipality in the province of Bologna, in Emilia-Romagna. At the end of 2023 it had 7,645 residents, ranked 28 of 55 municipalities in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Vergato is in seismic zone 3, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible but rare. Most municipalities in the province (43 of 55) are in the same zone.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.160 g, a medium-high 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 number of residents is nearly unchanged. The estimated average age is 48 years, in line with the province. 27% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 25%). Foreign residents make up 16.3% of the population. On average, a household has 2.1 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Vergato declared an average taxable income of 23,381 euros, below the provincial average (29,157 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Vergato is in climate zone E, with 2,431 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 193 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Vergato has 8 schools and 3 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 2 grocery shops and supermarkets, 2 healthcare facilities, 8 sports facilities and 2 parks and green areas.

There are 0.3 healthcare facilities 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 5.8% of the land in Vergato, compared with 9.0% in the province and 9.0% in the region. In 2024 built-up land stayed almost the same.

Radon and contaminated sites

Vergato is not among the radon priority areas designated by the Regione Emilia-Romagna in 2026. Radon varies from building to building and can only be known by measuring it, especially on ground floors and in basements.

Official databases list one contaminated site, or site still under investigation, in Vergato. 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 Vergato: 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 Vergato 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 80 inhabited census areas in Vergato. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 58 or more.

Residents by band

  • modest 5.0%
  • fair 69.9%
  • good 25.1%

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 037059. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.