Villa Guardia: what to know before buying a home
A municipality in the province of Como, Lombardia. Official data on earthquakes, population, services and transport.
Liveability index free for any address
Land sheet 6 free checks
Search for an address in Villa Guardia
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 Varesina 1, Villa Guardia.
Villa Guardia, between Como and Olgiate Comasco
Villa Guardia lies south-west of Como, on the road towards Olgiate Comasco and Varese. It is made up of once-separate villages, such as Maccio and Civello, now joined by residential streets, shops and retail areas that have grown up along the main road. The A9 motorway, linking Milan with Como and Switzerland, is a few minutes away.
Buyers find small detached houses with gardens and low blocks of flats in an area that is largely built up, on gentle hills sloping down towards the plain. There is no railway station in Villa Guardia: people taking the train to Milan usually leave from Como or a neighbouring town, and otherwise everyone drives. The Swiss border is close, and some residents work in the canton of Ticino. Average declared incomes are higher than in the province of Como as a whole.
The population has hardly changed. At the end of 2023 there were 7,839 residents, up 0.6% on the 7,793 of 2011, according to Istat, the national statistics office. The average age is 45.9, just below the provincial 46.3; over-65s are 23.3% and foreign residents 6.1%, fewer than the Lombardy average.
The whole province of Como is in seismic zone 4, the lowest class on the scale set by the Civil Protection Department (Protezione Civile), and expected ground acceleration here is about 0.040 g. Earthquakes are therefore a minor factor. The age of the boiler matters more, as does insulation (this is climate zone E, with cold winters) and, in a block of flats, the state of the roof and facades and any planned charges.
The ground rolls and is crossed by small streams, so standing water, flooding and landslides need checking at the individual address, which is what the report does. The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) publishes cadastral maps for Villa Guardia.
Key points
- Between Como and Olgiate Comasco, close to the A9 motorway.
- 7,839 residents in 2023, much as in 2011.
- Whole province in seismic zone 4: 0.040 g expected.
- Incomes above the provincial average, foreign residents 6.1%.
Overview
Villa Guardia is a municipality in the province of Como, in Lombardia. At the end of 2023 it had 7,839 residents, among the most populous in the province (15 of 147).
Earthquakes
For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Villa Guardia is in seismic zone 4, the lowest-risk zone, where strong earthquakes are very rare. All 147 municipalities in the province are in the same zone.
In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.040 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 number of residents is nearly unchanged. The estimated average age is 46 years, in line with the province. 23% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 24%). Foreign residents make up 6.1% of the population. On average, a household has 2.3 members.
Income and climate
In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Villa Guardia declared an average taxable income of 27,692 euros, in line with the province (26,761 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.
Villa Guardia is in climate zone E, with 2,627 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 350 metres above sea level.
Services
In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Villa Guardia has 7 schools and 2 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 4 grocery shops and supermarkets, 5 healthcare facilities, 12 sports facilities and 1 green area.
Public transport
The open timetables available for the area do not list any stops within the territory of Villa Guardia.
How built-up it is
Buildings, roads, car parks and other sealed surfaces cover 26.8% of the land in Villa Guardia, compared with 12.3% in the province and 12.2% in the region. In 2024 built-up land stayed almost the same.
Radon and contaminated sites
Villa Guardia is not among the radon priority areas designated by the Regione Lombardia 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 one contaminated site, or site still under investigation, in Villa Guardia, and 3 more have been cleaned up or closed. 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 Villa Guardia: 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 Villa Guardia 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 45 inhabited census areas in Villa Guardia. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 69 or more.
Residents by band
- modest 0.9%
- fair 7.6%
- good 91.4%
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.
- Public transport timetables (GTFS): Trenord, Regione Lombardia - Trenord, orari ferroviari (GTFS). Licence CC BY 4.0, version 20261111.
- 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.
- Radon priority areas (Legislative Decree 101/2020), Regione Lombardia, national list compiled by ARPA Lombardia. Licence Atto pubblico (art. 5 L. 633/1941), 2023.
- Contaminated sites, Regione Lombardia. Licence CC0 1.0 (pubblico dominio), updated to 15 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 013245. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.