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Villadossola: what to know before buying a home

A municipality in the province of Verbano-Cusio-Ossola, Piemonte. Official data on earthquakes, population, services and transport.

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Villadossola

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 Novello Bianchi 1, Villadossola.

Villadossola, industrial Ossola between the Toce and Valle Antrona

A few kilometres south of Domodossola, where the Antrona valley opens onto the floor of the Toce valley, Villadossola was for much of the twentieth century one of the industrial towns of the Ossola, with steelworks and factories employing people from all over the lower valley. That period left districts of workers' housing and apartment blocks, alongside the older village cores and the hamlets scattered on the slopes.

The town has a station on the railway that runs from Domodossola down towards Lake Maggiore and Milan, and Domodossola, with the international Simplon line to Switzerland, is about ten minutes away. Some people in the Ossola work across the border. House prices are generally lower than on the lake shores.

The valley floor and the slopes raise different questions. Down below, the distance from the Toce and from the Ovesca, the Antrona valley's stream, is what counts; in the hamlets higher up, landslides and rockfall matter. The report checks the official maps for both hazards at the exact address.

The population is ageing: Istat, the national statistics institute, counted 6,238 residents in 2023, down 8.0% since 2011, with an average age of 49.8 and 30.7% over 65, against 28.3% in the province. Households are small, at 2.05 people on average. It is still one of the larger municipalities in the province, ranking number 5.

The province is split between 28 municipalities in seismic zone 3 and 46 in zone 4, on the Civil Protection scale where 1 is the highest hazard. Villadossola is in zone 3, with low expected ground acceleration of about 0.072 g. In 1960s and 1970s apartment blocks, the state of the facades and building services, insulation and service charges matter more than earthquakes: ask for the minutes of recent owners' meetings.

Key points

  • Lower Ossola, at the mouth of the Antrona valley, near Domodossola.
  • Station on the line towards Lake Maggiore and Milan.
  • Over-65s at 30.7%, households of 2.05 people.
  • Seismic zone 3, low expected acceleration of about 0.072 g.

Overview

Villadossola is a municipality in the province of Verbano-Cusio-Ossola, in Piemonte. At the end of 2023 it had 6,238 residents, among the most populous in the province (5 of 74).

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Villadossola is in seismic zone 3, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible but rare. Only 28 of 74 municipalities in the province are in zone 3.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.072 g, a moderate 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 resident population has fallen by 8.0%. The estimated average age is 50 years, in line with the province. 31% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 27%). Foreign residents make up 6.3% of the population. On average, a household has 2.0 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Villadossola declared an average taxable income of 22,367 euros, in line with the province (23,146 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Villadossola is in climate zone E, with 2,523 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 257 metres above sea level.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Villadossola has 6 schools and 3 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 7 grocery shops and supermarkets, 5 healthcare facilities and 4 sports facilities.

There are 1.0 schools per 1,000 residents, fewer than the province average (1.3).

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 14.9% of the land in Villadossola, compared with 2.8% in the province and 6.7% in the region. In 2024 built-up land stayed almost the same.

Radon and contaminated sites

Villadossola is not among the radon priority areas designated by the Regione Piemonte in 2023. According to the ISPRA map, the estimated radon emission in the municipality is medium. Radon varies from building to building and can only be known by measuring it, especially on ground floors and in basements.

Official databases list 3 contaminated sites, or sites still under investigation, in Villadossola, and 7 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 Villadossola: 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 Villadossola 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 81 inhabited census areas in Villadossola. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 60 or more.

Residents by band

  • modest 5.7%
  • fair 78.2%
  • good 16.0%

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 103075. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.