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Viterbo: what to know before buying a home

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

Search for an address in Viterbo

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 Dante 7, Milan.

Viterbo, the city of the popes

In the thirteenth century Viterbo was home to the popes for several decades, and its papal palace hosted the longest conclave in history. The capital of the Tuscia area in northern Lazio, it keeps a large medieval centre built from peperino, the grey volcanic stone of the area, has thermal springs on the edge of town, and every 3 September carries the towering Macchina di Santa Rosa through its streets on the shoulders of its bearers.

Viterbo is growing: 66,188 residents at the end of 2023, 4.7% more than at the 2011 census, and 21.5% of the population of the province's 60 municipalities. The estimated average age is 46.5, a year below the provincial figure, and over-65s make up 24.2%. Foreign residents account for 10.5%.

Lazio's seismic classification uses finer sub-zones than the national scheme. Viterbo is in zone 2, with the regional code 2B; in the province 40 municipalities are in zone 2 and 20 in zone 3. The expected ground acceleration in the built-up area is about 0.137 g, a moderate value. For stone houses in the old centre and for blocks built before the latest standards, it is worth asking what structural work has been done.

Services are denser than in the rest of the province. Overture Maps data record 62 schools and education sites (0.94 per 1,000 residents against 0.91), 51 healthcare facilities and 100 sports facilities (1.51 against 0.90). Supermarkets are the exception, at 0.54 per 1,000 against 0.72. The Ministry of Health lists 20 pharmacies.

The land registry works as it does across most of Italy: the Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) maps are public, and the report derives the sheet and parcel (foglio and particella) from the address. In volcanic country made of plateaus, gorges and farmland, landslide and flood hazard and the price range are checked at the precise spot.

Key points

  • Seat of the popes in the thirteenth century, capital of Tuscia.
  • Population up 4.7% since 2011.
  • Seismic zone 2 (regional sub-zone 2B); ground acceleration about 0.137 g.
  • More schools and sports facilities per resident than the province.

Overview

Viterbo is the capital of the province of Viterbo, in Lazio. At the end of 2023 it had 66,188 residents, the most populous municipality in the province. 22% of the province's residents live here.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Viterbo is in seismic zone 2, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible. The region uses a finer breakdown: here the classification is 2B. Most municipalities in the province (40 of 60) are in the same zone.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.137 g, a moderate value: the level with a 10% probability of being exceeded in 50 years, on rock.

For anyone buying in Viterbo, 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.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood risk changes from one street to the next, even within the same municipality: for this reason we do not summarise it as a single figure for the whole of Viterbo.

The report checks the exact address against the ISPRA national maps and tells you in plain words whether the building falls within an at-risk area. The official map is also available on IdroGEO.

House prices

We do not publish price tables by municipality. The report gives the minimum and maximum price per square metre for the address's zone, from the Revenue Agency's OMI valuations, with the reference half-year. It is a range for the zone, not the value of a specific home.

Population

Compared with the 2011 census, the resident population has grown by 4.7%. The estimated average age is 47 years, in line with the province. 24% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 23%). Foreign residents make up 10.5% of the population. On average, a household has 2.1 members.

Services

In the official Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health lists, Viterbo has 62 schools and 20 pharmacies. The Overture Maps data also lists 36 grocery shops and supermarkets, 51 healthcare facilities, 100 sports facilities and 17 parks and green areas.

There are 0.8 healthcare facilities per 1,000 residents, more than the province average (0.4).

This data is gathered from several providers: services may be missing or closed businesses may still appear. The report counts services within 500 metres and 1 kilometre of the address.

Public transport

We do not yet have open public transport timetables for this municipality: the report says so explicitly, without inventing distances.

Land registry

The Revenue Agency publishes the cadastral maps for Viterbo: the report finds the building's parcel, that is its sheet and parcel number, starting from the address.

Data sources

ISTAT code 056059. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.