Skip to content
Vicinalia
Italiano Sign up

Vocca: what to know before buying a home

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

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Vocca

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: Localita' Isola 1, Vocca.

Vocca, in the Valsesia just above Varallo

On the road that climbs the Valsesia from Varallo towards Alagna, Vocca is one of the first municipalities after the town: a small village at around five hundred metres, with houses on the hillside and hamlets scattered among meadows and woods above the river Sesia. Being so close to Varallo makes a big difference to daily life, as shops, schools, doctors and services are only a few minutes away.

The population is younger than the provincial average. The estimated average age is 44.7, against 48.4 in the province of Vercelli, and over-65s make up 20.9%. In 2023 Istat, Italy's national statistics office, counted 158 residents, 4 fewer than the 162 of 2011, a modest fall of 2.5%. Declared incomes are in line with the province.

For anyone looking in the lower Valsesia, Vocca offers a middle ground between mountains and services: stone houses, sometimes with a little land, a short drive from a town with everything you need. The checks are those for any mountain building, namely the roof, damp, insulation and heating system, as the climate zone is E. For houses in the hamlets, winter access matters too.

Earthquake risk is low. Vocca is in seismic zone 4 on the Civil Protection Department's scale, like 81 of the 82 municipalities in the province, with an expected ground acceleration of about 0.052 g. The position of the house in relation to the river and the slopes matters more, and the report checks the official landslide and flood maps for the exact address. Revenue Agency cadastral maps are available, so the report traces the house to its land parcel.

Key points

  • Valsesia municipality just upstream of Varallo.
  • Average age 44.7, against 48.4 in the province of Vercelli.
  • 158 residents in 2023, down 2.5% since 2011.
  • Seismic zone 4, like 81 municipalities around Vercelli.

Overview

Vocca is a municipality in the province of Vercelli, in Piemonte. At the end of 2023 it had 158 residents, ranked 72 of 82 municipalities in the province.

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Vocca is in seismic zone 4, the lowest-risk zone, where strong earthquakes are very rare. Most municipalities in the province (81 of 82) are in the same zone.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.052 g, a moderate 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 resident population has fallen by 2.5%. The estimated average age is 45 years, lower than the province average (48). 21% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 27%). Foreign residents make up 4.4% of the population. On average, a household has 2.0 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Vocca declared an average taxable income of 24,608 euros, in line with the province (24,991 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Vocca is in climate zone E, with 2,928 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 506 metres above sea level.

Services

The data shows no schools within the municipality, against a provincial average of 1.1 per 1,000 residents.

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 0.6% of the land in Vocca, compared with 5.0% in the province and 6.7% in the region. In 2024 built-up land stayed almost the same.

Radon and contaminated sites

Vocca is not among the radon priority areas designated by the Regione Piemonte 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 no contaminated sites in Vocca.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Vocca: 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 Vocca 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 7 inhabited census areas in Vocca. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 50 or more.

Residents by band

  • modest 41.4%
  • fair 58.6%

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 002166. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.