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Volpara: what to know before buying a home

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

Liveability index free for any address

Search for an address in Volpara

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 Roma 1, Volpara.

Volpara, a small hill municipality in the Oltrepò Pavese

Volpara is a small municipality in the Oltrepò Pavese, the part of the province of Pavia that lies south of the river Po and climbs from the plain towards the Apennines. The village sits in the hills at around three hundred and fifty metres, among ridge roads, fields and woods. For work and services people head down to the towns on the plain, and from there on to Pavia and Milan.

Houses for sale are often farm buildings and country homes, sometimes with land. Buyers should look at the access road, which in the hills can be narrow and steep, the state of the walls and the cost of heating large rooms in climate zone E. For real distances to schools, pharmacies and supermarkets, the report starts from the exact location of the house.

According to Istat, Italy's national statistics office, there were 122 residents in 2023, down 8.3% on the 133 of 2011. The estimated average age is 53.6, against 47.1 in the province, and over-65s make up 29.5%. Declared incomes are close to the provincial average.

On the Civil Protection Department's earthquake scale the province of Pavia has 157 municipalities in zone 3 and 27 in zone 4. Volpara is in zone 3, with an expected ground acceleration of about 0.097 g. The hazard is moderate, but in hillside houses it is still worth asking about any work on the walls and roof.

In hill country, landslide hazard needs checking plot by plot, and the report does this on the official maps at the address. The Revenue Agency (Agenzia delle Entrate) cadastral maps are published and lead to the land parcel.

Key points

  • Hill municipality in the Oltrepò Pavese, south of the Po.
  • 122 residents in 2023, down 8.3% since 2011.
  • Average age 53.6 against 47.1 in the province.
  • Seismic zone 3, expected acceleration about 0.097 g.

Overview

Volpara is a municipality in the province of Pavia, in Lombardia. At the end of 2023 it had 122 residents, among the smallest in the province (180 of 184).

Earthquakes

For Italy's Civil Protection Department, Volpara is in seismic zone 3, a zone where strong earthquakes are possible but rare. Most municipalities in the province (157 of 184) are in the same zone.

In the built-up area, the expected ground shaking (peak ground acceleration, PGA) is about 0.097 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 8.3%. The estimated average age is 54 years, higher than the province average (47). 30% of residents are over 65 (the regional figure is 24%). Foreign residents make up 1.6% of the population. On average, a household has 1.8 members.

Income and climate

In tax year 2024, taxpayers in Volpara declared an average taxable income of 25,300 euros, in line with the province (26,290 euros). The Italian average is 24,895 euros.

Volpara is in climate zone E, with 2,968 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 357 metres above sea level.

Services

The data shows no schools within the municipality, against a provincial average of 0.9 per 1,000 residents.

Public transport

The open timetables available for the area do not list any stops within the territory of Volpara.

How built-up it is

Buildings, roads, car parks and other sealed surfaces cover 8.0% of the land in Volpara, compared with 9.6% in the province and 12.2% in the region. In 2024 built-up land stayed almost the same.

Radon and contaminated sites

Volpara is not among the radon priority areas designated by the Regione Lombardia in 2023. According to the ISPRA map, the estimated radon emission in the municipality is low. 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 Volpara.

Landslides and flooding

Landslide and flood hazard changes from one street to the next even within Volpara: 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 Volpara 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 14 inhabited census areas in Volpara. Half of the residents live in areas scoring 57 or more.

Residents by band

  • fair 100.0%

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 018183. The text on this page is generated automatically from the data.