When you are in the process of purchasing a house or vacant property, we suggest that you make contact with your insurance company early on to determine if they will provide fire insurance as well as the cost for said insurance. Oftentimes, clients chose to purchase in a lower fire hazard risk zone because of the cost of insurance. So, don’t wait until you are ready to close escrow to find out that your insurance may be $10,000 or more per year because the house or property is located in a high fire hazard zone.
Additionally, during the process of buying a home, buyers should make sure that they get and read a natural hazard disclosure report because it will provide information on the fire hazard risk. To create the report, the natural hazard disclosure companies rely on fire hazard zone maps provide by the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. Noted below is the information that shows the appropriate Public Resources Code that directs the creation of these maps.
Public Resources Code 4201-4204 directs the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) to map fire hazard within State Responsibility Areas (SRA) based on fuel loading, slope, fire weather, and other relevant factors present, including areas where winds have been identified by the department as a major cause of wildfire spread. These zones, referred to as Fire Hazard Severity Zones (FHSZ), classify a wildland zone as Moderate, High, or Very High fire hazard based on the average hazard across the area included in the zone.
Below is a link for the maps: Link To Fire Hazard Severity Zone Maps for 2022
Another aspect of this situation is Defensible Space which is defined as the space between hour home and the surrounding area. If a home is in a very high fire hazard zone, the seller must provide a specific disclosure to the buyer. Here is some additional information on this disclosure.
Here is more info from Cal-Fire about Defensible Space.