A first-of-its-kind neighborhood in California fights fire by just existing

USA Today

01-04-2025

A first-of-its-kind neighborhood in California fights fire by just existing Insurers say a neighborhood like the one built in Southern California protects residents from fire — and perhaps other close by properties as well.
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Timelapse shows speed of Palisades fire in California
A timelapse video shows the speed of the devastating Palisades fire in California, which has forced thousands to flee.
In June, Steve Ruffner watched a demonstration where two sheds were set on fire. As a result of what he saw, people 30 miles north of San Diego are now moving into homes far less likely to burn in a wildfire.
'I was shocked,' said Ruffner, who is president of KB Home Coastal, a large U.S. home builder.
The company had already broken ground on a 64-home development in the city of Escondido. After a rapid redesign – and with the city's enthusiastic blessing – it was built as the nation's first fire resilient community, a distinction touted by KB Home Coastal and confirmed by insurance groups.
The first residents have already moved in.
Insurers say a neighborhood like the one built in Southern California protects residents from fire — and perhaps other close by properties as well. That's because having a whole community that resists fire could act like a fire break, giving neighboring communities a buffer from wildfire.
What Ruffner saw in June was the power of small and relatively inexpensive changes to standard building practices that can significantly protect homes from wildfires.
The demonstration sheds had been built side-by-side, one to building code from 1980s, the other to California's Wildfire Building Code, which mandates fire-resistant construction methods and materials.
While officials, contractors and builders watched, fires were lit in the wood chips in the flower beds in front of the sheds, then large fans were turned on to mimic conditions during the hot, windy weather of a Red Flag fire event.
"The one built to the 1980s code burned down in 45 minutes," said Ruffner. "The other one didn't burn at all.'
Knowing the development was in an area at high wildfire risk, Ruffner went back to his architects and designers and asked "How fast can we pivot?"
Their goal was to incorporate the highest wildfire resilience standards developed by the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS), a nonprofit, scientific research and communications organization supported by property insurers.
Designers tweaked plans and materials and changed landscaping to add features that protect against the biggest fire dangers – flying embers, flames and radiant heat. These included:
Covered gutters to keep embers out
Enclosed eaves so embers can't be sucked into attics
Stucco and fiber cement siding that can't burn
Tempered-glass windows that don't shatter in heat
Patios, doors and roofing that can't burn
Metal fencing so fire can't follow fence lines to a house
At least five feet of low-combustible, defensive space around all the homes
None of these measures is hugely expensive or difficult but together they help create houses much less likely to burn if a wildfire threatens the area.
A force multiplier for fire safety
The homes in the Dixon Trails development conform to IBHS's Wildfire-Prepared Home Plus designation, its most stringent standard. Once inspected they can be certified, potentially lowering insurance costs.
Such standards are not new though they have evolved significantly over the years. Homes in California, Arizona and across the country began adding fire safe features to make existing and new-built homes more fire resistant in early 1990s. Experience, testing and inspection of homes that survive major wildfires has helped standards become more effective.
A home built to the highest fire standards stands a good chance of surviving fires that others don't.
"If there's a fire in the foothills behind a neighborhood, embers may fly in and land, but they're going to fizzle out because there's nothing to ignite," said Roy Wright, CEO of the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety.
During the 2022 Oak fire in Mariposa County, California, homes that were compliant with defensible space standards were six times more likely to survive, according to the California Wildfire & Forest Resilience Task Force.
What is new in Escondido is than an entire neighborhood has been built to these standards, adding a significant layer of survivability.
Fires are different from hurricanes and tornadoes, notes said Karen Collins, vice president for Property & Environmental with the American Property Casualty Insurance Association.
A reinforced roof or impact-resistant storm shutters offers good protection for the homeowner – what their neighbors do isn't really important. "When you hurricane-harden your home, you do you and you're done," she said.
Fire does not respect property lines and jumps from house to house. What happens on your neighbor's property can matter a lot to what happens on yours.
"If your house is perfect but your neighbor's is a trash heap, all that fire is going to come your way," said Wright.
That's the power of a wildfire prepared neighborhood, he said.
"It literally acts as a passive fire break just by the way its constructed and developed," he said. Not only are the homes in the development protected from fire leapfrogging from lot to lot, but other neighborhoods nearby are safer too.
"Depending on which way the winds are blowing, this neighborhood could likely shelter an older neighborhood that's adjacent to it," Wright said.
Insurance savings for fire-safe homes
As millions of homeowners have learned, America is in the midst of an insurance crisis as climate change effects intensify potential property damage from wildfires, hurricanes, tornadoes and flooding and insurers scramble to price rising risk.
Between 2000 to about 2013, insurance costs made up 7% to 8% of the typical mortgage payment. Starting around 2013, premiums surged. As of 2022, insurance costs made up more than 20% of the typical mortgage payment, according to data from analytics provider First Street.
Hardening a home, or a neighborhood, against wildfire and having it certified as such can lower costs and make it more likely insurance won't be dropped.
"These certifications are recognized widely by insurers nationally and improve insurability," said Janet Ruiz with the Insurance Information Institute.
"There are many companies that offer discounts to homeowners who have these certifications. The range varies by company, often 5 to 20%," she said.
It can also raise a home's value. An Alabama study found that homes whose roofs are fortified against hurricane damage sold on average for 7% higher, said Collins.
A growing need nationwide
The need for such homes isn't confined to California. With the climate warming and drying, the threat is everywhere. Recently, fires have burned in the Carolinas, Texas, Oklahoma and Florida.
Because the changes aren't really that major, the cost isn't much higher than regular construction. A study done in 2022 estimated the cost to construct a wildfire resistant new home was about $3,000 more than a regular home.
"If someone wants to build a concrete and steel bunker and spend $5 million doing it I'm not going to tell them they're wrong," Wright said. "But what this demonstrates is that there are normal ways to build, with small modifications, that provide significant wildfire protection. We can start thinking of this as normal."
He also emphasized that such building isn't necessary everywhere, only in wildfire-prone areas.
"This is not appropriate in downtown Long Beach," said Wright. "If you are far away from an area at high risk for wildfire, none of this is needed."