Homeowner’s Insurance Update
Cal Fire’s moderate, high, and very high severity zones maps, showing areas of greater wilfire risk, were released on February 24, 2025. The new maps have created some controversy and confusion prompting some cities to consider expanding the areas included in the high and very high severity zones.
The Conservancy is working to understand both what homeowners in our area will be required to do and what makes sense for us to protect our homes. Here are some resources:
1) The original (2020) State of California information on Zone 0, (bof.fire.ca.gov).
2) The City of Berkeley just enacted legislation in February 2025 on combating flying embers, (berkeleyca.gov).
3) The Oakland Firesafe Council has an excellent fact sheet on home hardening and defensible space (oaklandfiresafecouncil.org).
Each of us needs to rethink the vegetation and wooden fences in our yards and harden our homes to protect them from flying embers.
