Alder, WA
How exposed is Alder to wildfire?
Alder sits at the 61st percentile nationally for wildfire risk to structures — well above the national norm for wildfire risk — per USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model, built from its 202 counted buildings, not vegetation cover alone. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
USFS's separate burn-probability score — fire likelihood alone, before counting what's built there — puts Alder at the 61st percentile, close to its 61st-percentile risk score.
Alder's building exposure, zone by zone
USFS classifies 99% of Alder's buildings as Direct exposure, higher than its 0% Indirect share and far above its 1% Minimal share — a profile where 200 structures sit close enough to vegetation that lot clearing matters most.
Where Alder ranks
Alder's risk sits at a similar level relative to Washington (67th percentile statewide) as it does nationally (61st) — this place isn't unusual for its own state either way. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Alder ranks 12,276 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 24,785 by building count (1 is largest). Within Washington alone, it ranks 206 of 628 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Washington on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
At the 61st percentile nationally, Alder carries the high rating that has pushed some carriers to limit new business in similarly-scored places elsewhere in the country. Worth comparing quotes rather than assuming last year's renewal terms still apply.
Lowering exposure, not just insuring around it
Alder's 99% Direct-exposure share means lot clearing around the structure typically outweighs any single material upgrade here. The home-hardening guide ranks the options for a place shaped like this.
More on how this number was built
Alder's 61st-percentile score and its burn-probability figure both come from the same USFS workbook, documented in the methodology guide. For more on what direct exposure implies beyond Alder, see the exposure-zones guide.