Bay Harbor Islands, FL
How exposed is Bay Harbor Islands to wildfire?
Out of every US place USFS scores, Bay Harbor Islands lands at the 78th percentile for wildfire risk to structures — well above the national norm for wildfire risk — a figure built from its 575 buildings, not the land around them. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Bay Harbor Islands's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 80th percentile nationally.
Where Bay Harbor Islands's buildings actually sit
Bay Harbor Islands rates 99.5% Minimal exposure against just 0.5% Direct and 0% Indirect — of 575 buildings counted, few sit close enough to burnable vegetation for USFS to flag them individually.
Bay Harbor Islands against the rest of the country
Bay Harbor Islands's 78th national percentile looks worse in isolation than its 43rd ranking inside Florida does — this place is on the milder end for its own state, by 35 points. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Bay Harbor Islands ranks 6,961 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 16,171 by building count (1 is largest). Within Florida alone, it ranks 544 of 955 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Florida on its state page.
Shopping for coverage in Bay Harbor Islands
At the 78th percentile nationally, Bay Harbor Islands 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
Even with 99.5% of Bay Harbor Islands outside USFS's Direct and Indirect zones, basic hardening — gutter maintenance, ember-resistant vents — is inexpensive relative to the regional burn-probability risk noted above. Details in the home-hardening guide.
Where Bay Harbor Islands's figures come from
Bay Harbor Islands's 78th-percentile score and its burn-probability figure both come from the same USFS workbook, documented in the methodology guide. The exposure-zones guide covers what Bay Harbor Islands's dominant minimal exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.