Cliffside, NC
Cliffside, NC's wildfire risk, in USFS's own numbers
Cliffside sits at the 65th 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 414 counted buildings, not vegetation cover alone. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Cliffside's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 68th percentile nationally.
Where Cliffside's buildings actually sit
414 buildings are counted in Cliffside, and 87% of them sit in USFS's Direct exposure zone — flame contact, not just ember cast, is the live possibility for most of them, against 0% rated Minimal.
How Cliffside compares
Cliffside scores 65th nationally and 65th within North Carolina — close enough that its state context doesn't change the picture the national number already gives. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Cliffside ranks 11,070 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 18,949 by building count (1 is largest). Within North Carolina alone, it ranks 273 of 772 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for North Carolina on its state page.
Cliffside and the insurance market
Cliffside's high rating (65th percentile) puts it among the places where the national carrier-pullback trend is most relevant — not a guarantee of a coverage problem, but a reason to shop rather than assume.
What would actually reduce this score
Because Direct exposure dominates in Cliffside (87%), the highest-leverage fix is defensible space, not roofing or vents alone — covered in the home-hardening guide.
Where Cliffside's figures come from
Cliffside's 65th-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 Cliffside's dominant direct exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.