Clifton, VA
Clifton, VA's wildfire risk, in USFS's own numbers
USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model puts Clifton at the 38th national percentile for risk to structures, close to the middle of USFS's national wildfire-risk range — a score built from 145 actual buildings. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks Clifton at the 38th national percentile — 1 points above its risk-to-structures score, a gap driven by how much is actually built there.
What "at risk" means for the buildings here
81.4% of Clifton's 145 buildings sit in USFS's Direct exposure zone, roughly 118 structures close enough to burnable vegetation for flame contact, not just embers — 18.6% fall in the Indirect, ember-only zone and 0% are Minimal.
Clifton against the rest of the country
Clifton's risk sits at a similar level relative to Virginia (28th percentile statewide) as it does nationally (38th) — this place isn't unusual for its own state either way. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Clifton ranks 19,713 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 27,101 by building count (1 is largest). Within Virginia alone, it ranks 488 of 681 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Virginia on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
Clifton's moderate wildfire rating (38th percentile) isn't the kind of score driving the carrier pullback making news in the highest-risk Western markets — but a standard homeowners quote is still worth comparing on its own terms.
Hardening a home in Clifton
With 81.4% of Clifton in Direct exposure, defensible-space clearing and ember-resistant construction (vents, Class-A roofing) address the exposure this page's own numbers describe, not a generic checklist. See the home-hardening guide.
More on how this number was built
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 145 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Clifton. For more on what direct exposure implies beyond Clifton, see the exposure-zones guide.