Corte Madera, CA
Corte Madera wildfire risk explained
USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model puts Corte Madera at the 59th national percentile for risk to structures, modestly above the national average for wildfire risk — a score built from 3,467 actual buildings. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
USFS's separate burn-probability score — fire likelihood alone, before counting what's built there — puts Corte Madera at the 60th percentile, close to its 59th-percentile risk score.
What "at risk" means for the buildings here
3,467 buildings are counted in Corte Madera, and 55.4% of them are Indirect exposure — ember-driven risk rather than the 11.1% in Direct exposure or the 33.6% rated Minimal.
Where Corte Madera ranks
Corte Madera ranks lower within California (18th percentile statewide) than its 59th national percentile suggests alone — a calmer spot in a state where wildfire risk generally runs high. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Corte Madera ranks 12,789 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 4,816 by building count (1 is largest). Within California alone, it ranks 1,295 of 1,570 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for California on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
Corte Madera sits in California, one of two states that legally require a wildfire-risk disclosure at sale. California's FAIR Plan, the state's insurer of last resort, ended 2025 with 668,609 residential policies after adding 21,859 in Q4 alone — the kind of market shift a 59th-percentile score like Corte Madera's can end up mattering for. More on the disclosure law.
What would actually reduce this score
Corte Madera's 55.4% Indirect-exposure share points at embers, not flame contact, as the main pathway — ember-resistant vents and non-combustible roofing rank ahead of defensible space here. Detail in the home-hardening guide.
Where Corte Madera's figures come from
Corte Madera's 59th-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 Corte Madera's dominant indirect exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.