Howardwick, TX
Howardwick wildfire risk explained
USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model puts Howardwick at the 98th national percentile for risk to structures, in USFS's highest wildfire-risk band nationally — a score built from 592 actual buildings. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Fire likelihood alone (USFS's burn-probability figure) ranks Howardwick at the 99th 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
64% of Howardwick's 592 buildings sit in USFS's Direct exposure zone, roughly 379 structures close enough to burnable vegetation for flame contact, not just embers — 36% fall in the Indirect, ember-only zone and 0% are Minimal.
How Howardwick compares
There's little gap between Howardwick's 98th national percentile and its 99th percentile inside Texas, which means the state comparison mostly confirms what the national score already shows. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Howardwick ranks 643 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 15,944 by building count (1 is largest). Within Texas alone, it ranks 26 of 1,795 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Texas on its state page.
Howardwick and the insurance market
At the 98th percentile nationally, Howardwick carries the very 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
With 64% of Howardwick 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.
Where Howardwick's figures come from
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 592 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Howardwick. The exposure-zones guide covers what Howardwick's dominant direct exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.