Montebello, NY
Montebello wildfire risk explained
Montebello sits at the 45th percentile nationally for wildfire risk to structures — modestly above the national average for wildfire risk — per USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model, built from its 1,514 counted buildings, not vegetation cover alone. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
USFS's separate burn-probability score — fire likelihood alone, before counting what's built there — puts Montebello at the 43rd percentile, close to its 45th-percentile risk score.
What "at risk" means for the buildings here
Direct exposure dominates in Montebello: 69% of its 1,514 buildings, versus 22.4% Indirect and 8.6% Minimal. Clearing space around a structure changes the outcome here more than any single building-material swap.
Montebello against the rest of the country
Compare Montebello's two percentiles: 90th within New York, only 45th nationally — a gap of 45 points that marks it as unusually exposed for its own state. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Montebello ranks 17,279 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 9,103 by building count (1 is largest). Within New York alone, it ranks 133 of 1,289 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for New York on its state page.
Montebello and the insurance market
At the 45th national percentile, Montebello rates elevated for wildfire risk — well short of the threshold where insurers have been withdrawing coverage, though comparing a quote costs nothing either way.
Lowering exposure, not just insuring around it
Because Direct exposure dominates in Montebello (69%), the highest-leverage fix is defensible space, not roofing or vents alone — covered in the home-hardening guide.
More on how this number was built
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 1,514 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Montebello. For more on what direct exposure implies beyond Montebello, see the exposure-zones guide.