New London, NC
New London, NC's wildfire risk, in USFS's own numbers
New London's 478 buildings earn a 36th-percentile wildfire-risk score nationally under USFS's model — close to the middle of USFS's national wildfire-risk range. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, New London's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 38th percentile nationally.
What "at risk" means for the buildings here
USFS classifies 59.8% of New London's buildings as Direct exposure, higher than its 40.2% Indirect share and far above its 0% Minimal share — a profile where 286 structures sit close enough to vegetation that lot clearing matters most.
Where New London ranks
New London's 36th national percentile looks worse in isolation than its 8th ranking inside North Carolina does — this place is on the milder end for its own state, by 28 points. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, New London ranks 20,210 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 17,750 by building count (1 is largest). Within North Carolina alone, it ranks 709 of 772 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for North Carolina on its state page.
New London and the insurance market
New London's moderate wildfire rating (36th 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.
What would actually reduce this score
With 59.8% of New London 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
New London's 36th-percentile score and its burn-probability figure both come from the same USFS workbook, documented in the methodology guide. For more on what direct exposure implies beyond New London, see the exposure-zones guide.