New Preston, CT
How exposed is New Preston to wildfire?
Out of every US place USFS scores, New Preston lands at the 45th percentile for wildfire risk to structures — modestly above the national average for wildfire risk — a figure built from its 962 buildings, not the land around them. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, New Preston's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 44th percentile nationally.
New Preston's building exposure, zone by zone
97.5% of New Preston's 962 buildings sit in USFS's Direct exposure zone, roughly 938 structures close enough to burnable vegetation for flame contact, not just embers — 1% fall in the Indirect, ember-only zone and 1.5% are Minimal.
Where New Preston ranks
Within Connecticut, New Preston ranks higher (97th percentile) than it does nationally (45th) — one of the more fire-exposed places in a state that, overall, scores lower than that. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, New Preston ranks 17,263 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 12,206 by building count (1 is largest). Within Connecticut alone, it ranks 8 of 214 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Connecticut on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
New Preston's elevated rating (45th percentile nationally) sits outside the range where wildfire risk alone reshapes an insurance market — still, a homeowner here loses nothing by comparing rates.
What would actually reduce this score
Because Direct exposure dominates in New Preston (97.5%), 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
Every one of the two percentiles behind New Preston's 17,263-place national rank traces to USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities dataset — see the methodology guide. For more on what direct exposure implies beyond New Preston, see the exposure-zones guide.