Pescadero, CA
Pescadero wildfire risk explained
Out of every US place USFS scores, Pescadero lands at the 81st percentile for wildfire risk to structures — in USFS's highest wildfire-risk band nationally — a figure built from its 432 buildings, not the land around them. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Pescadero's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 82nd percentile nationally.
Where Pescadero's buildings actually sit
USFS classifies 73.2% of Pescadero's buildings as Direct exposure, higher than its 26.9% Indirect share and far above its 0% Minimal share — a profile where 316 structures sit close enough to vegetation that lot clearing matters most.
How Pescadero compares
Pescadero ranks lower within California (41st percentile statewide) than its 81st national percentile suggests alone — a calmer spot in a state where wildfire risk generally runs high. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Pescadero ranks 6,137 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 18,601 by building count (1 is largest). Within California alone, it ranks 926 of 1,570 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for California on its state page.
Pescadero and the insurance market
Pescadero 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 81st-percentile score like Pescadero's can end up mattering for. More on the disclosure law.
Lowering exposure, not just insuring around it
Pescadero's 73.2% Direct-exposure share means lot clearing around the structure typically outweighs any single material upgrade here. The home-hardening guide ranks the options for a place shaped like this.
Where Pescadero's figures come from
Every one of the two percentiles behind Pescadero's 6,137-place national rank traces to USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities dataset — see the methodology guide. The exposure-zones guide covers what Pescadero's dominant direct exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.