Rutherford, TN
Rutherford wildfire risk explained
Rutherford's 732 buildings earn a 7th-percentile wildfire-risk score nationally under USFS's model — among the lower wildfire-risk places nationally. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Rutherford's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 7th percentile nationally.
Rutherford's building exposure, zone by zone
USFS classifies 56% of Rutherford's buildings as Minimal exposure, the largest of the three zones here by a wide margin over 44% Direct and 0% Indirect — a landscape-level risk rather than a building-by-building one.
Where Rutherford ranks
Rutherford's risk sits at a similar level relative to Tennessee (1st percentile statewide) as it does nationally (7th) — this place isn't unusual for its own state either way. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Rutherford ranks 29,266 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 14,313 by building count (1 is largest). Within Tennessee alone, it ranks 499 of 502 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Tennessee on its state page.
Shopping for coverage in Rutherford
Rutherford's low rating (7th percentile nationally) sits outside the range where wildfire risk alone reshapes an insurance market — still, a homeowner here loses nothing by comparing rates.
Lowering exposure, not just insuring around it
Even with 56% of Rutherford outside USFS's Direct and Indirect zones, basic hardening — gutter maintenance, ember-resistant vents — is inexpensive relative to the regional burn-probability risk noted above. Details in the home-hardening guide.
Where Rutherford's figures come from
Every one of the two percentiles behind Rutherford's 29,266-place national rank traces to USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities dataset — see the methodology guide. The exposure-zones guide covers what Rutherford's dominant minimal exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.