San Mateo, NM
San Mateo wildfire risk explained
USFS scores San Mateo at the 87th national percentile for wildfire risk to structures (in USFS's highest wildfire-risk band nationally), a figure built from 189 real buildings rather than raw vegetation cover. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
USFS's separate burn-probability score — fire likelihood alone, before counting what's built there — puts San Mateo at the 83rd percentile, close to its 87th-percentile risk score.
What "at risk" means for the buildings here
Direct exposure dominates in San Mateo: 92.1% of its 189 buildings, versus 7.9% Indirect and 0% Minimal. Clearing space around a structure changes the outcome here more than any single building-material swap.
Where San Mateo ranks
San Mateo ranks lower within New Mexico (69th percentile statewide) than its 87th national percentile suggests alone — a calmer spot in a state where wildfire risk generally runs high. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, San Mateo ranks 3,973 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 25,289 by building count (1 is largest). Within New Mexico alone, it ranks 156 of 495 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for New Mexico on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
San Mateo's very high rating (87th percentile) puts it among the places where the national carrier-pullback trend is most relevant — not a guarantee of a coverage problem, but a reason to shop rather than assume.
What would actually reduce this score
Because Direct exposure dominates in San Mateo (92.1%), 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 San Mateo's 3,973-place national rank traces to USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities dataset — see the methodology guide. For more on what direct exposure implies beyond San Mateo, see the exposure-zones guide.