Santa Clara, TX
Santa Clara wildfire risk explained
Out of every US place USFS scores, Santa Clara lands at the 69th percentile for wildfire risk to structures — well above the national norm for wildfire risk — a figure built from its 474 buildings, not the land around them. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
USFS's separate burn-probability score — fire likelihood alone, before counting what's built there — puts Santa Clara at the 68th percentile, close to its 69th-percentile risk score.
What "at risk" means for the buildings here
USFS classifies 99% of Santa Clara's buildings as Direct exposure, higher than its 0.8% Indirect share and far above its 0.2% Minimal share — a profile where 469 structures sit close enough to vegetation that lot clearing matters most.
How Santa Clara compares
Santa Clara's 69th national percentile looks worse in isolation than its 29th ranking inside Texas does — this place is on the milder end for its own state, by 40 points. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Santa Clara ranks 9,721 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 17,820 by building count (1 is largest). Within Texas alone, it ranks 1,273 of 1,795 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Texas on its state page.
Santa Clara and the insurance market
At the 69th percentile nationally, Santa Clara carries the high rating that has pushed some carriers to limit new business in similarly-scored places elsewhere in the country. Worth comparing quotes rather than assuming last year's renewal terms still apply.
Lowering exposure, not just insuring around it
Because Direct exposure dominates in Santa Clara (99%), 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
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 474 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Santa Clara. For more on what direct exposure implies beyond Santa Clara, see the exposure-zones guide.