Smith Valley, NV
How exposed is Smith Valley to wildfire?
USFS scores Smith Valley at the 97th national percentile for wildfire risk to structures (in USFS's highest wildfire-risk band nationally), a figure built from 1,972 real buildings rather than raw vegetation cover. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Smith Valley's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 97th percentile nationally.
What "at risk" means for the buildings here
USFS classifies 89.8% of Smith Valley's buildings as Direct exposure, higher than its 8.3% Indirect share and far above its 1.9% Minimal share — a profile where 1,771 structures sit close enough to vegetation that lot clearing matters most.
Where Smith Valley ranks
Inside Nevada, Smith Valley sits at just the 70th percentile even though it scores 97th nationally — the state's overall wildfire exposure is high enough to make this a relatively quiet corner of it. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Smith Valley ranks 821 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 7,554 by building count (1 is largest). Within Nevada alone, it ranks 38 of 123 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Nevada on its state page.
Smith Valley and the insurance market
At the 97th percentile nationally, Smith Valley carries the very 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
With 89.8% of Smith Valley in Direct exposure, defensible-space clearing and ember-resistant construction (vents, Class-A roofing) address the exposure this page's own numbers describe, not a generic checklist. See the home-hardening guide.
More on how this number was built
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 1,972 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Smith Valley. For more on what direct exposure implies beyond Smith Valley, see the exposure-zones guide.