Southmont, NC
Southmont, NC's wildfire risk, in USFS's own numbers
Out of every US place USFS scores, Southmont lands at the 37th percentile for wildfire risk to structures — close to the middle of USFS's national wildfire-risk range — a figure built from its 1,145 buildings, not the land around them. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Southmont's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 39th percentile nationally.
Southmont's building exposure, zone by zone
Of Southmont's 1,145 counted buildings, 92.8% carry Direct exposure and only 4.7% carry Minimal — a lopsided split that puts defensible-space clearing ahead of vents or roofing as the intervention worth doing first.
How Southmont compares
Southmont ranks lower within North Carolina (10th percentile statewide) than its 37th national percentile suggests alone — a calmer spot in a state where wildfire risk generally runs high. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Southmont ranks 19,862 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 10,991 by building count (1 is largest). Within North Carolina alone, it ranks 695 of 772 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for North Carolina on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
At the 37th national percentile, Southmont rates moderate for wildfire risk — well short of the threshold where insurers have been withdrawing coverage, though comparing a quote costs nothing either way.
What would actually reduce this score
Because Direct exposure dominates in Southmont (92.8%), 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 1,145 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Southmont. For more on what direct exposure implies beyond Southmont, see the exposure-zones guide.