Staley, NC
How exposed is Staley to wildfire?
Staley sits at the 38th percentile nationally for wildfire risk to structures — close to the middle of USFS's national wildfire-risk range — per USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model, built from its 309 counted buildings, not vegetation cover alone. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
USFS's separate burn-probability score — fire likelihood alone, before counting what's built there — puts Staley at the 40th percentile, close to its 38th-percentile risk score.
Where Staley's buildings actually sit
USFS classifies 82.9% of Staley's buildings as Direct exposure, higher than its 17.2% Indirect share and far above its 0% Minimal share — a profile where 256 structures sit close enough to vegetation that lot clearing matters most.
Staley against the rest of the country
Staley's 38th national percentile looks worse in isolation than its 12th ranking inside North Carolina does — this place is on the milder end for its own state, by 26 points. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Staley ranks 19,545 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 21,403 by building count (1 is largest). Within North Carolina alone, it ranks 679 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
Staley's moderate wildfire rating (38th percentile) isn't the kind of score driving the carrier pullback making news in the highest-risk Western markets — but a standard homeowners quote is still worth comparing on its own terms.
What would actually reduce this score
With 82.9% of Staley 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.
Where Staley's figures come from
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 309 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Staley. The exposure-zones guide covers what Staley's dominant direct exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.