Stem, NC
Stem wildfire risk explained
Out of every US place USFS scores, Stem lands at the 43rd percentile for wildfire risk to structures — modestly above the national average for wildfire risk — a figure built from its 478 buildings, not the land around them. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Stem's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 44th percentile nationally.
Stem's building exposure, zone by zone
Direct exposure dominates in Stem: 92.9% of its 478 buildings, versus 7.1% Indirect and 0% Minimal. Clearing space around a structure changes the outcome here more than any single building-material swap.
Stem against the rest of the country
Stem's 43rd national percentile looks worse in isolation than its 22nd ranking inside North Carolina does — this place is on the milder end for its own state, by 22 points. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Stem ranks 17,972 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 17,751 by building count (1 is largest). Within North Carolina alone, it ranks 607 of 772 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for North Carolina on its state page.
Stem and the insurance market
Stem's elevated rating (43rd percentile nationally) sits outside the range where wildfire risk alone reshapes an insurance market — still, a homeowner here loses nothing by comparing rates.
Hardening a home in Stem
Stem's 92.9% Direct-exposure share means lot clearing around the structure typically outweighs any single material upgrade here. The home-hardening guide ranks the options for a place shaped like this.
Where Stem's figures come from
Stem's 43rd-percentile score and its burn-probability figure both come from the same USFS workbook, documented in the methodology guide. The exposure-zones guide covers what Stem's dominant direct exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.