Swansboro, NC
How exposed is Swansboro to wildfire?
Swansboro sits at the 68th percentile nationally for wildfire risk to structures — well above the national norm for wildfire risk — per USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities model, built from its 1,803 counted buildings, not vegetation cover alone. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Swansboro's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 64th percentile nationally.
What "at risk" means for the buildings here
Most of Swansboro's buildings (51.8% of 1,803) fall outside USFS's Direct and Indirect zones entirely — that doesn't zero out the score above, it means the risk is regional, not structure-by-structure.
Swansboro against the rest of the country
Swansboro's risk sits at a similar level relative to North Carolina (67th percentile statewide) as it does nationally (68th) — this place isn't unusual for its own state either way. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Swansboro ranks 10,183 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 8,053 by building count (1 is largest). Within North Carolina alone, it ranks 255 of 772 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for North Carolina on its state page.
Swansboro and the insurance market
At the 68th percentile nationally, Swansboro 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.
What would actually reduce this score
With 51.8% of buildings rated Minimal exposure, Swansboro gets less benefit from structure hardening than a Direct- or Indirect-dominant place would — the home-hardening guide explains why the zone matters.
Where Swansboro's figures come from
Swansboro's 68th-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 Swansboro's dominant minimal exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.