Yale, MI
How exposed is Yale to wildfire?
Yale's 933 buildings earn a 5th-percentile wildfire-risk score nationally under USFS's model — among the lower wildfire-risk places nationally. (Source: USFS's Wildfire Risk to Communities methodology.)
Separately from the risk score above, Yale's burn probability — fire likelihood with no building count factored in — sits at the 5th percentile nationally.
Where Yale's buildings actually sit
Only 21.9% of Yale's 933 buildings carry Direct exposure and 0% carry Indirect; the remaining 78.1% are Minimal, which shifts the risk driving this page's score toward the surrounding landscape rather than any one structure.
How Yale compares
Yale's risk sits at a similar level relative to Michigan (11th percentile statewide) as it does nationally (5th) — this place isn't unusual for its own state either way. Among the 31,521 US communities USFS scores, Yale ranks 30,011 for wildfire risk (1 is highest) and 12,442 by building count (1 is largest). Within Michigan alone, it ranks 665 of 745 places by risk. See the full county-by-county picture for Michigan on its state page.
What this risk score means for insurance
Yale's low rating (5th percentile nationally) sits outside the range where wildfire risk alone reshapes an insurance market — still, a homeowner here loses nothing by comparing rates.
What would actually reduce this score
Even with 78.1% of Yale outside USFS's Direct and Indirect zones, basic hardening — gutter maintenance, ember-resistant vents — is inexpensive relative to the regional burn-probability risk noted above. Details in the home-hardening guide.
Where Yale's figures come from
The methodology guide shows exactly how USFS turned 933 counted buildings into the percentiles shown above for Yale. The exposure-zones guide covers what Yale's dominant minimal exposure actually means, with real examples from across the dataset.