Selling a home in SLO County could get harder — due to a new state law
A California law that went into effect Jan. 1 could make it harder to sell a home in fire-prone areas such as San Luis Obispo County’s heavily forested North Coast and the Parkhill area east of Santa Margarita, according to concerned fire officials and Realtors.
According to various sources, anybody hoping to sell a home in Cambria or elsewhere in California must reveal to a potential buyer what actions already have been taken to mitigate the property’s fire risk, and what else is required.
In October, National Public Radio reported that home sellers must warn potential buyers about wildfire risks and requirements. “Sellers must tell buyers if they’re in compliance with vegetation-clearing rules and share a list of home retrofits to make houses more fire-resistant,” NPR reported.
That’s not the only wildfire-caused problem area homeowners are facing, according to Dan Turner, business manager of the San Luis Obispo County Fire Safe Council.
For the past several years, some homeowners and others in San Luis Obispo County have had trouble getting, keeping or affording insurance policies that include fire damage, especially in the heavily forested Cambria and North Coast areas.
Some insurance firms reportedly have drastically increased premiums, canceled long-established policies, refused to issue new ones or insisted on extensive mitigation work, above and beyond what’s required by state law to diminish fire danger around a home.
That likely is linked to the huge payouts the insurers have had to shell out to people whose homes and businesses were destroyed by massive wildfires throughout the state and elsewhere in the West.
According to an October report from Mansion Global, “The wildfires in California this year have destroyed more than 4 million acres and almost 8,000 buildings, and this unprecedented damage is raising complicated questions about what homeowners can do to mitigate risk and prepare for future wildfire seasons.”
That’s “creating an additional hurdle for buyers and sellers: Fire insurance rates,” Alanna Schubach wrote on the Mansion Global site. “California real estate has shown signs of recovery after the onset of coronavirus caused a decline in sales, but now brokers are concerned that this rebound will be hobbled.”
Aaron Kirman, founder and CEO of the Aaron Kirman Group at Compass and star of “Listing Impossible” on CNBC, said that “he has seen annual fire insurance costs jump from $20,000 to $200,000 during this past quarter,” Schubach wrote.
While Gov. Gavin Newsom the state insurance commissioner and legislators have taken some action in recent years to stem the tide of insurance cancellations and rate hikes, especially in areas hard hit by catastrophic wildfires, those actions haven’t yet helped some others.
A year ago, Commissioner Ricardo Lara said, “This wildfire insurance crisis has been years in the making, but it is an emergency we must deal with now if we are going to keep the California dream of home ownership from becoming the California nightmare, as an increasing number of homeowners struggle to find coverage.”
North Coast homeowners struggle to find insurance coverage
Longtime Cambria resident Jacqueline Kennedy understands that challenge.
“I was insured, home and auto, with AAA for 23 years,” she said. Then “they canceled my home insurance because of the Cambria fire potential.”
Beverly Elder Smith of San Luis Obispo said, “After 30 years with Chubb, and only two very small claims ever filed, the company canceled our policy. It took a bit of research, but we finally found a company that would write a policy for us … at twice the premium!”
Dave Pierson, moderator of the Cambria Fire Safe Focus Group, offered some tips for people who live where wildfire risk is high.
“If your insurance company tells you they will not renew your insurance, ask them to come and inspect your property,” he wrote. “Hopefully, you have done all you can to create a defensible space around your home and hardened it against a fire.”
Then, he added, “ask your insurance company what else you can do to get a renewal.”
“If those efforts fail or if you can’t find an insurance company to issue you a new policy, your first step should be to visit the California Department of Insurance website at http://www.insurance.ca.gov/01-consumers/105-type/5-residential/index.cfm,” Pierson added.
Cambria certified as Firewise Community
There is some good news again for Cambria property owners, who are required by state and local ordinances to annually clear weeds and brush near a residence or on a vacant lot near a structure.
The small Central Coast community has been re-certified as a nationally recognized Firewise Community for 2021.
That designation from the National Fire Protection Association’s Firewise USA program can help reduce homeowners’ fire-insurance costs for some policy holders there, depending on the insurer. Pierson said that his insurer, USAA, offers Firewise-related discounts.
Recertification from the National Fire Protection Association — achieved annually in Cambria through the combined efforts of community members, the Focus Group and the county Fire Safe Council — recognizes towns and areas in which residents and agencies have taken action to limit the risk of a wildfire in their area.
A community can accumulate “points” toward Firewise certification by accumulating hours spent preparing, presenting and attending programs to raise awareness, meeting attendance, and providing public outreach and education.
Through the end of the most recent certification period, Bitto said Cambrians and the Focus Group accumulated points that equate to $800,000 worth, far in excess of what is required, despite the limitations caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Cambria’s latest certification remains in effect through 2021, according to Pierson and Steve Bitto, who handles the certification process for the group.
Homeowners can read, print or save the document to send to their insurance companies at www.cambriacsd.org/cambria-fire-department-e9a06ce.
More information
To learn more about how a community or neighborhood can be designated as being Firewise, go to www.nfpa.org/Public-Education/Fire-causes-and-risks/Wildfire/Firewise-USA/Become-a-Firewise-USA-site.
For more about the Cambria Focus Group, go to https://www.cambriacsd.org/fire-safe-focus-group or email firewisecambria@gmail.com.
The Cambria group is a subset of the county Fire Safe Council, which is affiliated with the state’s council. Participants include stakeholders in community fire prevention, preplanning for wildland fires, community education and preparedness.
As the Cambria Focus Group’s page on the CSD website states, the local organization “was established to improve local fire safety especially from a wildland fire,” and its mission is “to mobilize Cambrians to protect our community, homes, businesses and environment from wildfire.”
This story was originally published January 7, 2021 at 5:05 AM.
