Fire-Proofing a House

One thing to consider beyond fire and maintenance: wood houses are better able to withstand earthquake because they allow some flex. If you’re in the hills, you’re likely almost on top of the Hayward fault and it historically ruptures catastrophically every 150 years. We are at 157 years and counting since the last Hayward 6.8-7.0, so earthquake retrofit would be an equally top concern as fire, for me.

Old wood house in the hills? No thank you, for wildfire and insurance reasons alone. 

The Hills are becoming liabilities and securing insurance is near impossible. If one can, the rates are sky high with low coverage. Additionally, with the new EMBER rules slated to go in effect, you will be on the hook for additional home modifications that will increase costs. See here — https://www.berkeleyside.org/2025/04/14/berkeley-wildfire-defensible-space-ember-initiative-hills.

There is a reason homes are going for sale left and right in the Hills, often at cheaper prices than the flats. We have considered offers but when checking with insurance companies, found the cost too much. 

We live in a house constructed entirely of redwood. Dry rots happen, and we've had to replace parts. The biggest issue/cost for us have been windows. The house came with 100 year old windows and many of them were rotten. Replacing those have cost us a fortune, and we haven't finished replacing them all. Keeping it painted to protect the wood also costs $. I'm not concerned about the fire risk as long as you keep the trees nearby trimmed. We also have French drain around house, which I think is extremely important when living on a slope. There's a lot of water that comes from upslope. 

I can only offer that if it's the currently listed house I'm thinking of, I was head over heels for it—it's gorgeous! I would not worry about the interior paneling; our similarly aged bungalow and hundreds of others across the East Bay also have redwood panels under decades of paint and wood lathe under plaster, so it's not measurably different there apart from the fact that the wood has been preserved in its original state and not painted over. And assuming it's the house I'm thinking of, it does have a modern concrete foundation so again, not really different from many other century-old wood framed homes. (I would be quite concerned about a home on a wood foundation, but I don't think that's what you're dealing with; they're very unusual in this area.) The thing I'd want to ask about for that house are the exterior wood shingles, which can have tons of costly issues depending on their condition. Try to get an inspection that includes testing for that. Dry rot and water intrusion are not uncommon for both wood shingle and stucco homes of that era—but they're very expensive to fix so you will want to factor that into an offer. Wood shingle homes are not uncommon in Berkeley, though, so there are resources to help assess the current condition and make needed repairs as long as you know to budget for it. Good luck!

Depending on the location of the house you are considering, the landscaping, and other factors, fire-hardening costs could be a big deal.

We live in a wooden house, in an area just outside the "extreme risk" band in the Oakland hills.  My fondest desire would be to have poly-ash ember-resistant siding, but we can't afford to retrofit. 

Seasonal windstorms from the east ("Diablo winds") can propel embers from the ridge line, all the way to the Bay shore.

Look up your site on CalFire and FirstStreet fire maps. What is the fire risk area?  Can you get insurance?  

What material is the roof made of?

Do the neighbors have standing dead trees, living Monterey pines, eucalyptus, or cypress?

What is the evacuation scenario for the neighborhood?

The hot East Bay real estate market may be shifting toward favoring buyers., But one must be clear-eyed in evaluating risks in this changing climate.