If both your company and neighboring landowners manage vegetative fuels with prescribed fire, both your development and the neighboring natural resources will be better protected from fire risk. If only one of you manages vegetative fuels, both of you may still be at risk of wildfire. Just as wildfires can come from undeveloped areas to threaten homes and businesses, fires often start from carelessness in human developments and spread to threaten valuable natural resources on neighboring lands. Some wildfire prevention measures may result in increased energy or water costs, loss of privacy, or reduced aesthetic values for potential homeowners. For developments in fire-prone areas, these additional costs are insignificant compared to the potential loss of lives and property.
Recent trends show that buyers are willing to pay more for a home near a natural area or open space.
The cost of preventing wildfire is another form of insurance that should be included in the purchase price of a fire-safe home or business. Other wildfire protection measures may be free or nearly free of cost. Planning for defensible space around a development can still allow for trees and shrubs that provide shade and attract wildlife. Rather than removing all vegetation, developers can maintain a canopy of large trees while reducing the ground-level vegetative fuels that can carry a fire. Landscape architects and designers can substitute less-flammable native plants to gain fire prevention, water conservation, and wildlife habitat benefits.