Zillow has announced that its real estate property listings in the US will soon feature details about climate risks, including the potential for wildfires, flooding, extreme temperatures, high winds, and poor air quality. Buyers will also see what types of insurance are required or recommended for a property.
The climate risk data, provided through a partnership with First Street, which specializes in “climate risk financial modeling,” will be introduced to the Zillow website and iOS app by the end of the year and will be available on Zillow’s Android app early next year.
In August, 16.7 percent of new listings on Zillow were at “major risk of wildfire,” while 12.8 percent had a major risk of flooding, says the company. To make potential homeowners aware of those risks, Zillow’s search map will be updated with color-coded highlights indicating which areas are likely to be affected by those five key risks, with each one having its own color scale to indicate the potential severity.
When home shoppers are viewing a listing, there will also be a new climate risk section detailing the specific risks for that property right now and the forecasted severity of those risks in the future, helping buyers understand potential costs for wind, fire, and flood insurance over time.
According to First Street, 78 percent of the homes flooded by Hurricane Debby were located in areas where flood insurance wasn’t mandatory, but 85 percent of them would have been flagged with an insurance recommendation in Zillow’s new climate risk assessments.
