California Homeowners: Get Ready for the New Zone Zero Wildfire Rules 

Wildfires remain one of California’s most persistent threats to homes and communities, and the risk keeps growing despite years of prevention efforts. In response, the California Board of Forestry and Fire Protection has approved final Zone 0 defensible space regulations — the first rules of their kind in the nation, and a direct response to lessons learned from the January 2025 Los Angeles wildfires. 

The new rules focus on the five feet immediately surrounding a home or structure. Fire science and firefighting experience consistently point to this narrow ring as the area where wind-driven embers are most likely to land and ignite a structure, making it one of the most effective places to intervene before a fire ever reaches a property. 

A New Layer of Wildfire Protection 

The Zone 0 rule builds on a series of state actions already aimed at wildfire resilience, including Assembly Bill 3074 (2020), Senate Bill 504 (2024), Assembly Bill 1455 (2025), and Governor Gavin Newsom’s Executive Order N-18-25. Together, these measures directed the Board of Forestry to develop stronger defensible space standards specifically for the area closest to a home. 

After more than a year of public workshops and input, the Board adopted a rule intended to be practical for homeowners while giving local fire agencies a clear standard to enforce. It targets the flammable materials most commonly found within five feet of a home, with particular attention to landscaping and vegetation. 

A Five-Year, Phased Rollout 

Zone 0 requirements apply to new construction as soon as the regulation takes effect. For existing homes, compliance is phased in over five years so owners have time to plan and budget for the changes: 

• Phase 1 (within 3 years): Remove combustible debris — firewood, dead leaves and branches, mulch, and wood chips — within five feet of the structure; clean gutters; remove dead or dying plants; trim trees to meet the new standards; and adjust plantings to keep only allowable vegetation in the zone. 

• Phase 2 (within 5 years): Local jurisdictions will set a deadline, within the five-year window, for creating a compliant under-eave safety zone, replacing combustible gates, and making any necessary changes to sheds and fencing. 

Who Has to Comply 

Zone 0 applies to homes in State Responsibility Areas — where Cal Fire is the primary agency responsible for fire prevention and suppression — as well as homes in Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zones. Given how much of California now falls into one of these categories, the rule reaches a substantial share of the state’s residential properties, not just remote or rural parcels. 

How the Five Feet Is Structured 

Zone 0 is organized as two nested rings rather than a single uniform buffer: 

• The immediate “safety zone.” A non-combustible strip directly against the home, extending out to the edge of the eaves. Its width tracks the eave: a home with one-foot eaves needs a one-foot safety zone; a home with two-foot eaves needs two feet. 

• The low-combustibility zone. The remaining portion of the five feet, typically around four feet depending on eave size, where stricter but slightly more flexible rules apply. 

This layered approach is designed to protect a home’s most vulnerable points — the base of exterior walls, windows, decks, and eaves — while still leaving homeowners some flexibility based on their home’s design. 

Vegetation and Landscaping: What’s Allowed 

Landscaping isn’t banned in Zone 0, but it is tightly regulated: 

• No combustible materials — bark mulch, dead leaves, wood chips, or firewood — anywhere in Zone 0, including on roofs and in gutters. Dead or dying vegetation must be removed and the area kept regularly maintained. 

• The safety zone (within one foot of the structure, or out to the drip line of the eaves) must be completely free of vegetation, even where eaves are shallow. Plants are also barred within two feet of windows, doors, and vents, and within five feet of attached decks or similar features. 

• Outside those buffers, well-maintained herbaceous plants are permitted: small non-woody plants such as bulbs, poppies, petunias, and succulents (in spaced groupings); low ground covers like moss, beach strawberries, and creeping thyme; maintained grass or lawn; and potted plants in non-combustible, easily movable containers. 

• Trees may remain but must be kept up: branches at least ten feet from chimneys, trimmed to five feet above the roofline and clear of eaves, with dead wood and low “ladder fuel” branches removed — the bottom six feet on large trees, or the lower third on smaller ones. 

Fences, Gates, Sheds, and Other Structures 

• Where a fence attaches to the home, a five-foot non-combustible section is required — for example, swapping a combustible gate for a metal one. This falls under Phase 2. 

• No new combustible fences or gates may be built within Zone 0, though existing ones can still be repaired. 

• Sheds and outbuildings within Zone 0 must have non-combustible exterior roofs and walls. 

Local Governments Can Go Further 

Cities and counties remain free to adopt their own wildfire safety ordinances, provided those local rules are at least as strict as the state standard. Any local regulation still needs approval from the relevant city or county board before it takes effect. 

Effective Date and Enforcement 

The adopted regulation now moves through Office of Administrative Law review before formal filing with the California Secretary of State, which will set the official effective date for new construction. Existing homes then follow the two-phase timeline described above. Early adoption is encouraged, and the state has signaled that initial enforcement will emphasize education and outreach rather than immediate penalties — but the phased deadlines themselves are fixed, not aspirational. 

What This Means for Buyers, Sellers, and Owners 

Beyond the fire-safety rationale, Zone 0 compliance is likely to become a practical consideration in California real estate transactions. Insurers are already factoring defensible space and home-hardening measures into underwriting decisions in wildfire-prone areas, and buyers, sellers, and agents may increasingly want to understand a property’s compliance status before closing. Homeowners in State Responsibility Areas or Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zones should start reviewing their five-foot perimeter now, rather than waiting for a deadline or a disclosure request to force the issue. 

If you have questions about how the Zone 0 regulations may affect a pending purchase, sale, or refinance — or how defensible space requirements intersect with disclosure obligations and insurance coverage — the real estate attorneys at Hoffman Forde are available to help you sort through the details. 

Need a Consult? 

Contact Hoffman | Forde today at (619) 614-2172 or intake@hoffmanforde.com. Our firm’s attorneys offer clear, strategic guidance to help with any landlord or tenant related issues.   

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