While difficult to estimate for individual homes, experts argue that home buyers should have access to data about flood and wildfire risk, extreme heat, and other climate hazards in the area.
In November, real estate website Zillow removed the ‘climate risk data’ on its listings amid questions about the accuracy of flood risk data. The removed data included far more than flood risk. It also showed wildfire risk, sea level rise, air quality, and extreme heat exposure.
“Now, a climate policy expert in California is working to put data back in buyers’ hands,” writes Claire Barber in Inside Climate News.
Neil Matouka is developing a proof of concept plugin that provides climate data to replace what Zillow removed. “Matouka’s plugin includes publicly available data from the state of California and federal agencies, whose extensive methods are readily available online. Overall, experts tend to agree on the utility of both private and public data sources for climate risk data, even with needed improvements.”
Experts say home-by-home risk predictions are “notoriously difficult,” but the data can still provide information about “standing potential risks in the area,” says Matouka.
FULL STORY: A California Climate Expert Is Working to Restore Climate Risk Scores Deleted by Zillow
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