On Urban Wire, Urban Institute authors Andrew Rumbach, Sara McTarnaghan, Kameron Lloyd, and Aleszu Bajak compare housing recovery rates after four major wildfires: the Carr and Camp Fires in Northern California (2018), the Marshall Fire in Boulder County, Colorado (2022), and the Maui fire in Hawaii (2023). They found that debris clearance takes roughly 1-3 years. Rebuilding has been an even slower process and they stress the importance of streamlining permitting processes in order to facilitate rebuilding. They also point out that the rate of rebuilding is quite varied, with some areas (rural areas) and groups (renters) recovering more slowing. For more details, see their article: https://www.urban.org/urban-wire/when-will-los-angeles-rebuild-comparing-housing-recovery-timelines-after-four-recent
February 19, 2025