How does the FAIR Plan rate wildfire risk in Sylmar, Sunland and Tujunga?

The FAIR Plan counted 5,272 residential policies in Sylmar's 91342, Sunland's 91040 and Tujunga's 91042 on September 30, 2026. Four years earlier, on September 30, 2022, it counted 2,043, so the three ZIP codes grew 158%, close to California's 150%.

Sylmar's 91342 holds the most, 2,691, the 32nd largest FAIR Plan count of any California ZIP code. Tujunga's 91042 had 1,491 and Sunland's 91040 had 1,090.

The year to September 30, 2026 added 16%, from 4,560 policies in Sylmar, Sunland and Tujunga on September 30, 2025.

In 2022, the FAIR Plan covered 7.0% of insured homes in Sylmar, Sunland and Tujunga, the Department of Insurance found, more than twice California's 3.2%. Tujunga's 91042 reached 10.5%.

Outside the FAIR Plan, insurers non-renewed 3,397 Sylmar, Sunland and Tujunga home policies in 2023, a rate of 11.1%, against 8.7% statewide. Owners who leave after a sale or a move, or for another insurer, are counted too, not only insurers' decisions.

Second homes are rare. Census estimates for 2020 to 2024 show 0.5% of Sylmar, Sunland and Tujunga housing in seasonal use, against 2.4% for California.

The Sayre Fire began the night of November 14, 2008, at 13000 West Sayre Street in Sylmar, by a City of Los Angeles after-action report. It burned 11,262 acres and damaged or destroyed more than 600 structures.

The same report says "approximately 500 of those destroyed structures were mobile homes in the Oakridge Mobile Home Park." CAL FIRE's own page for the Sayre Fire gives no structure count.

The Saddle Ridge Fire started October 10, 2019, on Saddle Ridge Road in Sylmar. CAL FIRE's page, updated November 5, 2019, lists 8,799 acres, 19 structures destroyed, 88 damaged and one civilian death.

The Hurst Fire began near Diamond Road in Sylmar late on January 7, 2025. CAL FIRE counts 799 acres and two structures damaged, with containment on January 16, 2025.

East of Sylmar, the 2017 Creek Fire started on Kagel Canyon Road, north of Lake View Terrace. CAL FIRE's page lists 15,619 acres and 123 structures destroyed.

Each of the three ZIP codes has been listed more than once, and every listing has ended. A moratorium stops insurers, for one year, from cancelling or non-renewing home policies in listed ZIP codes because of wildfire risk.

In 2019, the Saddleridge Fire's list covered 91342, 91040 and 91042 for a year from October 11, 2019, while the fire still burned. The Tick Fire's list, from October 25, 2019, added Sylmar's 91342 again.

Tujunga's 91042 was listed again in 2020, for the Bobcat Fire, from September 25, 2020. It was listed in 2024 for the Bridge Fire, from September 11, 2024, three days after that fire began.

Bulletin 2025-1 then covered all three ZIP codes for one year from January 7, 2025, under the Hurst Fire. Its Eaton Fire list also named 91042, and its Lidia Fire list named 91042 and 91342.

That 2025 protection ended in January 2026. The Department of Insurance's moratorium page listed no Sylmar, Sunland or Tujunga ZIP code on October 29, 2026. How wildfire moratoriums work explains what one protects.

Inside the City of Los Angeles, the Home-Sharing Ordinance, No. 185,931, has applied since July 1, 2019. A host may rent only a primary residence, after registering with the city.

The ordinance limits home-sharing to "a maximum of 120 days in a calendar year" unless the city approves extended home-sharing. City Planning's fact sheet defines a primary residence as the home where the host lives "more than six months out of the year."

Not every address in these ZIP codes is in the city. By the Census Bureau's 2020 maps, all of Sunland's 91040 lies inside Los Angeles. The city holds about two-fifths of the land in 91342 and one-fifth in 91042, and nearly all the rest lies outside any city.

A home on unincorporated land falls under Los Angeles County's short-term rental ordinance, in effect since October 7, 2024. The county's FAQ requires the host to live on the property at least nine months a year. Its rental page says some limits have been suspended to house people affected by the fires.

Neither rule replaces your policy's terms. Tell your insurer in writing before you host, and see what a homeowners policy says about paying guests.

FAIR Plan dwelling rates are 29.1% higher on average for new policies and renewals on or after October 15, 2026. Some homes see more than that, and some see less.

An April 4, 2025 alert from the Department of Insurance says the purpose of CAL FIRE's maps is "to drive local planning decisions." Insurers weigh a Sylmar, Sunland or Tujunga home with wildfire risk models of their own, and the FAIR Plan's tier is the Plan's own rating.

Ask standard insurers first. Then try specialty insurers. Most homeowners never see them, because they're sold only through licensed agents and brokers.

Bring your roof's age, proof of brush clearance and any wildfire upgrades you have made. Read the FAIR Plan's coverage gaps before you renew one.