Home Hardening Tax Rebate

Anyone can reduce their home’s fire wildfire risk by installing upgrades such as a Class A-rated roof, multi-pane windows, or fire-resistant vents and gutter covers.  Buyers and sellers of residential or multi-use buildings with at least two residential units in “high” or “very high” fire hazard severity zones can get transfer tax rebates for doing that work in specified times linked to the sale of the property.

These permanent upgrades make homes more resistant to heat, flames, and embers. They lower the chance a building will ignite and help reduce fire spread to nearby homes.

Work that supports unrelated improvements, additions, remodels, or other upgrades are not eligible for the transfer tax rebate.

For upgrades requiring a building permit, follow the design, material, and construction standards in the current California Building Code and the Berkeley Municipal Code.

You can further reduce your property’s wildfire risk with landscaping practices such as reducing vegetation, creating buffer space around your home, and planting drought-resistant plants.

Eligibility for tax reduction rebate

To be eligible for the tax rebate, your property must:

• Be located in a High or Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone. Visit Berkeley FireSafe to search by address.
• Have a final sale price of less than $3,000,000.
• Have a Class A-rated roof (installation costs qualify for the rebate).

When you are ready to apply for the rebate, you will need to:

• Schedule a defensible space inspection from the Berkeley Fire Department for the same year the rebate application will be submitted.
• Pass your inspection and fix any cited violations prior to applying for the rebate.
• Take photos of the current and complete home hardening work as the City may request them for verification at the time of transfer.
• Provide documentation showing the portion of costs eligible for rebate.
• Provide an executed real estate contract of final sale price.

If you have questions regarding eligibility, contact:

Berkeley Fire Department Wildland Urban Interface Division
(510) 981-5620
wildland@berkeleyca.gov

Follow home hardening guidelines to qualify

Before starting any work, review the City’s home hardening recommendations below and plan improvements that address both the structure and surrounding vegetation. Focus on upgrades that are permanent, reduce fire risk, and comply with building codes. To qualify for a rebate, you must first replace a wood shake roof with a Class A fire-rated roof. You can submit the cost of installing a Class A roof as part of your rebate. After installation of a Class A-rated roof, these home hardening measures are also eligible for a rebate:

• Remove or replace combustible fences and gates from the area within five feet of the building.
• Create six inches of noncombustible vertical clearance at the bottom of the exterior surface of the building.
• Install fire-resistant vents and gutter covers.
• Install multi-paned windows.
• Modifications so eaves are enclosed.
• Install non-combustible siding or ember-resistant mesh around a deck perimeter.
• Relocate or remove combustible sheds and other outbuildings from the area within thirty feet of building.
• Install block spaces (bird stops) between roof covering and sheathing.
• Remove mature woody brush and shrubs within Zone 0 or 1 (0–30 feet from a structure) that the Fire Code Official deems difficult for the resident to manually remove. Email wildfire@berkeleyca.gov to request an evaluation of your woody vegetation to confirm it is eligible for the rebate.
• City-ordered tree removals within Zone 0 (0–5 feet from a structure) when a tree has a Diameter at Breast Height of less than 12 inches.
• Other work that will substantially increase the safety of a building in the event of wildfire, as determined by the Building or Fire Code Official on a case-by-case basis.

Improvements must be permanent, and any work requiring a building permit must follow California Building Code, Chapter 5 and the Berkeley Municipal Code 19.28.030.

Apply for a permit before certain upgrades

Apply for a building permit online or at the Permit Service Center. Most, but not all, building permits require Fire Department review.

Submit a complete set of plans for a plan check for qualifying home hardening work—including installing roofing, siding, windows, decks and fences. Include “home hardening work for transfer tax reduction” in the scope of work section of your application.

Once approved, you will receive a copy of your plans, stamped with this statement:

“Home hardening work covered under this permit is eligible for the Transfer Tax Reduction provided in BMC 7.52.060 upon approval of final inspection.”

After construction progresses, schedule building inspections so the City can confirm work matches submitted plans.

Fire-safe landscaping work you can complete without a permit

To prepare for wildfires, remove excess vegetation around your home. Simple, smaller updates like this, along with the recommendations below, can help you start making your property safer:

• Create Zone 0 (0-5 feet from structures) by surrounding structures with social areas or walkways using bare dirt, gravel, decomposed granite, tile, pavers, rocks, steppingstones, or concrete.
• Use fire-smart landscaping practices like managing vegetation, maintaining buffer space, and planting drought-resistant plants.
• Use City resources to remove dry or dead plants that could catch fire easily
• Trim plants, maintain open space around your property, and use drought-resistant plants like succulents.

If your hardening work does not require a permit, schedule a defensible space inspection once the work is completed. Request the inspectors verify the work is completed and there are no remaining violations. 

To check if you are eligible for a rebate for professional removal of mature brush and shrubs—such as juniper, manzanita, ceanothus, and similar species—within Zone 0 or Zone 1 (0–30 feet from structures), email wildfire@berkeleyca.gov to request an evaluation.

Take photos before and after the work is completed, as the City may need this to verify your eligibility for the rebate.

Apply for your rebate

Submit Home Hardening Rebate Application online. Include copies of receipts for completed work that clearly document property upgrades.

If your project includes eligible vegetation work, provide documentation for the portion of costs that are eligible for rebate so the Fire Department can review your application. If approved, the Finance Department will issue a check directly to the applicant.

You may submit more than one rebate application for permanent home hardening improvements, but all eligible costs must be from work done on or after January 1, 2025, and the total rebate for any combination of seismic retrofit and/or home hardening cannot be more than one-third (1/3) of the City of Berkeley's base 1.5% transfer tax. The rebate does not apply to the enhanced 1% transfer tax (Berkeley Municipal Code 7.52.040C). All home hardening work must be completed five years prior to sale of property or up to one year after sale.

Submit application for partially completed work or request an extension

Complete your home hardening work within one year of sale or apply for a rebate for partially completed work or a good cause extension.

To apply for a rebate for partially completed work, submit a Home Hardening Retrofit Application showing the dollar amount of work completed.

If approved for an extension, you may receive up to an additional year to complete your work. Good cause extensions may include:

• Unable to find or hire necessary professionals (architect, engineer, contractor, etc.)
• Unforeseeable changes in the scope of work or delays in the field.
• Serious illness or other unforeseeable circumstances preventing timely work

By following home-hardening guidelines, completing required inspections, and submitting clear documentation, you can apply for a rebate that supports safer, more fire-resistant buildings.

Contact: 
Berkeley Fire Department Wildland Urban Interface Division 
(510) 981-5620 
wildland@berkeleyca.gov