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Programs & Support · City of MalibuFinancial Assistance for Malibu Zone Zero Work
What Malibu already gives you for free
Few California cities staff their own wildfire team. Malibu does, and its programs map directly onto Zone 0 compliance.
Home wildfire hardening assessments
Free, no-obligation walkthroughs of your home ignition zone by city staff and certified volunteers, booked through the city's online scheduler. They cover ember entry points and the first five feet.
Fire Safety Liaisons
The city created the liaison role in 2021 and has expanded it since. Liaisons run preparedness programs year-round and staff the city's emergency operations during fire events.
Hazard tree removal
A free city program for qualifying hazardous trees. If a dying tree threatens your structure or the first five feet, ask the city before paying for private removal.
Woolsey rebuild households: the city has run a dedicated fire rebuild process since 2019, with rebuild-specific planning support at City Hall. If your rebuild is still in the pipeline, that team is the first call, because rebuilds must meet Zone Zero immediately at adoption.
Zone 0 work that pays you back
Under California's Safer from Wildfires framework, participating insurers must recognize specific mitigation actions in pricing. The list overlaps heavily with Zone Zero: clearing the first five feet, noncombustible fencing at the structure, ember-resistant vents.
Document everything. Photos before and after, receipts, and the report from your free assessment. In a market where Malibu homeowners have faced non-renewals and FAIR Plan placements since Woolsey, a documented hardening file is leverage.
State home hardening assistance programs continue to develop alongside the Zone 0 rollout. We do not list grant amounts we cannot verify. Ask during your assessment what currently applies to a Malibu address, and treat any specific dollar promise you read elsewhere with suspicion.
Assistance questions, answered
What does the City of Malibu offer for free right now?
Two standing programs: free home wildfire hardening assessments, booked through the city's online scheduling and performed by city staff and certified volunteers under the Fire Safety Liaison program, and a free hazard tree removal program for qualifying trees. Both exist today; no Zone Zero deadline is required to use them.
Is there state money for Zone Zero work?
California has funded home hardening assistance programs and continues to expand them alongside the Zone 0 rollout, but funded programs change by year and by county. We do not list dollar amounts we cannot verify. Check the state's wildfire preparedness resources and ask during your free assessment what currently applies to a Malibu address.
Can compliance lower my insurance costs?
California's Safer from Wildfires framework requires participating insurers to recognize specific hardening and defensible-space actions in pricing. Zone Zero work overlaps heavily with that list. Document everything you do, with photos and receipts, and submit it to your insurer.
Are the assessments on this site really free?
Yes. The contractor assessment arranged through this site is 100% free with no obligation, and the city's own home wildfire hardening assessment is a free public program. Start with either; homeowners routinely use both.
Start with the free half of the work
Two free assessments, zero spent. Find out exactly what your property needs before any deadline forces the question.