Cary's Seismic Design Category, explained

Cary carries Seismic Design Category B under USGS's ASCE 7-16 model. Low seismic hazard. Code requires basic seismic detailing (bracing, connections) but no special structural system restrictions. That puts Cary in the 36th percentile nationally for seismic hazard - higher than 36% of the 4,875 US cities USGS was checked against here.

Cary by the numbers

USGS's underlying values for Cary: 0.058g peak ground acceleration, 0.121g at short period, 0.061g at 1 second. Within North Carolina alone, Cary ranks 111 of 147 cities by seismic hazard - the 25th percentile in-state. Cary has a population of about 182,659.

Retrofit economics for Cary

A full earthquake retrofit typically runs $5,000-$10,000 nationally (around $7,000 typical), driven mainly by house size and foundation type, not by North Carolina specifically. California's Earthquake Brace + Bolt grant, which covers a large share of this cost, is a California-only program and does not apply in North Carolina.

What this means for insurance

A Cary homeowner cannot buy a standalone earthquake policy in most cases - it is added to an existing homeowners policy as an endorsement, so the place to start is a regular home-insurance quote.

Where Cary's figures come from

Cary's Category B and every number above trace to USGS's own ASCE 7-16 Design Maps service - see the methodology guide. See the category explainer for what Category B does and doesn't tell you about Cary.