Mount Healthy, OH: what USGS's seismic model says

Under the seismic model IBC and ASCE 7 use for new construction, Mount Healthy is Category B. Low seismic hazard. Code requires basic seismic detailing (bracing, connections) but no special structural system restrictions. That puts Mount Healthy in the 46th percentile nationally for seismic hazard - higher than 46% of the 4,875 US cities USGS was checked against here.

Mount Healthy by the numbers

USGS's underlying values for Mount Healthy: 0.071g peak ground acceleration, 0.144g at short period, 0.076g at 1 second. Within Ohio alone, Mount Healthy ranks 109 of 254 cities by seismic hazard - the 57th percentile in-state. Mount Healthy has a population of about 6,916.

Bracing and bolting: the actual cost

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 Ohio 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 Ohio.

Insuring against this, not just retrofitting

A Mount Healthy 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 Mount Healthy's figures come from

Mount Healthy'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 Mount Healthy.