Villa Park's Seismic Design Category, explained

Under the seismic model IBC and ASCE 7 use for new construction, Villa Park is Category B. Low seismic hazard. Code requires basic seismic detailing (bracing, connections) but no special structural system restrictions. Nationally, Villa Park ranks above 41% of the 4,875 cities in this dataset for seismic hazard - the 41th percentile.

Where Villa Park sits in Illinois

USGS's underlying values for Villa Park: 0.064g peak ground acceleration, 0.126g at short period, 0.064g at 1 second. Within Illinois alone, Villa Park ranks 152 of 330 cities by seismic hazard - the 54th percentile in-state. Villa Park has a population of about 22,020.

What a retrofit costs in Villa Park

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 Illinois 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 Illinois.

Insuring against this, not just retrofitting

A Villa Park 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 Villa Park's figures come from

Villa Park'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 Villa Park.