Do I need an AB 38 inspection to sell my house?
You need AB 38 documentation if the house is in a High or Very High fire hazard severity zone. Since July 1, 2021, California's Civil Code 1102.19 has required the seller of a home in those zones to give the buyer proof that the property meets the defensible space rules. Most of the City of Sonora is mapped Very High, and most of the county around it is High or Very High, so most sellers here need it.
Which zones count depends on who is responsible for fighting fire on the land:
- State responsibility area (most of unincorporated Tuolumne County): required in High and Very High zones.
- Local responsibility area (inside city limits, such as Sonora): required in Very High zones. The law's wording also names High zones, so if your house is mapped High, ask Sonora Fire.
This is separate from the natural hazard disclosure every seller already signs. If the property needs work first, our defensible space clearing before a sale gets it done to the inspector's checklist.
Which fire hazard zone is my house in?
Look up your exact address on the state fire hazard severity zone viewer, because zones change parcel by parcel. The state map for unincorporated areas took effect April 1, 2024, and the city map for Tuolumne County was released March 10, 2025. Here is what the maps showed at each town center when we checked on October 17, 2026:
| Place | Zone at the town center | AB 38 required there? |
|---|---|---|
| Downtown Sonora (city map, 2025) | Very High | Yes |
| Columbia, Twain Harte, Mi-Wuk Village (state map, 2024) | Very High | Yes |
| East Sonora, Soulsbyville, Tuolumne (state map, 2024) | High | Yes |
| Jamestown (state map, 2024) | Moderate | No, but check your parcel |
One point on Sonora's west side came back High on the city map. CAL FIRE's guidance says only Very High triggers AB 38 inside a city, but the law's wording names High zones too, so ask Sonora Fire, (209) 532-7432, about a High lot. That is why the address lookup matters more than the town name. We could not confirm whether the City of Sonora has adopted the 2025 map by ordinance, so ask Sonora Fire if your house sits near a zone line.
Who does the AB 38 inspection in Tuolumne County?
The local fire agency does the inspection, never a contractor. Which one depends on where the house is:
- Inside Sonora city limits: the Sonora Fire Department, (209) 532-7432.
- The rest of the county: in the state responsibility area, the request goes to the local fire authority where there is a local vegetation ordinance, and to CAL FIRE where there is not. Here both lead to the same people. CAL FIRE's Tuolumne-Calaveras Unit has run the Tuolumne County Fire Department under contract since 1974, and it posts its own AB-38 inspection request form.
We are not inspectors. We clear the property so it passes.
How early should I request the inspection?
Request it soon after the property is cleared and before you list, and leave time for delays. The documentation can be up to six months old when it goes to the buyer, and CAL FIRE warns that fire activity, scheduling and the number of requests can slow inspections down. A sale in late summer, the busiest fire months, needs the most lead time.
| When | What to do |
|---|---|
| Before you list | Look up the zone, walk the property and get the clearing done |
| Right after clearing | Request the inspection: Sonora Fire in the city, the CAL FIRE form elsewhere |
| Within six months of closing | Have the documentation ready for escrow |
| At closing, if it is not ready | Seller and buyer sign an agreement, and the buyer gets it within one year |
What happens if the inspection is not done by closing?
The sale can still close. The seller and buyer sign a written agreement, and the buyer takes on getting the documentation within one year of the close of escrow. The clearing does not go away: it moves onto the buyer's list for their first year in the house.
What does the inspector check?
The inspector checks the state's defensible space law (Public Resources Code 4291) plus any local ordinance, which can only add to it. In practice that means 100 feet around the house, or to the property line if closer, judged zone by zone:
| Where | What the inspector looks for |
|---|---|
| Roof and chimney | Roof and gutters free of leaves and needles, no part of a tree within 10 feet of the chimney, no dead wood over the house |
| 0 to 30 feet | No dead plants, grass, weeds, leaves or needles; about 10 feet between trees; firewood moved out; nothing flammable under decks |
| 30 to 100 feet | Grass cut to 4 inches; leaf litter no deeper than 3 inches; limbs at least 6 feet up; shrubs and trees spaced wider on steeper slopes |
| Inside Sonora city limits | Dead grass cut to 2 inches, and a 10-foot cleared strip along property lines that border a building or driveway |
| Elsewhere in the county | A 10-foot reduced fuel strip along driveways and roads, with 15 feet of clearance overhead |
| First 5 feet (Zone 0) | Not in force as of October 17, 2026 |
The Zone 0 guide explains where the first five feet stand after the state withdrew its rules on September 8, 2026.
What should I clear before escrow?
Clear everything on the inspector's list in one pass, then book the inspection while the property still looks that way. On most foothill lots that means:
- Dry grass cut across the whole 100 feet, to 2 inches inside Sonora city limits
- Dead brush, needles and leaves cleared from the house out
- Low limbs taken up off oaks and pines, and brush thinned under them
- Branches cut back from the roof and the chimney
- The drive cleared on both sides and overhead
Burning is suspended for the season as far as we can find, so we chip or haul what we cut. Tell us your closing date when you call and we will schedule around it, in any town we serve in Tuolumne and Calaveras counties. For the rules in full, read defensible space rules in Sonora and Tuolumne County.
Sources
- CAL FIRE, Real Estate Inspections (AB-38), last modified March 6, 2025
- CAL FIRE Tuolumne-Calaveras Unit, links page with the AB-38 inspection request form, read October 17, 2026
- California Civil Code Section 1102.19
- California Public Resources Code Section 4291
- CAL FIRE Office of the State Fire Marshal, Fire Hazard Severity Zones
Sonora Brush Clearing is a local crew based in Sonora, CA, clearing brush, dry grass and defensible space on homes and land across Tuolumne County. Fully insured, proof on request. About our crew
