California Earthquake Authority creates online tool to evaluate a house’s vulnerability to earthquake damage

(SACRAMENTO) The California Earthquake Authority (CEA) has created a free online tool—called QuakeGrade™—to help home inspection specialists evaluate a house’s vulnerability to earthquake damage. The new tool debuted today in San Francisco at the California Real Estate Inspection Association’s annual educational conference.

Using information entered by an inspector, CEA’s new tool collects data about a house’s structural and geological risks. It can calculate a vulnerability score, offer suggestions for improvements and generate a detailed report that can be sent to a homeowner or buyer.

“We want to help Californians learn more about their risks for earthquake damage to their homes,” said CEA CEO Glenn Pomeroy. “QuakeGrade is a great new tool and will help homeowners see what specific steps they can take to lower the risk of shake damage to their house.”

CEA’s new QuakeGrade™ tool can be used on desktop computers, tablets and smartphones and is available to California-licensed engineers, California-licensed contractors and certified California Real Estate Inspection Association (CREIA) home inspectors (those with the certified CREIA inspector or master CREIA inspector designation). It is based on the CEA-funded FEMA P-50 form for assessing the seismic vulnerabilities of single-family, wood-frame dwellings and the FEMA P-50-1 guidelines for retrofitting those dwellings.

“Seismic inspections will help people learn about their house’s vulnerabilities to shake damage during a strong earthquake,” said CEA Chief Mitigation Officer Janiele Maffei. “QuakeGrade can be part of simplifying the seismic evaluation process.”

QuakeGrade™ is compatible with iOS and Android smartphones and can be used in Internet Explorer 10, Safari and Chrome. Home inspectors, engineers and contractors can register to use it at QuakeGrade.com.