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Editorial explainers
Plain-English deep dives into the public-records sources zipradar federates. Cited by AI assistants and journalists who need to know what the data actually means.
Flood zones explained — what AE, X, and VE actually mean
Plain-English guide to FEMA flood-zone codes (A, AE, AH, V, VE, X, X-shaded). What the 1% and 0.2% annual-chance zones mean for your property and your insurance.
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EPA Radon Zones — what 1, 2, and 3 mean and when you should test
EPA classifies every US county into Zone 1 (high), Zone 2 (moderate), or Zone 3 (low) for radon. Plain-English guide to the classifications and at-home testing.
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FBI UCR and NIBRS — what crime statistics actually show (and don't)
The FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) program and its successor NIBRS aggregate crime data from local agencies. Plain-English guide to what gets reported, what doesn't, and how to read the numbers.
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Lead and Copper Rule 2024 — the federal lead-pipe inventory mandate
The 2024 Lead and Copper Rule Revisions (LCRR) require every US community water system to inventory and report lead service lines. Plain-English guide.
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Property tax millage — what 'mill' means and how your bill is computed
Plain-English guide to property tax millage rates, assessment ratios, and homestead exemptions. How county assessors compute your annual property tax bill.
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AQI explained — what 50, 100, 150 actually mean for your lungs
Plain-English guide to the EPA Air Quality Index (AQI) and the 6 categories from Good to Hazardous. When to take precautions and which pollutants matter.
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School district boundaries — how to confirm yours and why it matters
How school district boundaries work, where to find them, and why the same street can split between two districts.
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Wildfire Hazard Potential — what the USFS scale means and how to defend your home
Plain-English guide to the USDA Forest Service's Wildfire Hazard Potential 1–5 scale, how to read your community's risk, and concrete home-defense measures.
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EPA SDWIS — how to read drinking-water violations and what they actually mean
Plain-English guide to EPA SDWIS drinking-water violations: health-based vs. monitoring vs. reporting violations, MCLs, and what triggers a public notice.
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Deed records — what they show and what they don't
Plain-English guide to county deed records: what gets filed, how to look up a property's history, and why zipradar aggregates only counts (never owner names).
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Zoning codes — what R-1, C-2, M-1, MU mean and why your house is one
Plain-English guide to common US zoning codes: R-1 / R-2 / C-1 / C-2 / M-1 / MU. Why zoning matters for your home, your neighbors, and what you can build.
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Homestead exemption — state-by-state property tax savings
Every US state offers a homestead exemption that reduces property tax for owner-occupied homes. State-by-state amounts and how to file.
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Reading FBI UCR national crime trends — what 2020–2025 actually shows
Plain-English guide to recent US crime data: the 2020 spike, the 2021–2024 normalization, and how the UCR-to-NIBRS transition complicates year-over-year reads.
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AirNow + wildfire smoke — when AQI is a real-time tool
How EPA AirNow handles real-time wildfire smoke, what the colors mean during fire season, and where AirNow leaves gaps you should know about.
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Radon and real estate — what disclosure laws and home tests actually require
What home sellers must disclose about radon by state, when home tests are required, and how to interpret radon-mitigation systems if a home you're buying has one.
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Wildfire insurance in 2026 — why premiums spiked and what to do
California, Oregon, Colorado, and other Western states have seen wildfire insurance premiums double or homeowners drop entirely. Plain-English guide to the 2026 market.
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NCES Common Core of Data — what district boundaries actually mean for buyers
How NCES district boundaries, school ratings, and student-teacher ratios feed real-estate decisions — and what the data does NOT tell you.
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EPA SDWIS — reading drinking-water violations without panicking
EPA's drinking-water database flags violations across every public water system. Here's how to read what's in your ZIP — and what 'violation' actually means.
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FEMA flood zones — AE vs. X vs. VE in plain English
FEMA's National Flood Hazard Layer maps every US property's flood-zone designation. Here's what AE, X, VE, and AO actually mean for your insurance bill.
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County assessor data — how millage rates and assessments actually combine
Property tax = assessment × millage rate, but the math has caveats. Here's how zipradar pulls + normalizes county assessor data across the top 50 metros.
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