4 Californians Lost Their Homes In A Wildfire. 6 Years Later, The Nightmare Isn't Over.

Buckley and his family moved into their new home on their Malibu property in June 2021, even as construction on it continued.

Courtesy of William Buckley

• Rebuilding what's been destroyed by a wildfire is supremely challenging, victims said.
• Efforts have been hindered by underinsurance, permitting delays, and the rising costs of materials.
• Fire victims also struggle with the emotional toll of losing their homes and fear of future disasters.

When Bill and Leslie Bixley lost their Malibu home of 20 years to a wildfire, they knew they would rebuild. But they didn't know they'd face years of red tape and heartache.

"The initial shock of losing material possessions is rough," said Bill, a retired teacher. "But the roughest part was getting the permits and getting through the bureaucracy."

BI talked with four homeowners who lost their houses to the 2018 Woolsey fire in LA and Ventura Counties about what it's been like to piece their homes back together — and whether it was worth doing.

Two families told BI that if they'd known how challenging the rebuilding process would be, they might have walked away years ago. But two others said they're glad they held onto their properties and rebuilt the lives they had there. They all said that rebuilding was much more challenging than they'd hoped.

"I don't know if there's anybody I've talked to who lost their place and went through any of this that it didn't completely change their life and traumatize them in some way," Bill Bixley said.

William Buckley's Malibu home was destroyed by the 2018 Woolsey fire.

Courtesy of William Buckley

Struggling with underinsurance

Fortunately, all four families who lost their houses had home insurance. But some of them discovered after the fire that their insurance policies wouldn't cover the full cost of rebuilding — or of the personal belongings they lost.

William Buckley, a Malibu native who works in financial services, said he had a good experience with his provider — AAA home insurance — after the fire. It was quick to send him his initial payouts and responsive to his requests.

"We were never left in the lurch," Buckley said. "We were never left holding an invoice and waiting for money."

Jon Krawczyk's Malibu property after the Woolsey fire.

Courtesy of Jon Krawczyk

But Buckley quickly learned that he was underinsured. While he ultimately received about $1.1 million in insurance payouts, he said, he spent about $1.6 million, he said. He took out a FEMA disaster relief loan and got much-needed cash from Southern California Edison's $2.2 billion legal settlement. But he and his wife still depleted their savings to cover the rest of the costs. They weren't alone. "Every one of my neighbors I knew was underinsured," Buckley said.

Richard Gibbs, a film and TV composer and owner of Woodshed Recording studio, had a much less positive experience with his home insurance provider, State Farm. Gibbs struggled to get the company to cover rent on the temporary home he and his family wanted to live in. When Gibbs realized that he'd lost all of his original scores, which an appraiser valued at $2.1 million, State Farm refused to reimburse more than $5,000 for them, Gibbs said.

The problem of underinsurance is widespread: A study published last year of wildfire-related insurance claims in Colorado found that nearly three-quarters of those affected by the Marshall Fire of 2021 weren't fully covered by their policies. Rebuilding a home in the future — and replacing everything in it — often costs much more than its current value, as estimated by an insurance company. Policies that cover the cash value of a home rather than the full cost of replacing it often leave homeowners without enough funds to rebuild. Gibbs and his wife ended up suing State Farm for allegedly underpaying and delaying their claims. They settled for an amount Gibbs said he couldn't disclose.

When Gibbs talks to other homeowners worried about a potential future wildfire, he tells them all one thing: "Make sure that your insurance policy truly covers your house in case it burns down because most do not," he said.

State Farm didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

Buckley and his family moved into their new home on their Malibu property in June 2021, even as construction on it continued.

Courtesy of William Buckley

An endless permitting process

Some fire victims struggled with city and other government permitting processes to rebuild, despite local authorities' promises to fast-track them.

Jon Krawczyk, a metal sculptor who also lost his home in Malibu, said authorities required him to rebuild the same structures he had before, even though he wanted one building instead of three and less square footage.

"There was no wisdom," Krawczyk said of the permitting process, adding that local authorities weren't flexible with the rules, even when his plans would've resulted in less construction.

Ballooning construction costs

Many fire victims said the cost of construction was ultimately much higher than they'd expected. Some homeowners were in the middle of the rebuilding process when COVID-19 hit, and demand for housing, construction materials, and labor soared. The pandemic also snarled building material supply chains, sending prices even higher.

Buckley and his family moved into their new home in June 2021, even as they continued construction on it. "It was just a structure in a rubble field, basically," he said. The home and landscaping were completed at the end of 2023, almost exactly five years after the fire.

William Buckley's home was finally completed five years after the November 2018 Woolsey fire.

Courtesy of William Buckley

As Gibbs hopes to finally break ground on his new home this year, he's bracing for increased competition for building materials and labor, given that many victims of the Palisades and Eaton fires will likely also want to start rebuilding as quickly as possible.

Moving on — or away

Despite designing their new homes to be far more resistant to future fires, some who've rebuilt live in fear of the next major disaster. Many are also struggling with the lasting emotional toll of losing their homes.

The devastating LA wildfires this winter, which also destroyed homes in Malibu, have exacerbated that fear. It's not just neighborhoods nestled into the hills or near the urban-wildland interface that can feel vulnerable these days.

"You could be in the middle of LA, and a fire can sweep through the neighborhood with the kind of winds we have," Buckley said.

The Bixleys were so traumatized by their experience — and fearful of future fires, that they moved out of Malibu and leased their home to victims of the most recent LA fires. They're living in a rental home in Fresno as they decide what to do next.

Krawczyk and his wife are hoping to move into their new home this spring, six and a half years after the fire.

Courtesy of Jon Krawczyk

"This last fire was so horrific, and we've just been so stressed out and traumatized from the experience, even though we've done everything in our power to fireproof our house," Leslie said. "We went through all that heartache, but it still didn't take away the pain and the fear of this happening."

Many of the Bixley's neighbors never rebuilt their homes, so their neighborhood still "looks like somebody who's lost half their teeth," Bill said. The couple said they know many others who also fear future fires and want to leave Malibu.

Gibbs said he's also considered leaving LA County because of "the insanity of the costs and insurance" made worse by the recent fires.

Buckley said that, for a long time, it was hard for him to talk with anyone who hadn't lost their home to a fire about the experience. He felt he'd joined a "club" of fire victims.

"At first, you don't even want to communicate with your old club, you're in this different club now," Buckley said. "They don't understand the extent of the trauma. It's hard to communicate that to anybody."

Have you been affected by a wildfire or other natural disaster? Contact this reporter at erelman@businessinsider.com.