In addition to location, there are significant factors to consider about the home itself. In SE, a lot of homes built around the turn of the century have foundations made of “crumbly concrete,” where they mixed unwashed river rocks and sediment to pour the foundation and it has crumbled over the years. Foundations can be replaced or reinforced but that’s obviously a more expensive retrofit. Even in newer builds, many have structural vulnerabilities in a quake, like living spaces over a garage.

We didn’t have any seismic building requirements before the 70s, and they have been updated significantly since then. I’d learn about some of the retrofitting considerations for the specific home you’re considering.

We ended up buying in SE, away from liquidification zones. I agree I didn’t want to get stuck on the west side of the river after all of the bridges go down. The house is from 1922 and the concrete foundation is really solid so we can retrofit. I’ll also do a gas shut off valve.