This year, seven major new-construction fires at four- to six-story wood-framed residential sites caused property loss exceeding $400 million, says the National Fire Protection Association. The fires have “blown away” the recent annual average property-loss figure of $176 million, says Robert Solomon, an NFPA fire protection engineer.

Less than 1% of all fires occur during construction, according to the U.S. Fire Administration. Still, each year during the 2010-2014 period, U.S. fire departments responded to an average of 3,750 fires at construction sites and 2,560 fires at renovation sites, according to NFPA. Cooking is the leading cause of fires in new construction, accounting for 27%. Heating equipment is the leader in renovations, accounting for 15%.