What’s Your Flood Risk?

Your chances of flooding over 30 years are 5x higher than a home fire. Most homeowners insurance excludes flood damage, making flood insurance essential.

Flood Risk Ratings

As this designation implies, there is a low, but still meaningful, flood risk. 40% of all flood claims occur in low- to moderate-risk areas. Flood insurance is an important safeguard, even for those in areas of low risk.

This designation means that the risk for flooding is reduced, but there is still flood risk. 40% of all flood claims occur in low- to moderate-risk areas. Moderate flood risk areas may have reduced their risk with mitigation efforts, such as levees, or they experience shallow flooding. Flood insurance is an important safeguard for those in areas of moderate risk.

In communities that participate in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), flood insurance is mandatory for properties located in high-risk flood zones if mortgages are federally backed.

Over the past 20 years, 99% of counties in the U.S. have experienced a flood event

Over 40% of NFIP claims are from outside the high-risk zones

From 2016-2021, flood insurance policyholders received claim payments averaging $68,000, which never have to be repaid

Flood Risk FAQs

• What is a flood?

• Two or more acres of normally dry land or two or more properties that are partially or completely submerged by water from any of these events:
  • Overflowing inland or tidal waters
  • Unusual, quick surface water runoff
  • Mudflows (rivers of liquid, flowing mud) caused by flooding
  • Collapse or sinking of land along a lake or other body of water caused by heavy waves or currents

  High-risk flood areas begin with the letters A or V on FEMA flood maps.

  They are also known as special flood hazard areas (SFHAs). If you own a property in a high-risk zone and have a federally backed mortgage, you must purchase flood insurance. Over a 30-year mortgage, homes in these areas have a 1 in 4 chance of flooding at least once.

  Moderate- to lower-risk flood areas are designated with the letters B, C and X on FEMA flood maps.

  There is still a risk of flooding in areas with low or moderate flood risk. About 40% of NFIP claims come from outside high-risk flood areas. Although some lenders may not require flood insurance, FEMA recommends flood insurance to protect property owners from financial losses. It’s important to note that most homeowners and renters insurance don’t cover flood damage.

  High-Risk Flood Zones

  For detailed information click here.

  Moderate- to Low-Risk Flood Areas

  For detailed information click here. The NFIP uses many factors to evaluate a property’s flood risk:

  Your Property’s Location

  • Frequency of flooding in the area
  • Distance to multiple types of flooding sources, including the coast, oceans, rivers, and lakes
  • The ground elevation where the building is located relative to the elevation of the surrounding area and nearby flooding sources

  The Building’s Characteristics

  • Risk is greater for foundations underground or at ground level than those elevated above ground
  • Flood risk is lower for buildings with first floors that are higher off the ground
  • Buildings with more floors spread flood risk over a larger area
  • Individual units on a building’s higher floors have a lower risk of flooding than units on lower floors
  • Masonry walls perform better in flooding events than wood frame walls
  • A building with flood openings can have lower flood risk by allowing floodwaters to flow through the structure’s enclosure or crawlspace
  • Where the building’s heating/air conditioning, electrical panels, hot water heater and other equipment are located affect risk
    • Locating equipment above the first floor (or above floor level) lowers the risk of flood damage
    • Moving or raising heating and cooling systems, water heaters, electrical panels and other utilities to reduce risk of damage. Consider using an attic, extra closet, or raised platform to elevate them
    • Filling in your basement. A basement is any area of a building with its floor lower than the ground. Crawlspaces that are below ground on all sides are considered basements
    • Elevating your property above the ground
    • Relocating your structure to an area with lower flood risk

    You can find more in the Homeowner's Guide to Retrofitting.

    If a flood is about to occur, you can take flood avoidance measures.

    Under current rules, the NFIP covers certain flood avoidance measures, including:

    • Up to $1,000 to protect insured property and
    • Up to $1,000 to move insured property away from a flood or imminent danger of flooding)

    Eligible expenses include:

    • Sandbags (including sand to fill them)
    • Fill (such as sand or gravel) to create temporary levees
    • Water pumps
    • Plastic sheeting and lumber
    • Labor of the property owner or a family member, covered at the federal minimum hourly wage ($7.25 in 2024)
    • Contact the NFIP’s FEMA Mapping and Insurance eXchange (FMIX) Customer Services Specialist, 877-336-2627
    • Email FEMA-FMIX@fema.dhs.gov, or
    • Visit the NFIP Community Rating System (CRS) website, https://www.fema.gov/floodplain-management/community-rating-system
      • Click on “Participating Communities” to see if your community is on the list of participating communities