Flood Insurance is Critical for Property Owners Who Live Near Rivers, What are the Typical Costs

The cost of flood insurance depends on the risk level of the area where your house is located. The average cost of the flood insurance for high risk homes is about $700 – $2,500 per year. According to FEMA, one quarter of houses located in high risk zone will suffer from flood damage every time a flood hit the area. For moderate to low risk homes, the average cost of the flood insurance is about $400 per year.

Besides the flood risk level, the insurance cost is also influenced by other factors such as basement, primary/secondary homes, and non residential property. If you have done some renovation to reduce the impact of flood waters on your home, you may be able to get some discounts on your flood insurance premium. You also have to take into account the charges for obtaining a flood elevation certification to find out whether your home meets the base flood elevation level.

If you want to find out the risk level of your address, you can visit FloodSmart.gov. FloodSmart.gov has a tool that you can use to estimate the damage cost based on the inches of flood. In the flood map, moderate to low risk areas are identified as NFSA which is short for non-special flood hazard area. On the other hand, high risk areas are identified as special flood hazard area (SFHA).

Getting flood insurance is necessary if your home is located in a flood prone area because the homeowner insurance does not provide water damage caused by flood. The lender will require you to purchase flood insurance before approving your mortgage. Flood insurance is provided via the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). The NFIP flood insurance program was established in 1968 with the aim of offering flood insurance coverage for residential and commercial properties.

Flood insurance can offer coverage on the contents and building structure. Building coverage offers compensation on damages that occur on the house structure such as foundation, ducts, air conditioning and furnace. Contents coverage offers coverage on the house contents for example furniture, freezer and washer/dryer.