Don’t Forget to Check Flood Maps Before Buying a Home in Central Connecticut

May 13th, 2009 categories: Central Connecticut News & Information, Home Buyers

Home buyers have to do a lot of due diligence before buying a home. Home inspections, building permits, comparable sales, appraisal, crime statistics, sex offenders, schools, zoning, etc. Add one more item on your to-do list - flood maps.

The house isn’t in a flood zone. Or is it?

You may think that property you’re buying isn’t anywhere near a river, lake, ocean or other body of water. Why check?

Even if the property is not technically near a body of water, the federal government, FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) to be specific, can say it is. And therefore, it is. Even if FEMA is wrong.

Late last year, FEMA issued new flood maps for the entire country after a five-year project. Many properties in Hartford County that had previously not been classified as being in a flood zone now are. These homeowners are now required by their mortgage companies to carry expensive flood insurance, around $1,000 - $1,500/year. Flood insurance rates have recently gone up, making the impact of the map changes more painful.

After doing extensive research on flood zones and flood insurance for a client, I came into contact with several homeowners who were fighting FEMA’s new maps in Wethersfield. According to these homeowners, their properties had never flooded once since they were built more than 60 years ago. Furthermore, FEMA has classified properties as being in a flood zone even though they never officially mapped the properties and are suspected of using maps that pre-date the developments.

FEMA’s response to these homeowners has essentially been “prove your home isn’t in a flood zone” which entails the homeowner hiring a surveyor and then submitting a request to have the map changed which can take months to have approved, if it is approved at all.

And even if a home is determined not to be in a flood zone, part of the property can be considered to be in flood zone and a mortgage lender can require a flood insurance policy. Worse, the property can be removed entirely and a mortgage lender can still require flood insurance.

Where Do You Get Flood Zone Information?

There are three places you can check.

Floodsmart.gov - This is helpful for a quick look. You type in the property address and you’re told whether the property is in a low- or high-risk area. But don’t stop there.

FEMA’s web site - Again, you type in the address but on this site, you have to physically look at the map and the legend to see if the property appears to be in or near a flood zone.

Then, you have to look at the attached Letters of Map Change which exempt properties listed although they appear to be in a flood zone on the map.

Town Engineering Department - If you can’t determine whether the property is in a flood zone or not based on the maps, then take a trip to town hall. The engineering department will have the flood maps handy. But more importantly, you can ask for someone to review the map with you and give you their opinion.

Shouldn’t Flood Zone Information Be Disclosed?

Yes. There is a line on our disclosures but not all homeowners know that their property has been reclassified. If the owners don’t have a mortgage, it’s an estate, foreclosure or as-is sale, then the owners likely don’t know whether or not a home is considered by FEMA to be in a flood zone. For this reason, it’s best to research the property before hand or during the inspection contingency time period. If there are any questions, talk to your real estate agent and attorney about ways to protect yourself in the event a property you’re buying ultimately requires flood insurance.