Last week as Hurricane Milton’s path was projected to cross over my house, the rain was pounding and tornado warnings were all around us, and an emergency flood warning jolted me out of sleep. Our home is not in a flood zone, but water does accumulate in conservation areas behind us, especially if we have over a foot of rain. Thankfully it wasn’t needed this time, but it is comforting to have flood insurance.
Your regular home insurance policy does NOT cover you if your home is flooded. You need to purchase a separate flood insurance policy from FEMA’s National Flood Insurance Program. If you buy a home in a high-risk flood area your mortgage provider will require you to purchase flood insurance. If you’re not in a high-risk area, or if your home is paid off, you still may want to consider buying flood insurance. According to FEMA, almost 1/3 of flood insurance claims are from people outside of high-risk flood areas.
Contact your current home insurance agency to purchase flood insurance, and go to https://www.floodsmart.gov/ to learn more.