Today we are discussing the August 2019 flood insurance map changes for Fullmore County Minnesota and areas near like Spring Valley, Preston, Lanesboro, and Rushford Minnesota. What will the impacts be? Can you fight it? What are the options?

What Will the Impacts Be?

The new flood insurance maps are expected to move over 600 property owners from low risk non mandatory zones to high risk mandatory flood zones. What exactly does this mean? Well if you have a mortgage it means you will be forced to carry flood insurance on your mortgage going forward. There will also be parts of areas like Preston and Spring Valley Minnesota where properties will be moved to low risk zones. This means the additional payment on your mortgage will be removed. 

Can You Fight It?

Just because you received a letter from your mortgage company that your property in Fullmore county Minnesota is now in a high risk flood zone does not mean its correct. While FEMA tries to do the best they can many times their technology does hold them back. This technology has come along way but still has a long way to go.  So how do you verify if this new flood zones is correct? The easiest way is to get an elevation certificate done. This will tell you if your property is above the base flood elevation. If it is then your property might be a good candidate to have the flood zone changed. So where can you get one of these elevation certificates and how much should it cost? While getting a flood zone changed is great it does always work out. So when it does not what are the flood insurance options?

What are the Flood Insurance Options?

So now that you are being forced to buy flood insurance what exactly are the options in Minnesota? Well you have two options.

 

                  FEMA or NFIP

Option number one is you can do a traditional flood insurance policy through FEMA or the National Flood Insurance Program. Before reaching out to any insurance agent to get this done you will want to make sure to contact someone like the Flood Insurance Guru who deals with these situations everyday. There can be a wide range of pricing with the National Flood Insurance Program if things are not entered correctly. You might be told you have to have an elevation certificate in order to get flood insurance. This depends on the year your home was built and if it has been updated. You may have been given a standard rate when in fact you should have been given the newly mapped revision rate. This rate is generally about $600 a year for the first year. Then each year after that it will steadily increase until it reaches the correct premium for the risk.  Whats also important to understand is that on residential policies only $250,000 is available on the building and a $100,000 for contents. So what if you already took a policy out and didn't get the new mapped rate can it be changed? As long as its within 12 months of the map changing this rate can be corrected but once it reaches 12 months it can not. So what is the option for flood insurance?

 

              Private Flood Insurance

So what is private flood insurance?   

Private flood insurance is backed by private flood insurance companies where NFIP is backed by the government.  Unlike NFIP coverages are not limited to $250,000 on buildings and $100,000 on contents. Additional living expenses are also available, so if your property floods you could have temporary housing. Also one of the biggest benefits for residents of Fullmore county Minnesota is the rates can be 50% less and not require an elevation certificate.

 

So we have discussed how Fullmore county Minnesota residents could be impacted by the new flood maps, how you can fight it, and what the flood insurance options in areas like Rushford and Lanesboro. Maybe you have further questions?

Please visit our website Flood Insurance Guru , our YouTube channel The Flood Insurance Guru, or our Facebook page The Flood Insurance Guru where we do daily flood education videos.

You can also click the link below to start reviewing flood insurance options in the Minnesota area.

 

 

 

 

Today we are discussing the upcoming flood insurance map changes for Aurora Nebraska and Hamilton county Nebraska. Here are four things we want to address today.

Why are the maps in Aurora Nebraska changing?

Who will be impacted?

Can you fight the changes?

What are the flood insurance options in Aurora Nebraska?

Why are the Flood Insurance Maps Changing in Aurora and Hamilton county Nebraska?

So why are the flood insurance maps changing in Aurora Nebraska?   Land development and a movement from paper maps to digital maps are a few reasons why. Aurora has also had a history of flooding through the years, but these maps are also being updated because certain things point to additional flooding exposures.

             Flooding Risks in Aurora Nebraska

Aurora and Hamilton county Nebraska have some unique flood exposures. Let's talk about a few of them. Traditionally this area has some very cold winters combined with large amounts of rainfall. As a result when spring storms come through they can speed up the snow melt process and even block local lakes and rivers with blocks of ice causing flooding. Parts of Aurora Nebraska are very flat causing challenges for water runoff. This especially can create hazardous conditions from properties that sit in these areas. So when large amounts of rainfall occur like they did in early 2019 this water simply has no where to go.

 

Who is Being Impacted in Aurora and Hamilton county Nebraska?

The impact for Aurora Nebraska will be fairly large from a percentage standpoint. 12.5% of the population could be impacted by these changes. It does not mean its a bad impact . Some will be removed from high risk flood zones and some will not.

Right at 966 property owners are predicted to  be moved into a high risk flood zone. This means they will either be moved from a flood zone x to a flood zone A, or flood zone AE.

 

Can You Fight the Flood Zone Changes?

So can you fight the flood zone changes in Aurora and Hamilton county Nebraska? Yes you can fight it because of the way FEMA makes their flood maps and determines the flood zones these changes are not always accurate. For example FEMA might say your property is in a high risk flood zone but your house sits on a hill. FEMA is using the entire parcel in determining the risk and not necessarily the structure. 

So what do you need to fight it? Well generally the easiest thing is to have an elevation certificate. What is an elevation certificate? This is a certificate done by a surveyor that shows the different elevations of the home and how they compare to the base flood elevation.  How much do elevations cost? The national average on these range from $500-$700.  Who can help you fight it? At The Flood Insurance Guru we help people fight these everyday. So how do you know if you are a good candidate to get your flood zone changes? The best place to start is by looking at the lowest adjacent grade on the elevation certificate. If it is more than a foot above the base flood elevation then you might be a good candidate. If not then we recommend letting us  do a deeper flood zone change review for you.

 

What are the Flood Insurance Options in Aurora Nebraska?

When it comes to flood insurance in Aurora Nebraska or other parts of Nebraska you have two options for flood insurance. You can go through FEMA or NFIP and the private flood insurance market.

 

 Private Flood Insurance

Private flood insurance is done a little bit differently than NFIP. First of all it is backed by private flood insurance. So while NFIP has to accept all risks private flood insurance can pick which risks it wants. Because of these many times private flood insurance rates can be 50% less than NFIP policies. So what does a private flood insurance policy cover?

Private flood covers the building and contents like NFIP does but does not limit the coverage. Some other things they offer are contents coverage in basements, temporarily living expenses, and replacement costs on contents. You should also know that while FEMA makes you do a seperate policy for each detached structure private flood does not. You could list multiple structures on the same policy saving a good amount of money. This is very important in heavy farming areas like Aurora Nebraska. It's important to understand how underwriting works on private flood. If a property has had flood claims paying out more than $25,000 then you could be declined for private flood insurance in Nebraska.

 

Understanding the upcoming flood map changes for Aurora Nebraska can be overwhelming. Is it impacting you, how much it is impacting you, and when will you be notified?  Maybe you have more questions about these changes or want to get a flood insurance quote. You can click the link below to start this process. Remember to visit our website Flood Insurance Guru, our YouTube channel The Flood Insurance Guru, and our Facebook page The Flood Insurance Guru where we do daily flood education videos.

 

 

Today we are discussing the upcoming flood insurance map changes for Aspen Colorado and Pitkin county  Colorado. Here are four things we want to address today.

Why are the maps in Aspen Colorado changing?

Who will be impacted?

Can you fight the changes?

What are the flood insurance options in Aspen Colorado?

Why are the Flood Insurance Maps Changing in Aspen and Pitkin county Colorado?

So why are the flood insurance maps changing in Aspen Colorado?   Land development and increase in snow fall runoff are just a few reasons why. Aspen has also had a history of flooding through the years, but these maps are also being updated because certain things point to additional flooding exposures.

             Flooding Risks in Aspen Colorado

Aspen and Pitkin county Colorado have some unique flood exposures. Lets talk about a few of them. Being at a higher elevation that many other parts of the country Aspen gets a lot of snow and snow pack. As a result this snow pack usually starts to melt late spring and early summer. There are some things that can complicate this situation. You have many small creeks that come together in this area to dump into the Roaring Fork River. A combination of this snow pack melt and spring rain storms can quickly cause flooding issues because of the runoff from the mountains.  Regular flooding from runoff is also an additional risk because of all the different rivers and creeks that come together in Colorado. This especially can create hazardous conditions from properties that sit in valley areas.

 

Who is Being Impacted in Aspen and Pitkin county Colorado?

The impact for Aspen Colorado will be fairly large from a percentage standpoint. 7.7% of the population could be impacted by these changes. It does not mean its a bad impact . Some will be removed from high risk flood zones and some will not.

Right at 1400 property owners are predicted to  be moved into a high risk flood zone. This means they will either be moved from a flood zone x to a flood zone A, or flood zone AE.

 

Can You Fight the Flood Zone Changes?

So can you fight the flood zone changes? Yes you can fight it because of the way FEMA makes their flood maps and determines the flood zones these changes are not always accurate. For example FEMA might say your property is in a high risk flood zone but your house sits on a hill. FEMA is using the entire parcel in determining the risk and not necessarily the structure. 

So what do you need to fight it? Well generally the easiest thing is to have an elevation certificate. What is an elevation certificate? This is a certificate done by a surveyor that shows the different elevations of the home and how they compare to the base flood elevation.  How much do elevations cost? The national average on these range from $500-$700.  Who can help you fight it? At The Flood Insurance Guru we help people fight these everyday. So how do you know if you are a good candidate to get your flood zone changes? The best place to start is by looking at the lowest adjacent grade on the elevation certificate. If it is more than a foot above the base flood elevation then you might be a good candidate. If not then we recommend letting us  do a deeper flood zone change review for you.

 

What are the Flood Insurance Options in Aspen Colorado?

When it comes to flood insurance in Aspen Colorado or other parts of Colorado you have two options for flood insurance. You can go through FEMA or NFIP and the private flood insurance market.

 

 Private Flood Insurance

Private flood insurance is done a little bit differently than NFIP. First of all it is backed by private flood insurance. So while NFIP has to accept all risks private flood insurance can pick which risks it wants. Because of these many times private flood insurance rates can be 50% less than NFIP policies. So what does a private flood insurance policy cover?

Private flood covers the building and contents like NFIP does but does not limit the coverage. Some other things they offer are contents coverage in basements, temporarily living expenses, and replacement costs on contents. 

 

Understanding the upcoming flood map changes forAspen Colorado can be overwhelming. Is it impacting you, how much it is impacting you, and when will you be notified?  Maybe you have more questions about these changes or want to get a flood insurance quote. You can click the link below to start this process. Remember to visit our website Flood Insurance Guru, our YouTube channel The Flood Insurance Guru, and our Facebook page The Flood Insurance Guru where we do daily flood education videos.