Today, I want to share another flood tip for people who are looking to buy a property. It may be a house that you're going to live in or a building where you'll conduct your business. So, let's talk about how to easily check for the building that may suit your budget and also be sure that it's safe from flooding.
Lately, I've been looking to buy a house which also means that I get to look at different properties during this time. One of the things I do to check the house even without an inspector's help is to drive by the lot after a heavy rain to see if there's standing floodwater on the lawn. This is to check if the property's flood prone and check the current condition of the whole property. If there's one, maybe it's a strong rain so it's most likely to collect excess water, I wanted to see how the lot would drain this water. I also want to check how close the crawlspace can be in contact with floodwater.
Why Do This?
This immediate can give you an idea of what will happen when flooding happens in that area. You can get a grasp of the evacuation routes in worst-case scenarios. You want to check how the road can lead flood water to your property as well even in low-risk areas. So, you might ask, would you still buy flood insurance for this low-risk property? Yes, I would definitely do so.
It's important to note that it doesn't really take a high-risk flood zone for your property to be impacted by flooding especially when there's a disaster faced by the community or the area. We've seen how a lot of low-risk flood zones are becoming the first victim of flash flooding across the country. This may be because the area is not that prepared when it comes to flood mitigation.
We've seen this happen with sewage systems, drainage systems, and drainage channels failing to take in water or blocking the water to naturally flow outside the area; storm surges in coastal areas directing the water to these low-risk areas, flash floods because storm drains are overwhelmed by the amount of water coming causing more than 6 inches of water to flood the area.
Low-risk areas are also subject to almost all types of flooding and the sad thing about this, more than the damage, is that most of the residents in these low-risk areas don't carry flood insurance with their property, so they're finding a hard time bouncing back when flooding hits them.
We did an episode on our podcast covering the numerous reasons why there may be floods for low-risk areas. Low-risk flood zones, like flood zone X, still have the risk of flooding throughout the years because of these reasons that cause the redirection of water from high-risk flood zones. Now, on a normal day and rainfall, this might only cause these areas to get shallow flooding with very minor floodwaters.
This is why we always say that it's a low-risk flood zone, not a no-risk flood zone. It's also important to know that as of the past few floodings, the excess water from special flood hazard areas (SFHA) flows into these low-risk areas. This is why even if I would buy a house in a very low-risk flood area, I'd still want to secure a flood insurance policy to make ensure the safety of my property and the contents in it.
If you want other flood safety tips for your house to avoid getting devastated by natural disasters, you can always visit our website, check out more of our daily flood education videos on YouTube, or reach out to us. Remember, we have an educational background in flood mitigation and we want to share this knowledge with you, so you too can avoid flood risks for your property. Click the links below to get started.
