Flood zones are land areas identified by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Each flood zone describes that land area in terms of its risk of flooding for floodplain management and insurance purposes. Everyone lives in an area with some flood risk—it’s just a question of whether you live in a low-, moderate-, or high-risk area.

Please visit Lee County's Forerunner site to search flood-related property information. 

Community officials use flood maps to help them understand and communicate the local flood risk, manage their floodplains, and require new and substantially-improved buildings to be built more safely and mitigate losses from future floods. These efforts make a safer community in which to live and work. Mortgage lenders use them to help determine a property’s flood risk and decide whether to require flood insurance as a requirement for a loan. Insurance professionals use the maps to determine a property’s flood risk and insurance cost. Developers and builders use them as part of their location siting and construction decisions. Residents and business owners use flood maps to learn about flood risk as they purchase property and investigate how best, financially and tangibly, to protect their property from flooding.

The category of a type of flood that has a one percent annual chance of occurring in any given year. This is commonly referred to as the 1% Annual Chance Flood. The base flood is the national standard used by the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) and all Federal agencies for the purposes of requiring the purchase of flood insurance and regulating new development.

The predicted level of flooding measured from approximate mean sea level. The elevation that water is anticipated to rise to in the event of a 1% annual chance flood. Since this is the elevation water is expected to rise to, the first livable floor should be at or exceed BFE in order to avoid damage from flooding. Base Flood Elevations are shown on Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs). This required elevation information is vital for new construction and some remodeling and renovation projects.

Congress changed the law in 1973 to mandate flood insurance coverage for many properties. Since this time, Federally regulated lending institutions cannot make, increase, extend, or renew any loan secured by improved real property located in a Special Flood Hazard Area in a participating community, unless the secured building and any personal property securing the loan were covered for the life of the loan by a flood insurance policy. 

Changing the law was necessary because, after major flooding disasters, it became evident that relatively few individuals in eligible communities who sustained flood damage had purchased flood insurance

In accordance with the Flood Disaster Protection Act of 1973 and the National Flood Insurance Reform Act of 1994, flood insurance is required for all structures in a Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA) that carry a home mortgage loan backed by a federally regulated lender or servicer.  For virtually every mortgage transaction involving a structure in the United States, the lender reviews the current National Flood Insurance Program maps to determine the property’s location relative to the published SFHA. This review occurs anytime a Federally backed loan is made, increased, extended, or renewed.

The mortgage lender, or a determination company hired by the mortgage lender, typically confirms whether a structure is in a Special Flood Hazard Area, and if flood insurance is required. 

If they conclude that a home or business is located in a high-risk area, they then inform the owner or potential buyer that flood insurance is required to receive the loan.

No. Flood damage is not typically covered by a homeowners insurance policy.

No. Flood damage is not typically covered by renters insurance. However, renters can obtain an NFIP flood policy. You don't have to own a home to obtain flood insurance.

The National Flood Insurance Program is a Federal program offering flood insurance that can be purchased from most leading insurance companies. Rates are set and do not differ from company to company or agent to agent.

No. You may acquire flood insurance through a private flood insurance policy. What matters is being protected from floods, regardless of how you obtain it. Contact your local insurance agent for more guidance.

Just a few inches of water from a flood can cause tens of thousands of dollars in damage. Flood insurance is the best way to protect yourself from devastating financial loss. Flood insurance is available to homeowners, renters, condo owners/renters, and commercial owners/renters. Costs vary depending on how much insurance is purchased, what it covers and the property's flood risk.

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To purchase flood insurance from FEMA’s National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), you must live in a community that participates in the program. Unincorporated Lee County DOES participate in the NFIP. Flood insurance is available - even if your home or structure has flooded before.

Yes, if you live in a community that participates in the NFIP, you can purchase flood insurance to cover the contents of your home or business. Discuss your options with your insurance agent today.

Click here for more information. 

Click here for more information.

Be aware that every flood and every storm is different. For instance, there were some communities in Louisiana that flooded during Hurricane Isaac (2012) but did not flood during Hurricane Katrina (2005). Although Isaac was much weaker than Katrina, Isaac moved very slowly and caused flooding in areas that the faster-moving, stronger Katrina had not.

Conditions change. Nearby construction can alter drainage patterns, and rainfall can exceed yearly averages. In addition, nearby community storm water drains can clog and quickly back up water during heavy rains, causing localized flooding. What's happened in the past is no guarantee of what will happen in the future.

This is a common misunderstanding. You may hear the phrase “100-year” flood and think a flood happens only once in one hundred years. That old adage is not true. 

The Special Flood Hazard Area (aka flood zone or floodplain) is an area that has a 1 percent chance, or a 1 in 100 chance, of a flood happening in any given year. That means a flood could happen this year and again the next year. It has nothing to do with calendar years.  The phrase “1 percent annual chance flood” is more accurate.