If your building is in the 1% flood hazard zone, and you have a mortgage on it, you’re going to have to carry flood insurance. And it’s not particularly cheap.
**Not sure if a property you own are are thinking of buying is in the flood zone? Ask us! We can research that for you easily, so you know what to do.**
Is it a bad idea to buy a multi-family that’s in the flood zone? Not necessarily. You just have to make sure to factor in the cost of the insurance into the financial analysis. Also, some investors, especially those with smaller portfolios can be wary about buying in the flood zone. Which reduces the number of potential buyers for your building when you do eventually decide to sell.
So really, as long as your numbers are solid and you’re aware that the building may be less liquid than one not in the flood zone, then you should be ok.
How do you find out if a building is in the flood zone? The easiest way is to ask us at Green Light Real Estate. Honestly, you can even just shoot an email. “Hey, is the building over on Water Street in the flood zone?” And by the way, if it’s on “Water Street”, you might already know the answer.
If you do need or want to buy flood insurance, then we can make recommendations to a couple local insurance agents who can get a quote to you quickly.
Removing Flood Insurance
Sometimes the maps are wrong. And...the flood maps get redrawn from time to time, so a property that was in the flood zone may not be. And vice versa.
If that’s the case with your property, you might not need to carry flood insurance. You might still want to, because the building could still flood.
You’ll need to get a surveyor to do some work and provide documentation that the building is out of the 1% flood hazard zone. If all goes well, then you’ll get a Letter of Map Amendment stating that the structure is out of the flood zone.
Interestingly, your property can still be in the flood zone, as long as you don’t have any structures that are in it. So, if you are alongside a lovely brook, there’s a really good chance that some of the property is in that 1% flood hazard zone. But if the apartment building is further uphill, and out of the zone, you should be good.
We can hook you up with a good, local surveying company that might even be able to tell you whether it’s worth pursuing the LOMA before spending any money. Call or email us, and we’ll do whatever we can to help.