Flood Insurance

[ArtB]

What is everyones opinion of Flood Insurance. Three years ago our insurance agent talked us into purchasing Floor Insurance. Now three years later I wonder if it is really necessary to carry this coverage. We live on the northern end of The Villages.

[buggyone]

Check to see if your home is located in a flood prone area. Next, determine if the premiums are too large for your budget. Then calculate what your loss would be if your home was flooded. Make up your mind from that.

I have seen some older homes by the Hilltop Golf course and Silver Lake course that look like they would be in danger of floods.

[raynitsche]

We are in process of buying a home and the mortgage company said it is
not needed as we're not in a flood zone. Friends already in Village stated no
need for coverage.

[Penguin]

I just went through this. My insurance agent told me to wait till I own my house for 1 year and see if flooding is an issue in my neighborhood. I am a new build in a new area so no one really knows if flooding is an issue so I will wait and see.

[wendyquat]

We got it, at least til we can " ride out a storm" and see how good the drainage works in a walled in CYV. It was only $150 per year. Better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it! Probably would not have gotten it if we weren't in a CYV.

[ladylake1]

Check your policy to see what is NOT covered for water damage. That may be different from what is normally considered a "flood."

[English Ivy]

I just went through this. My insurance agent told me to wait till I own my house for 1 year and see if flooding is an issue in my neighborhood. I am a new build in a new area so no one really knows if flooding is an issue so I will wait and see.

If you wait a year to see if flooding is an issue before you purchase flood insurance it could be too late and you could have a problem.

There were several homes that had flood damage on Persimmon Loop in Duval last year. Unless they had flood insurance they were SOL.

[Barefoot]

We don't need flood insurance. But we do have sinkhole insurance. And Wowser, is it ever increasing in cost!!!

[gvsulakerfan]

EVERYBODY is in a "flood zone". What changes is the risk. Whether you are within the 100 year risk area, 500 year risk area, etc.

You can check the most current maps by visiting www.sumtergis.com (assuming you are in the Sumter County portion of The Villages) and clicking on the '100 year flood zone' layer on the right pane of the page and then typing your address or last name into the search box on the left pane. The portions that show up in a bluish/purple are the areas within the 100 year flood zone.

Sumter County is in the process of updating these maps with the help of the Southwest Florida Management District.

[Bill-n-Brillo]

EVERYBODY is in a "flood zone". What changes is the risk. Whether you are within the 100 year risk area, 500 year risk area, etc.

You can check the most current maps by visiting www.sumtergis.com (assuming you are in the Sumter County portion of The Villages) and clicking on the '100 year flood zone' layer on the right pane of the page and then typing your address or last name into the search box on the left pane. The portions that show up in a bluish/purple are the areas within the 100 year flood zone.

Sumter County is in the process of updating these maps with the help of the Southwest Florida Management District.

Cool!! Thanks - - - :wave:

Bill :)

[The Great Fumar]

Chatham is not in a flood plain.............

County told me this so I may buy a small boat......USS FUMAR

[ilovetv]

If you wait a year to see if flooding is an issue before you purchase flood insurance it could be too late and you could have a problem.

There were several homes that had flood damage on Persimmon Loop in Duval last year. Unless they had flood insurance they were SOL.

It may not be a flood zone, but yet, if there is a torrential rain like there was last summer when some villas flooded, the streets can fill up with water and overwhelm the street drains.....leaving nowhere for the water to go. And the street drains can get plugged with dirt, gravel, mulch and other landscaping that washes out into the street and the drains.

This is FEMA's defininition of a "flood", and the "rapid accumulation or runoff of surface waters from any source" is what is likely to happen here.

"What is a flood?
Flood insurance covers direct physical loss caused by “flood.” In simple terms, a flood is an excess of water on land that is normally dry. The official definition used by the National Flood Insurance Program is: “A general and temporary condition of partial or complete inundation of two or more acres of normally dry land area or of two or more properties (at least one of which is your property) from:
- Overflow of inland or tidal waters;
- Unusual and rapid accumulation or runoff of surface waters from any source;
- Mudflow*; or
- Collapse or subsidence of land along the shore of a lake or similar body of water as a result of erosion or undermining caused by waves or currents of water exceeding anticipated cyclical levels that result in a flood as defined above.”
*Mudflow is defined as “A river of liquid and flowing mud on the surfaces of normally dry land areas, as when earth is carried by a current of water...”

We have the insurance and it doesn't cost that much. It's only administered thru FEMA and so everyone has the same coverage....percentage of building and contents. Specific companies sell and service it for FEMA. This is a link to the coverage booklet:
http://www.fema.gov/library/file;jsessionid=20D77658EA1F67D9DDC1321BB5A9919C.W orker2Library?type=publishedFile&file=f679_summaryofcoverage_07_2009.pdf&fileid=859823f0-e92f-11e0-9f6a-001cc4568fb6

TV Insurance Agency and AAA sell it for FEMA.

[CarGuys]

At closing The Citizens Bank lawyers gave us a certificate that we were not in a flood zone.

But we were also notified we qualify for FEMA is there is a flood? That said we got the insurance for this year and next until we see how things drain away.

Your homeowners does not cover your home if the foundation is moved from a flood or if water migrates into your home from a storm drain backing up.

We did not want to write the check for it but with our investment we took the safe side.

Also while we were not required to at closing bought the owners title insurance. This needed vs not needed argument will go on forever. Remember if the Seminols file a land claim none of us our safe. I have seen this first hand in UpState New York with the Seneca and Oneida Tribes land claims.

I wrote that check and felt very comfortable. A Civil war poor survey or a land claim and our home cost is reinbursed in full. A one time peace of mind payment.

[kathy and al]

Although a "flash flood" could happen at any time (but probably won't), here are the monthly rainfall totals for 2011 in and around the Villages:
Jan- 4.21"
Feb- 1.28"
Mar- 7.81"
Apr- 0.60"
May- 0.90"
Jun- 2.04"
Jul- 5.02"
Aug- 3.90"
Sep- 3.96"
Oct- 2.79"
Nov- 0.51"
Dec- 0.12"
Total for the entire year 2011: 33.14"
Hardly enough to pay up for unecessary "flood" insurance.
Just my opinion.
Previous years are similar to 2011.

[mulligan]

The only hitch I can see is that most homeowner's policies don't cover damage from rising water. That's their definition of a flood. This would include storm drain and sewer backups.

[Vinny]

Having lived in Texas I learned within 2 years that the storm sewers can get clogged with branches and other garbage washed away by a heavy rain. The water on our street was up to our waists and reached our door step. Luckily our house was higher than street level or we would have been flooded. If it had rained another 15 minutes or so we would have been flooded. It was then that we learned that floods are not just from large bodies of water overflowing. If you read your homeowner's policy you will find little that covers damage even from wind swept water entering your house. Ask your insurance agent if you are covered if you are out and a storm smashes a window and water is blown in for an hour or more.

However note well FEMA's definition of a Flood. We were told that if the flood was due to water rising from a storm and we were the only ones affected in the area we would not be covered. Apparently you have to have a certain amount of acerage underwater, which really will not apply in TV or at least two homes damaged. This means you can be flooded but if no one else is you get nothing. See FEMA Coverage (http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&frm=1&source=web&cd=5&ved=0CHsQFjAE&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.floodsmart.gov%2Ffloodsmart%2 Fpdfs%2FNFIP_Summary_of_Coverage.pdf&ei=QkyOT-TXM8yJtwef9cHHDQ&usg=AFQjCNHdUokVrv6iWb8yXSU6XTnnpdXS6Q)

[mac9]

Vinny, we were told the exact same thing. If 1 of the 3 adjacent properties also had damage, then the flood insurance would kick in. Otherwise, no payment would be made. Checked with FEMA and this IS true. Also, cost for a designer home was $359 per year. Insurance cost is based on home value, not the potential for use.

[CarGuys]

I just went through this. My insurance agent told me to wait till I own my house for 1 year and see if flooding is an issue in my neighborhood. I am a new build in a new area so no one really knows if flooding is an issue so I will wait and see.

100% agree with Penguin. :agree: As we closed on our new home I notice a HUGE drain grate in the back yard.

Looking around I thought. Hmmmmm what if this bad boy plugs up with whatever in a storm and our home floor floods a couple of inches?

So our agent said it's not alot of money for the peace of mind. Insurance you never need it till you need it.

We may not have needed but like sinkhole insurance we feel better.

[joycenemetz]

We just purchased flood insurance - worth $365.00 per year for peace of mind. If you are considering purchasing flood insurance, keep in mind - coverage doesn't kick in for 30 days. We paid April 12 - won't be covered until May 12th.