Flood Insurance Removal - WHO has tried it??

[Joel Owens]

I just came across an article touting a strategy that helps remove the lender flood insurance requirement.

This improved cost savings after buying multifamily by hundreds of dollars per door.

Research showed about 60% of buildings in a flood zone are incorrectly rated.

Elevation Certificates are needed to review each specific building in a high-hazard flood zone to determine whether the building is on a naturally high ground above the base flood elevation. Surprising more often than not the building is.

You have experts that then petition FEMA for a Letter of Map Amendment ( LOMA ) which would have the specific buildings removed from the high hazard flood zone. Receiving this LOMA would then eliminate the lender's requirement to purchase flood coverage.

Thoughts?? 

[Bryan Wallace]

'Research showed about 60% of buildings in a flood zone are incorrectly rated.' is primarily true for the older flood maps. In Indiana where I am located, FEMA and the Indiana Department of Natural Resources are moving through the state and updating the flood maps. New technology has tremendously improved locating the floodplain and the structures it will impact; however, it is not perfect.

If you are obtaining a LOMA and have an EC stamped by a surveyor, your greatest obstacle now is waiting on FEMA to approve it. In the perfect scenario. an approval would appear in a week or two. As a former floodplain manager for a decent sized community, I have seen LOMA's come back approved in a few months. Just depends on how busy FEMA is at the moment.