HOUSINGNEWS REPORT
FEATURED ARTICLE
Will the Tide Finally Turn for Federally Subsidized Flood Insurance?
BY PETER MILLER, STAFF WRITER
A short sentence buried in the middle of a 62-page document puts in play the future value of waterfront property now worth more than $1 trillion. The President’s 2018 budget proposal says it’s time to restructure user fees for the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) “to ensure that the cost of Government services is not subsidized by taxpayers who do not directly benefit.”
and recreational housing. But with rising tides and growing insurance claims the government’s crucial role as the main source of flood insurance is now getting a second look. The big question is very simple: How can homeowners finance and insure property that is increasingly vulnerable to changing weather patterns? To understand the government’s role in waterfront development — and why the 2018 proposed budget changes could potentially lead to lower values and fewer
This sounds like pretty mundane stuff, the usual policy blather that goes on in D.C., but what it really means is higher premiums if the proposal goes through. How high? High enough to potentially result in lower property values and far fewer sales along America’s beaches, riverfronts, and lakesides. Flood Insurance Affordable (For Now) Waterfront property is always in demand, sought-after real estate that represents some of our most valuable residential
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