Flood & Flood Insurance Information

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Special Flood Hazard Areas

Some portions of Fayetteville have been designated as a Special Flood Hazard Area by FEMA. Different parts of the city fall into different Special Flood Hazard Areas and, as such, are more or less likely to experience flooding.

The Engineering Department of the city keeps the FEMA Flood Insurance Rate maps which locate the various Special Flood Hazard Areas in the city. These maps are available at City Hall for reviewing by the public.

For information about whether your property is in a Special Flood Hazard Area, please contact Chris Hindman at 770-460-4664.

Flood Insurance Information

NFIP: Fayetteville participates in the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). The NFIP makes federally backed flood insurance available for all buildings, whether they are in a flood plain or not. Flood insurance covers direct losses caused by surface flooding, including a river flowing over its banks, a lake or ocean storm, and local drainage problems. The current City ISO Rating for flood insurance is 7, which means a reduction of 15% in flood insurance costs from the standard rate.

The NFIP insures buildings, including mobile homes, with two types of coverage: structural and contents. Structural coverage is for the walls, floors, insulation, furnace, and other items permanently attached to the structure. Contents coverage may be purchased separately provided the contents are in an insurable building.

Mandatory Purchase Requirements

The mandatory purchase requirement applies to all forms of federal or federally related financial assistance for buildings located in a Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA). This requirement affects loans and grants for the purchase, construction, repair, or improvement of any publicly or privately owned building in the SFHA, including machinery, equipment, fixtures, and furnishings contained in such buildings.

Financial assistance programs affected include loans and grants from agencies such as the:

  • Department of Veterans Affairs
  • Farmers Home Administration
  • Federal Housing Administration
  • Small Business Administration
  • Federal Emergency Management Agency

The requirement also applies to secured mortgage loans from financial institutions, such as commercial lenders, savings and loan associations, savings banks, and credit unions that are regulated, supervised or insured by federal agencies such as the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and the Office of Thrift Supervision. It also applies to all mortgage loans purchased by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac in the secondary mortgage market.

How It Works

Before a person can receive a loan or other financial assistance from one of the affected agencies or lenders, there must be a check to see if the building is in a Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA). The SFHA is the base (100-year) flood plain mapped on a Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM). It is shown as one or more zones that begin with the letter "A" or "V".

Copies of the FIRM are available at the Engineering Department. Many lenders and insurance agents also have copies. It is the agency's or the lender's responsibility to check the FIRM to determine if the building is in an SFHA, although we can provide assistance.

If the building is in a SFHA, the agency or lender is required by law to require the recipient to purchase a flood insurance policy on the building. The requirement is for structural coverage equal to the amount of the loan (or other financial assistance) or the maximum amount available, whichever is less. The maximum amount available for a single-family house is $250,000.

The mandatory purchase requirement does not affect loans or financial assistance for items that are not covered by a flood insurance policy, such as:

  • vehicles
  • business expenses
  • landscaping
  • vacant lots

It does not affect loans for buildings that are not in the SFHA, even though a portion of the lot may be flood prone. While not mandated by law, a lender may require a flood insurance policy as a condition of a loan for a property in any zone on a Flood Insurance Rate Map.

An Elevation Certificate (PDF) should be obtained by the property owner if there is a question about a structure on the property being in the floodplain.

Prepare for Flooding

  1. Know your hazard-Know if your property is subject to flooding.
  2. Insure your property for your flood hazard-You need flood insurance to protect your property and belongings in the event that flooding occurs, Renters should also buy flood insurance for their contents
  3. Protect people from the hazard-Designate a place where your family can rendezvous after an evacuation order is issued during a flooding event
  4. Protect your property from the hazard-Keep debris and trash out of streams and ditches to reduce the amount of blockage that can occur during a rain event that could cause flooding
  5. Build Responsibly-Get a permit from the Fayetteville Building Department to ensure that you are in compliance with all codes and ordinances
  6. Protect natural floodplain functions-Don't dump pollutants down storm drains or into open ditches as they end up in our streams and rivers

Library Documents

  1. The Fayette County Library in Downtown Fayetteville has the following helpful documents for the public's use:
  2. Guide to Flood Insurance Rate Maps, FIA-14, May 1988
  3. Answers to Questions About the National Flood Insurance Programs, FIA-2, 1997
  4. Mandatory Purchase of Flood Insurance Guidelines, FEMA 186, May 1997
  5. Fayette County Stormwater Management Regulations
  6. Fayette County Soil Erosion and Sedimentation Control Ordinance
  7. Repairing Your Flooded Home, ARC 4477 / FEMA 234, August 1992
  8. Elevated Residential Structures, FEMA 54, March 1984
  9. Flood Proofing Regulations, USACOE, EP 1165-2-314, December 1995
  10. Flood Proofing Techniques, Programs, and References, USACOE, January 1996
  11. Flood Proofing - How to Evaluate Your Options, USACOE, July 1993
  12. Floodproofing Non-Residential Structures, FEMA 102, May 1986
  13. Local Flood Proofing Programs, USACOE, June 1994
  14. Manufactured Home Installation In Flood Hazard Areas, FEMA 85, September 1985
  15. Design Guidelines for Flood Damage Reduction, FEMA-15, December 1981
  16. Reducing Losses in High Risk Flood Hazard Areas: A Guidebook for Local Officials, FEMA 116, February 1987
  17. Protecting Floodplain Resources: A Guidebook for Communities, FEMA 268, June 1996
  18. A Unified National Program for Floodplain Management, FEMA 248, June 1994

Flood Information Links

For more information on flood plain management and flood insurance, you can click on any link below.