Weather disasters like floods cause millions of dollars in damages across the U.S. each year. Let’s explore why you should check whether you and your home are in a Nevada flash flood zone.
1. Lucrative Real Estate Buying
When you plan on buying a new home or having one built for you, you should find out if the property is in a flash flood zone. Depending on its proximity to bodies of water such as a stream, lake, or river, the location could put your home at risk of flooding. You can determine if buying or building a home on the property would be worth the proverbial gamble.
2. Safety
Having this key piece of information at your disposal can also help you keep you and your family safe. During spells of heavy precipitation or snow melt, you can take proactive steps like placing sandbags around your home, moving your vehicles to higher ground, and packing a suitcase just in case you and your family have to evacuate to escape the floodwaters.
3. Personal Property Protection
Living in a flash flood zone in Nevada could also put your personal belongings at risk of total ruin or loss. You can determine whether or not to move into or build a home on a property in a flood zone based on what personal belongings you have and which ones you can and cannot risk losing. If you have belongings like family heirlooms or antiques, you may decide the move is not worth the risk.
4. Insurability
Homeowner’s insurance helps replace belongings that you lose in a natural disaster. However, some insurers may refuse to issue coverage on a home that sits in a flood zone.
If you find an insurer willing to issue you a policy, it may charge you a hefty premium because of the increased flood risk. If you cannot afford high insurance premiums, you may need to look for a place not in a flash flood zone.
5. Home Value
Statistically, homes in flash flood zones sell for lower prices but also have lower appraisal values than homes in flood-free zones. If you want to buy a home that will appreciate over time and in which you can build equity, you may fail to accomplish those goals as readily with a home in a flood zone.
6. Building Codes
Buying or building a home in a flash flood zone can also require careful compliance with local building codes in Nevada. For example, you may have to elevate the property above the base flood elevation (BFE).
Likewise, you may need to use flood-resistant materials for your inside and outside home improvement projects. The county or city additionally may require you to implement proper drainage systems at your expense to pass a code inspection.
7. Emergency Preparedness
Moreover, living in a flash flood zone requires you to always remain prepared for flooding. This ever-present worry about if and when to act quickly to protect your family and home during this type of natural disaster can keep you on edge and rob you of any peace of mind you have living in your home.
8. Evacuation Routes
As a homeowner living in an area prone to flash floods, you must always know how and where you will escape this danger. You should map out what roads you should take and what alternative routes are available to you if law enforcement shuts down the main roads due to flooding. Knowing what evacuation routes to take can become a matter of life and death for you and your family.
9. Flood Mitigation
You should check to see if you live in a flash flood zone so you can prepare ahead of time what flood mitigation measures to take. These measures can involve installing flood vents in your garage and foundation walls. It can also involve elevating electrical fixtures like your HVAC unit and ductwork to protect them from water damage.
10. New Construction Projects
Having this information at your disposal can help you determine what, if any, new construction projects you want to pursue. For example, if you want to add an outbuilding like a shed or machine shop to your property, you can decide where to build it and what kinds of flood-resistant materials to use in its construction to minimize losing some or all of it in a flash flood.
11. Health Implications
A flash flood zone can also have a serious impact on your health and that of your family. The risk of drowning notwithstanding, living in this zone can increase your exposure to bacteria and viruses that cause respiratory illnesses.
You could also develop gastrointestinal illnesses like cholera and enteric fever if you come into contact with contaminated water. Additionally, you could experience anxiety and depression because of damage to your home and personal belongings.
12. Permit Requirements
Government agencies like FEMA typically require homeowners to secure specific permits for floodplain development. These permits ensure your projects comply with flood ordinances and use the required construction techniques.
They also ensure that you comply with elevation requirements. You must secure these government floodplain permits at your own cost.
13. Financial Planning
Knowing if you live in a flash flood zone can help you determine how much money you need to save for yourself and your family in case of a flood. You may find it helpful to save at least $1,000 to use during an emergency.
You should then build up your savings to cover at least three to six months of your regular household expenses. You can keep this money in a regular savings account or a money market account that earns interest.
14. Government Assistance
When you know if you live in a flash flood zone, you can plan for what kinds of government assistance to pursue if you become a flood victim. This type of assistance can include rental payments to help you pay for temporary housing. You may also secure grants to help you replace personal belongings if your insurer does not cover all of those costs for you.
Assistance can include government grants to help you rebuild and remodel your property to make it hygienic and safe for you and your family to live in again. You could also utilize extended tax deadlines so you avoid IRS fines for not filing and paying your taxes on time because of a flood.
15. Vigilance
Finally, having information about your property’s risk of flooding can help you remain vigilant during spells of inclement weather. For example, you will know to keep an eye on the local radar when it starts to rain and measure how much rainfall your property gets. This vigilance can give you time to act and minimize damage to and loss of your property, as well as evacuate you and your family to safety.
At Bumble Breeze, we have six years of experience helping homeowners in Las Vegas and the surrounding areas with their plumbing needs. Our professional team of technicians services fixtures like sewer and septic lines and sump pumps to help protect your property from flood damage. We also service HVAC systems and provide products and services to improve indoor air quality. Contact us to learn more about how we can help homeowners who live in flash flood zones!
