Jim Beam column: Flood insurance costs rising
The cost of my National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) coverage has doubled over the last six years. However, it's still affordable. Unfortunately, the same thing can't be said for homeowners who live closer to the coast in
The city notified me some years ago that my home was no longer in a high-risk flood zone, but I have continued to buy flood insurance. The annual cost was
My wife and I bought our home for
Many Louisianans who live closer to the coast have much higher home replacement costs and some of them are having to drop their flood insurance coverage because of increasing costs.
Members of the state's congressional delegation have been strong advocates for reducing the cost of NFIP, but it has become a tough sell in
Cassidy met with Louisiana Realtors at a June roundtable. The Realtors discussed their concerns about the rising cost of flood insurance in
During a
In another
"I urge my colleagues to come talk to me about NFIP reauthorization and reform," Cassidy said. "We are working on bipartisan legislation that fixes this mess, makes Risk Rating 2.0 transparent, and makes flood insurance affordable again. Let's discuss a way forward."
Cassidy said a resident in
NFIP ignores a home's height, Cassidy said, because the program groups homes by zone instead of by elevation.
A retired couple living on Bayou Lafourche near
Cassidy said a Korean war veteran and his wife — both in their 80s — took out a reverse mortgage on their home several years ago to help pay medical bills. They live behind a 12-foot levee, but their reverse mortgage required them to carry flood insurance.
That NFIP coverage is costing them
Flooding is devastating families across the country, he said, "and in states that don't typically make you think 'flooding.'" He said
Cassidy said, "
The NFIP was established in 1968 to help those living in flood-prone areas and news reports have continually said it has never been on a sound financial footing. All
Jim Beam, the retired editor of the
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