Houston Area Flood Insurance 2009

Hurricane season starts June 1st - November 30th and FEMA reports that everyone in Harris County lives in a flood zone. Even if you haven't flooded before, someone floods for the very first time every time there is a flood. Changes in residential building and infrastructure changes the run off of water that you may not be aware of. As little as a few inches of water and cause repairs such as replacing all the flooring, up to 5 feet high of sheetrock and insulation, plus the cost of fans to prevent mold growing as most insurance policies don't cover mold.

-Everyone lives in a flood zone. (For more information, visit floodsmart.gov
-Most homeowners insurance does not cover flood damage.
-Just an inch of water can cause costly damage to your property.
-Flash floods often bring walls of water 10 to 20 feet high.
-A car can easily be carried away by just two feet of floodwater.
-Hurricanes, winter storms and snowmelt are common (but often overlooked) causes of flooding.
-New land development can increase flood risk, especially if the construction changes natural runoff paths.
-Federal disaster assistance is usually a loan that must be paid back with interest. For a $50,000 loan at 4% interest, your monthly payment would be around $240 a month ($2,880 a year) for 30 years. Compare that to a $100,000 flood insurance premium, which is about $400 a year ($33 a month).
-It takes 30 days after purchase for a policy to take effect, so it's important to buy insurance before the floodwaters start to rise.
-Your home has a 26% chance of being damaged by a flood during the course of a 30-year mortgage, compared to a 9% chance of fire.
-Last year, one-third of all claims paid by the NFIP were for policies in low-risk communities.
-The average annual U.S. flood losses in the past 10 years (1994-2004) were more than $2.4 billion.

Below are packaged prices for zones that don't have a history of flooding in Harris county, typically referred to as "non flood zones". This is a government policy so the price should be the same, no matter which company the policy is purchased from.

Building and Contents Coverage (Without Basement) for Harris County

Building................Contents.................Premium

$20,000.00.............$8,000.00...............$119.00

$30,000.00.............$12,000.00.............$148.00

$50,000.00.............$20,000.00.............$196.00

$75,000.00.............$30,000.00.............$230.00

$100,000.00...........$40,000.00.............$257.00

$125,000.00...........$50,000.00.............$277.00

$150,000.00...........$60,000.00.............$296.00

$200,000.00...........$80,000.00.............$326.00

$250,000.00...........$100,000.00...........$348.00

Get Protected Against Increasing Flood Activity

Homeowners all over the UK have had the frightening thought of how well they're covered in the event of flood damage to the most important of their personal assets; their home.

Thousands of families now find themselves dwelling in flood plains, and live with the looming threat that they can be hit with flood damage practically without warning. With the recent flood activity that's been experienced across the UK, and the ensuing damages that property owners have had to face; people have experienced a lot of difficulty attempting to find an insurance company that will provide flood risk insurance coverage. Increases in the number of areas facing possible flooding has increased over the years, and the number is expected to continue to grow with the erosion of the polar ice caps caused by global warming.

Flood insurance cover is vital in uncertain times when families can't afford the unexpected expense of replacing valuable assets. It is a common occurrence for a policy holder to experience devastation from a damaging storm that destroys their treasured belongings, and then receive heart breaking news from their insurance agent who has to tell them that they're not covered for much or all of their losses. Many insurance agencies do not offer sufficient quality flood risk insurance or fail to provide any flood insurance cover at all.

One Little Known Way to Save on Flood Insurance! Bet You'll Never Guess

A vast number of flood insurance policyholders are unaware of the discount Community Rating System (CRS) offered through the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) by FEMA; specifically, created to give participating communities direct discounts on policyholder's premiums.

One designation of the FEMA created CRS was to be used as an incentive program for communities around the nation to participate with the NFIP in order to take a more proactive stance against potential flooding within certain flood zones, as well as, an over all aggressive approach to floodplain management.

There are full compliance eligibility requirements for communities to be accepted and verified as a participant and which are regulated by FEMA.

The CRS is based upon a credit and classification system. There are 10 different classifications and every community starts with a Class 10 rating. From there, the community begins to gain credit points based on 18 different activities.

These 18 activities are divided into four main categories: Public Information, Mapping and Regulation, Flood Damage Reduction, and Flood Preparedness. FEMA sets the CRS classification based upon the credit points of each community.

This classification determines the premium discounts policyholders are entitled to. The premium discounts which should be applied to every policyholder's premiums range from 5 percent to 45 percent as recognition of the proactive floodplain management.

Hint: Over 80% of all property owners overpay for Flood Insurance!

During this economic crisis, which everyone is experiencing a budget crunch; it would be prudent of each flood insurance policyholder to request from their local agent a detail analysis of their premium calculation. Once received, the policyholder can inform their agent about the FEMA mandated discount structure and request a discount.

This is just one avenue to investigate to make sure that you the consumers are getting the best from the NFIP.

The 4 Simple Steps to follow to save on your insurance rates:

1. Request from your insurance agent a detail analysis of your premium calculation. Hint: Don't tell your agent why you want it!

2. Once you have your premium calculation in hand inform your agent of the FEMA mandated discount structure and request he/she look up the appropriate FEMA insurance discount so you can compare it to what you are actually paying.

3. Since you now know what you should be paying and if you are paying too much inform your insurance carrier (agent) and request the premium be lowered.

4. BIG HINT: You can also request a refund from your insurance carrier for overpayment.

You too can reduce your flood insurance costs, just take the time to follow these simple steps and enjoy!

Bet you never thought it possible to reduce, let alone Eliminate your expensive requirement for Flood Insurance. Did you?

Keep an eye open in upcoming articles as I will be explaining in a 2 part series or more in detail "How to Eliminate Your Flood Insurance Requirement". Just as a little teaser so you will stay up nights waiting for my upcoming lessons on Flood Insurance let me tell you I am batting 100%. That's Right! 100% of the time I have been able to Reduce or Eliminate your insurance requirement.

So...... if you want to Save Big on your Flood Insurance just watch for more "Ways to Save on Your Flood Insurance" and "How to Eliminate your Flood Insurance Requirement".

Coming Soon to an Article, Ezine Directory or Ebook provider near you!

Calculating the Disability Insurance Cost

So you're out there to get disability insurance but you have no idea how much these plans normally cost. You can canvas through the insurance companies and compare which plans provide you with the best rate that go with your lifestyle and budget.

Normally, disability insurance cost is 1 to 3 percent of your annual salary. This is for a good disability plan. That means if you are earning $60,000 in a year, your disability insurance cost is $600 to $1800. If you think about it, it is a good price to pay for assurance that you can expect money in a period of your life when you are unable to work.

At least by paying the insurance cost, you can get the money that you need at the time when you need it the most.

It provides income that will help you pay off your living expenses if you cannot work for a significant length of time due to illness or injury. The benefit payments can amount to 60 percent of your total salary.

That is why most employees stay with corporations that offer this benefit. One does not know what the future has in store. Like what they say, it's better to have it and not need it that need it and not have it. Because of this more and more employees are investing in it.

But the cost also has policies regarding the waiting period of when this will take effect. The pay benefits also depend on the longevity of the plan. This is for the short-term disability insurance cost.

As for the long term disability insurance cost, the waiting period is longer. It can even last for months. As for the benefits, it could be paid in a couple of years or for the rest of the borrower's life. The waiting period and the payment period really depend on the plan and as stated in the policy terms.

These also depend on the state. Different states have different policies and terms regarding the disability insurance cost, waiting period, and payment period. For examples, New York, New Jersey,, Hawaii, and Rhode Island require their employers to give them disability benefits of 26 weeks maximum.

Some employers give their employees short term disability insurance even when the employees have paid the premiums.

But just like any bargain, there is a catch to disability insurance cost. The premiums are lower for plans that have longer waiting periods. If the employee can wait, then he can opt for these plans. He just has to make sure that nothing happens to his health before the plan takes effect.