[pjandrew99]

Let me start with a few questions. I need an education.
1- Why don't people care about the FEMA 50% rule?
2- Why aren't they building more stilt houses in Charlotte County AE zones.


Now let me attempt to answer these questions. I am sure I'll show my ignorance here but thats okay.

1- Most people don't know about the 50% rule. I also notice that when they do know about it a lot of them really don't care. That is the most perplexing to me.
2- The only reason I can see is demographics. Nobody wants to climb stairs. An older population obviously. Maybe there is no market for them and they don't sell well. No sense building a house you can't sell.
In OBX, they put elevator shafts in for future use. Personally, crawling up stairs is still good exercise. That's just me.

I spend a lot of time in OBX. Most ground floor houses have been destroyed. The BFE is actually lower there than some of the places I am looking at in Punta Gorda. So I wonder why houses are being built in PG that are barely above the BFE. I also wonder why prices keep rising on these older canal homes that are below the BFE. Quite frankly, a lot of these older renovated canal homes could be an A/C unit away from needing to bring the entire house to code. Also, if you are barely above the BFE, we know how the BFE can change and the impact that can have on your insurance as well as throwing you into the 50% rule.
I am debating whether to build or buy. I hear that building in Charlotte County can be challenging.
Based on the prices and what is available, building may be worth the hassle.
Maybe I am being fearful when I just need to be cautious.
Maybe I am missing something. I am sure I am. Please enlighten me. I appreciate the help. Thanks.

[d4g4m]

When Hurricane Charlie wiped out Windmill Village in Punta Gorda, the board allowed owners to replace their old mobile homes with new manufactured homes on stilts. Some decided to do so but it added over $25,000 to the cost of setting the home. After a few were constructed, it was decided they didn't look so good in the community and no more were allowed. The only thing built under them was a storage shed.

[Restrain]

People get around the 50% rule by doing a bit here, a bit there, never exceeding the 50% level. New construction requires homes to be elevated above flood level, and that is why you see homes up on berms. In PG, the elevations are such that homes with blow-out walls etc are not necessary, just elevated stem-wall construction. On the coast you will see the elevated homes due to the 14' flood elevation.

[logybogy]

You'd probably get a lot more responses if you post this in the Punta Gorda forum. There's a number of very knowledgeable construction and real estate folks that post there.

[pjandrew99]

Thanks, I think I will.

[LifeIsGood01]

We have a Punta Gorda forum
What's the 50% rule.
I've never seen a stilt home on a canal, only on TV in some beach towns like the Carolinas that are right on the ocean.

[Sunshine Rules]

The FEMA 50% Rule limits the cost of improvements (additions, alterations, and/or repairs) to non-conforming structures (structures that are below the base flood elevation) to less than 50% of the "market value" of the structure prior to the start of work.

Even though there are exceptions, most structures that were built before 1975 are non-conforming.

Improvements or repairs in which the cost of which exceed 50% of the Market Value (based on the value of the primary structure before the start of the improvement or before the flood damage occurs) are classified as a substantial improvement. A nonconforming structure that is substantially improved is required to conform with the requirements for new construction, including elevating the building to the required minimum elevation. As you can imagine, this process can be vert expensive and could result in having to demolish the existing structure and rebuild new.

Pulling multiple permits to complete a single improvement is referred to as "phasing." If the sum of the permits exceeds 50% of the market value of the structure (structure, not structure plus lot) prior to the initial start of work the structure is considered substantially improved and it would have to made compliant with current elevation requirements. So those homeowners that think they are getting around the rules this way are, in fact, NOT.


You can also find info on the flood insurance program at the following websites:
http://www.floodsmart.gov
http://www.fema.gov/business/nfip



Anyone thinking of buying an older home located within a designated flood zone should make sure they have a full understanding of the 50% Rule and remodeling of these homes before writing an offer. It doesn't matter whether the current or previous owners "got away" with making substantial improvements that don't conform with the rules -- if YOU get caught, you will have to deal with the consequences of previous owners actions.