Watch out Houston area, flood insurance program expected to boost rates ! (Galveston: fit in, rent)

[Jack Lance]

I wonder if the Harris county flood control district is paying any attention ?


The cost of federal flood insurance will likely rise for thousands of Houston-area homeowners after Congress hits its September deadline to renew and reform the deeply troubled program.
The National Flood Insurance Program was created because private insurers couldn't bear the risk of catastrophic loss, but the program is $24.6 billion in debt and struggling to remain solvent. It covers more than 300,000 homes in Harris and Galveston counties.
"The program offers rates that do not fully reflect the risk of flooding." the U.S. Government Accountability Office concluded in a report last month.

Deep in debt, flood insurance program expected to boost rates - Houston Chronicle

[WRM20]

Our rates went down recently, due to new, more accurate maps.

[Dopo]

Originally Posted by Jack Lance

The National Flood Insurance Program was created because private insurers couldn't bear the risk of catastrophic loss, but the program is $24.6 billion in debt and struggling to remain solvent. It covers more than 300,000 homes in Harris and Galveston counties.

Sounds like a socialist program that should be eliminated

[aero100]

The program would be in better shape if the Feds put more pressure on municipalities to maintain infrastructure in places like Houston.

There's a neighborhood near me that's flooded twice in the last three years due to storm water. A major contributor is a large underground storm sewer artery draining the neighborhood that has 4 feet of silt in it. When clear it has a useful depth of maybe 6 feet so the silt really impacts its performance.

The city has deferred clearing it for years (it would be about a million dollars). That risk was all shifted to FEMA and the NFIP and they paid out several times that million on flood claims over the last three years.

It's underground and not we'll known (it took an engineer who lived in the neighborhood to figure this out after diving into the blueprints and interacting with Public Works). . Frustrating to see tax dollars go down the tubes like that.

[WRM20]

Originally Posted by Dopo

Sounds like a socialist program that should be eliminated

Too many rich people live close to the coast and want to be able to insure their homes against folding at a cheap rate. It's not socialism, it's rent seeking by people who want others to pay for their coastal lifestyle.

[Dopo]

Originally Posted by WRM20

Too many rich people live close to the coast and want to be able to insure their homes against folding at a cheap rate. It's not socialism, it's rent seeking by people who want others to pay for their coastal lifestyle.

Are you trying to tell me ..... that rich people like socialism when it works in their favor?

[WRM20]

Originally Posted by Dopo

Are you trying to tell me ..... that rich people like socialism when it works in their favor?

I have something to tell you, and it's going to make you sad. Yes, rich folks love them some socialism when it works in their favor, but they call it something else that's not as offensive as socialism.

[Houston321]

Originally Posted by WRM20

Our rates went down recently, due to new, more accurate maps.

I have found that the new re-drawn maps are a scam. What they did was draw a lot of areas into the flood zone that have little-to-no chance of flooding. It is very similar to the Obama healthcare scam, where they need lots of people likely to never get sick to sign up to make it sustainable. The same with these new maps, they need those premiums from areas likely to never get hit.

[texas7]

Originally Posted by WRM20

Too many rich people live close to the coast and want to be able to insure their homes against folding at a cheap rate. It's not socialism, it's rent seeking by people who want others to pay for their coastal lifestyle.

So what about the 1000s of average joes who live outside any flood plain whose homes have flooded terribly when we have a deluge of rain? Where do they fit in your thoughts?

[WRM20]

Originally Posted by Houston321

I have found that the new re-drawn maps are a scam. What they did was draw a lot of areas into the flood zone that have little-to-no chance of flooding. It is very similar to the Obama healthcare scam, where they need lots of people likely to never get sick to sign up to make it sustainable. The same with these new maps, they need those premiums from areas likely to never get hit.

I'm curious as to why you think the maps were drawn incorrectly, and why you think the areas in the flood plain have little chance of flooding. Our area, along White Oak Bayou was drawn incorrectly after Rita because of a bad model. They've fixed that now, and reviewed all of the models for accuracy.