Subdivisions that were hit by the flood last year (for sale, insurance)

[12buttons]

Yeah, the big flood! I am house hunting in the western part of Nashville -west meade thru bellevue....would like a list of those subdivisions that were hit so I can avoid those first, then go from there..I see from some of the listings some agents are up front about it- others not so much..lol Thanks!

[nashvols]

A lot of the neighborhoods were only partially hit...so I don't think it's necessary to avoid entire neighborhoods. It was a historic flood, so I don't think a lot of those properties will see that kind of flooding again, but I completely understand if you don't want to risk it.

I would look at floodplain maps and topo maps to rule out the most prone areas.

Metro also has a map online where you can see images of where the flooding was.

http://maps.nashville.gov/empublic_viewer/

Under 'Map Layers' click 2010 Flood Imagery

[carazoe]

There's lots of great stuff in Bellevue that wasnt hit by the flood. The stuff near the Harpeth river was hit the hardest. It's pretty easy to see which homes had flood damage and which didnt, price of the home is a good indicator - anything well below the other homes in the neighborhood. We've looked at lots of houses out there and the owners and agents disclose any flood damage or recent repairs. Keep in mind that LOTS of houses had water in the basement, even homes that werent near the flood zones.

[nashvols]

Originally Posted by carazoe

There's lots of great stuff in Bellevue that wasnt hit by the flood. The stuff near the Harpeth river was hit the hardest. It's pretty easy to see which homes had flood damage and which didnt, price of the home is a good indicator - anything well below the other homes in the neighborhood. We've looked at lots of houses out there and the owners and agents disclose any flood damage or recent repairs. Keep in mind that LOTS of houses had water in the basement, even homes that werent near the flood zones.

I doubt many of the flooded homes will flood in our lifetime again, too. River Plantation was hit pretty hard. I spent some helping clean up out there and was truly amazed that the water got as high as it did. You can't even see the river from the houses, and it is built well above the flood plain.

As for your comment about basements being flooded, I've heard that the flood raised the water table so much in some places that water seeped into the basements, garages and crawl spaces. I wouldn't avoid any houses based on that fact alone. It's probably good to look at houses that are well above large creeks and on the "high side" of the road, rather than in places where water can pool. Most of this can be accomplished with a quick eye check or a look at a topo map.

[DonCorleone]

I had a very experienced and well respected independant home inspector tell me for Middle TN "It isn't a matter of if there is water in your crawlspace, it is how long it stays there." Meaning, it is very common for there to be some standing water in a crawlspace especially after a major rain...but if there's a lot or if it doesn't drain within a day or two...then you've got problems.

Take a look at the map nashvols posted and go from there. I wouldn't absolutely say no to a home that was slightly damaged by the flood...but I definitely would have it inspected carefully and be very cautious. And if it's way under-priced...there's a reason.

[12buttons]

Originally Posted by DonCorleone

I had a very experienced and well respected independant home inspector tell me for Middle TN "It isn't a matter of if there is water in your crawlspace, it is how long it stays there." Meaning, it is very common for there to be some standing water in a crawlspace especially after a major rain...but if there's a lot or if it doesn't drain within a day or two...then you've got problems.

Take a look at the map nashvols posted and go from there. I wouldn't absolutely say no to a home that was slightly damaged by the flood...but I definitely would have it inspected carefully and be very cautious. And if it's way under-priced...there's a reason.

I dont know if I agree with your home inspector! Hasn't he ever heard of French drains? I would never buy a house with any type of drainage problem - mold can start to form sooner than you think..if I see a sump pump, I run like hell! lol

Thank you all for your input- I have also found out that many homeowners have found out that their properties are now considered in a flood plain and as such are having their insurance premiums raised -ouch-if you google the bellevue area today you will see a LOT of houses for sale - a coincidence?
The irony is the area is so beautiful - the TN land around our rivers is some of the lushest greenest around...-

It turns out my insurance agent also had the stats for the area..figures! Anyway, I am not writing off the entire area but will be mindful of the probabilities..thanks!

[DonCorleone]

Originally Posted by 12buttons

I dont know if I agree with your home inspector! Hasn't he ever heard of French drains? I would never buy a house with any type of drainage problem - mold can start to form sooner than you think..if I see a sump pump, I run like hell! lol

In the context of the home we ended up buying, there was one of those typical springtime long soaking rainy weekends before we had our inspection. He checked under there and there was about 3 inches of water in an area about 3 ft X 4 ft. I checked back the next day and the water was all gone. A few times after we moved in, I'd check the crawlspace after a very heavy rain and never saw any significant moisture. So it worked out for us.

I definitely wouldn't buy a house with a sump pump, though. That is asking for trouble...

[ziggy2022]

I don't understand why you guys are worried about sump pumps. I live in michigan and have lived in several houses with sump pumps including the one I'm sitting in right now typing this message. They are there to keep water out of the basement and succeed in doing so. I don't know what the big deal is. I romantisize about moving to Nashville and hopefully will in a few years after my lovely wife finally cuts the cord to the metro detroit area - which I can no longer stand. Anyway, I was looking at a nice little house (1954 Porter Road, Nashville TN - Trulia) for sale and it has a sump pump. I thought for "S&G's" I'd ask the realtor if the house had sustained any flood damage last May, to which they replied no and that the house has a sump pump. So again, why no sump pump exactly? Thanks.

[DonCorleone]

To me a sump pump means that the home has had enough water problems that it required the homeowner to spend several hundred dollars to have a device installed to get rid of the water. While it may work fine and do its job, I'd prefer not to live in a home that I knew had water problems.

I guess there are 2 ways of looking at it: 1) the sump pump is there so there isn't any reason to worry about water, or 2) the water issues are so bad that it requires a sump pump to fix. When it comes to looking at homes, I'm a glass half empty kind of guy. If something is broken/wrong with the home, I generally assume the worst.

[septimus]

I know people say the flood last May was a 500 or 1000 year flood, but since we've moved here 4 years ago we've had 2 30 year rains and 1 500 year flood. I suspect we'll see more flooding as the climate continues to change