Welcome News Here in So. Mississippi

[Ixolib]

And thankfully, my situation fits all three of the mandatory criteria outlined in the article and proposed solution below!!

Governor Barbour's Proposal to Assist Mississippi Gulf Coast Homeowners
http://www.wlox.com

Background

In 1968, Congress created the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) in response to the rising cost of taxpayer funded disaster relief for flood victims and lack of private insurance options for flood insurance.

The NFIP is a federally-guaranteed insurance program which is marketed by private insurance agents. In conjunction with this program, the federal government, through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), establishes Special Flood Hazard Areas (commonly known as the flood plain or the flood zone).

When a potential homeowner secures financing to buy, build, or improve structures, it is routine for the insurance agent who markets the NFIP, who therefore is an agent of the federal government, to inform the homeowner that he or she does not need flood insurance because he or she lives outside of the flood plain. Therefore, most homeowners do not buy flood insurance; rather they buy homeowners' property and casualty insurance often marketed as "hurricane insurance."

An estimated 35,000 homes outside of the flood plain without flood insurance were destroyed by Hurricane Katrina's storm surge on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. These homeowners relied to their detriment on the federal government with regard to flood insurance.

If assistance is not provided to such a large part of the Gulf Coast population, the potential for renewal is greatly diminished.

Proposed Solution

A maximum grant of $150,000 for homeowners which meet the following criteria:

1. Home must be outside the flood zone established by the federal government.

2. Home must have been owner-occupied. (Rental or vacation homes do not qualify.)

3. Home must have had homeowner or similar insurance coverage at the time of Katrina's landfall.

These criteria eliminate the possibility of assistance to irresponsible homeowners who lived within a known flood area and yet did not maintain flood insurance, or homeowners who did not maintain standard home insurance.

To prevent duplicate compensation, FEMA assistance and insurance settlements would be deducted from the grant amount.

In return for this financial assistance, a homeowner must:

1. Rebuild to the new requirements set by the FEMA flood advisory maps (e.g. higher elevation) to mitigate against future risks.

2. Rebuild to the International Building Code Standard or higher.

3. Agree to maintain flood insurance on the rebuilt property.

http://www.wlox.com

[terstorm1012]

wonderful news! I hope this jumpstarts your recovery!

[Dionne]

Notice the wordage....."proposed".....

This would be a good deal for those that qualify.

Rental units are dis-qualified. Alot of us in Mississippi have second homes....cottages on the coast....we are dis-qualified. Those that could not afford insurance prior to Katrina are dis-qualified.

The new building codes......the I-code and FEMA regulations are going to make re-building in certain areas impossible. It's a question of elevation.

The folks that will benefit the most from this proposal are those that had the beautiful old established homes along US 90.

All help....whether monetary or volunteer is certainly appreciated.

[Ixolib]

Notice the wordage....."proposed".....

This would be a good deal for those that qualify.

Rental units are dis-qualified. Alot of us in Mississippi have second homes....cottages on the coast....we are dis-qualified. Those that could not afford insurance prior to Katrina are dis-qualified.

The new building codes......the I-code and FEMA regulations are going to make re-building in certain areas impossible. It's a question of elevation.

The folks that will benefit the most from this proposal are those that had the beautiful old established homes along US 90.

All help....whether monetary or volunteer is certainly appreciated.

But I believe "most" of the homes along US 90 were already in a pre-defined flood zone, meaning they "should" have had flood insurance already. If they choose NOT to have flood insurance (and they were already in a flood plain), then this program will not help them at all.

[Dionne]

That is correct.....those beautiful old homes are right there in the flood zone. Alot of those homes were already built with first floor elevations that were acceptable. And alot of them survived Camille. The acceptable elevation has been changed by Katrina.

It's going to be very confusing......regarding who gets to build and where. Some folks already have building permits in hand. I am hearing alot of conflicting reports from builders and home owners.

I suspect what we will see are homes built on concrete pilings with designed blow out panels to allow storm surges that contain debris to pass without structural failure. It can be done. I have built two....one is in southern Mississippi on the Pearl river. It has been through 3 floods and a near miss tornado.....and survived just fine. The other is on Clearwater Beach....it has yet to go through a significant event.

They are very expensive to build. Basically what happens is you take what normally would be a residential design and integrate commercial building standards. It would not surprise me to see some homeowners rebuild with structural steel framework.

[Ixolib]

That is correct.....those beautiful old homes are right there in the flood zone. Alot of those homes were already built with first floor elevations that were acceptable. And alot of them survived Camille. The acceptable elevation has been changed by Katrina.

It's going to be very confusing......regarding who gets to build and where. Some folks already have building permits in hand. I am hearing alot of conflicting reports from builders and home owners.

I suspect what we will see are homes built on concrete pilings with designed blow out panels to allow storm surges that contain debris to pass without structural failure. It can be done. I have built two....one is in southern Mississippi on the Pearl river. It has been through 3 floods and a near miss tornado.....and survived just fine. The other is on Clearwater Beach....it has yet to go through a significant event.

They are very expensive to build. Basically what happens is you take what normally would be a residential design and integrate commercial building standards. It would not surprise me to see some homeowners rebuild with structural steel framework.

Clearwater, huh!! You sound like the kind of person who I'd like to be great friends with!!

Speaking of Clearwater, my daughter moved to Largo about two weeks after Katrina since she lost everything here and was looking for a new place to "start over". And my wife and I are going to soon join her as we are moving to the area as well - my wife next week and me after I get this house back in rentable condition. Katrina surely kicked out butt!!

[Dionne]

Your not alone. Katrina hurt us physically, emotionally and with finances.
It was a stunning blow. We were caught completely off guard. Eventually my arm will heal. The monetary losses are confusing.....we lost count. The emotional/mental health aspect is the most difficult part of this aftermath. The memory of my daughters cell phone call during Katrinas landfall....telling me she was trapped in her home.....and the subsequent loss of communications remains a terrifying memory. She is okay today.....but has changed her ideas about coastal living.