Determine Your Flood Damage Costs with this Tool

“Two inches of flood water can cost you $7,800.” estimates the National Flood Insurance Program established by the US Federal government. Even a few inches of flood waters can cause extensive flood damage to your home.

The National Flood Insurance Program was established to help people recover from floods by offering them affordable flood insurance. As part of its extensive services, the program offers an interactive tool on its website that can help consumers determine what would be the real cost of flooding in their home.

This measuring tool of the impact of flood waters gives you inch-by-inch insights and cost estimates that can help you determine how much insurance to take out. Their flood cost figures are based on the hypothesis of a flood damage to the main floor of a fictional 900-square-foot ranch-style home. Actual replacement, repair and labor costs will of course vary by state, home and market timing.

We tried the tool and discovered:

• Four inches of water costs to basically the same as two: $7,800
• The breakdown of this amount is as follows:
  Replace drywall: $1,350
  New baseboard moulding: $2,250
  Replace carpet and flooring: $2,700
  Cleanup & materials: $1000
  Books, lamps, etc: $500

• At 5 inches of water, the figures go up dramatically to $11,480, as now you will have to replace furniture, computers & accessories, CDs and books and repaint the interior.
• At 9 inches of flood water, the cost of the damage nearly reaches $19,000.
• At 26 inches of flood water, you’re looking at a water damage cost of over $26,000.
  You’ll have to also repair your electrical system, your furnace and AC, replace/repair kitchen and bath cabinets, buy new kitchen appliances, replace living room furniture, clean and repaint the exterior of your home, replace warped doors, buy new TV, DVD and stereo equipment, and buy new personal items such as clothing.

You can find the flood water impact measuring tool at the National Flood Insurance Program’s website at http://www.floodsmart.gov/floodsmart/ .