By law, flood insurance is required for the purchase of real estate that is zoned in a flood area. However, insurers may not issue new or renewal policies or increase the coverage of existing policies backed by the NFIP while it\u2019s expired. Guess what??? Congress recessed without extending authority for the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), which expired on March 28, 2010. FEMA, which administers the NFIP, issued guidance that:<\/p>\n
\u2022 Existing policies that were in effect on March 28 (when NFIP expired) will remain in effect and would not be affected.
\n\u2022 While new flood policies may not be issued after that date, new policies for which payment was received \u2013 or in case of loan closings, the application was dated on or before March 28 \u2013 will be issued.
\n\u2022 Renewal policies may not be issued until the NFIP is extended; however, there is a 30-day grace period during which the policy remains in effect following its expiration date.<\/p>\n
The purchase requirement for flood insurance may also be fulfilled with non-NFIP policies backed by private insurance companies. These polices, however, can be expensive and limited to only certain states. Lloyd\u2019s of London, Chubb and AIG have offered such insurance.<\/p>\n
For more details, contact your lender.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
By law, flood insurance is required for the purchase of real estate that is zoned in a flood area. However, insurers may not issue new or renewal policies or increase the coverage of existing policies backed by the NFIP while it\u2019s expired. Guess what??? Congress recessed without extending authority for the National Flood Insurance Program<\/p>\n