FEMA is changing Palm Beach County's flood maps. How to learn if you're in a high-risk zone
JUPITER — Higher-risk flood zones are moving west, and more Palm Beach County homeowners will be required to purchase flood insurance in 2025 and beyond because of it.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency has released updated flood maps which will take effect Dec. 20, according to a FEMA spokesperson. The last time FEMA released new flood maps was seven years ago.
The Town of Jupiter will host an open-house style information session about the new flood maps from 5 to 8 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 7, at the Jupiter Community Center.
FEMA has added more homes in higher-risk flood zones to reflect the results of a new coastal engineering flood risk study for southeast Florida, covering Palm Beach, Broward, Miami-Dade and Monroe counties. The previous coastal engineering study was 40 years old, the spokesperson said.
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On the new maps in Palm Beach County, about 5,000 properties have moved to a high-risk flood zone, also considered a "special flood hazard area," from a low- or medium-risk flood zone. About 900 properties formerly in a high-risk flood zone have received downgrades, according to FEMA officials.
What about flood insurance in Florida?
Homes in a special flood hazard area in a National Flood Insurance Program community are required to purchase flood insurance if they have a mortgage backed by the federal government, according to a FEMA spokesperson.
Flood insurance prices vary widely, from a few hundred dollars per year for homes that aren't in a floodplain to thousands of dollars for those in vulnerable spots. FEMA and insurance advocates counsel that the cost of repairing homes and replacing property lost because of flooding can be in the hundreds of thousands of dollars.
For example, the average premium cost ranges from $724 for property that lies between Military Trail and the El Rio Canal in Boca Raton to $1,377 on average for Delray Beach parcels that lie between Dixie Highway and the Atlantic Ocean, county documents show.
To see which flood zone your home is in, check this county map .
Maya Washburn covers northern Palm Beach County for The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida-Network. Reach her at . Support local journalism: Subscribe today .
