Flood Zone Lookup: Determine Flood Risk & Insurance Needs

Buying a home is a major investment that introduces the risk of losing money from events that damage the home. Homeowners insurance is essential to protect the investment of a home against risks like fires and fallen trees, but flood damage is not covered by homeowners insurance. Homeowners need to buy a flood insurance policy to supplement their basic policy. Checking whether a property lies in a flood-prone area can help owners decide whether to seek flood insurance. The U.S. government provides resources that individuals can use to find flood zones.

Search by Address

Step 1

Go to the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Map Service Center web page.

Step 2

Enter your street, city, state and zip code in the fields provided in the box labeled "Product Search by ..." in the upper left-hand corner of the page.

Step 3

Click the "Search by Street Address" button at the bottom of the box. A list of relevant flood maps will appear on a map search results page.

Step 4

Click the magnifying glass icon in the "View" column for the map you wish to view. A flood map indicating flood zones will appear. You can use the navigation tools at the left side of the map to zoom in, zoom out and pan across the flood map.

Map Search

Step 1

Go to the Federal Emergency Management Agency's Map Service Center web page.

Step 2

Click the "Map Search" link along the top of the page.

Step 3

Click the "Zoom In" button on the left side of the map, point to the area of the country you are interested in and click again.

Step 4

Continue clicking on the map to zoom in until you see numbered purple boxes breaking up the map into different sections.

Step 5

Record the number associated with the neighborhood you want to check.

Step 6

Return to the home page you visited in step 1 and click the "Quick Order" link at the top of the page.

Step 7

Enter the map ID number you recorded into the first text field under "Map Panel ID" and click "Search." A list of relevant flood maps will appear.

Step 8

Click the magnifying glass icon in the "View" column. A flood map indicating zones will appear.

Tip

Standard homeowners insurance generally does not cover flood damage. Instead, property owners in flood-prone areas must purchase flood insurance through the National Flood Insurance Program.

Some neighborhoods may not have any flood zones.