{"id":55765,"date":"2022-10-21T14:02:14","date_gmt":"2022-10-21T18:02:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/?p=55765"},"modified":"2022-10-21T14:02:26","modified_gmt":"2022-10-21T18:02:26","slug":"sw-florida-owners-surprised-by-femas-50-rule","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/2022\/10\/sw-florida-owners-surprised-by-femas-50-rule\/","title":{"rendered":"SW Florida Owners Surprised by FEMA\u2019s 50% Rule"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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If damage exceeds 50% of a home\u2019s market value, owners can\u2019t just repair what was destroyed \u2013 they must upgrade the entire home to current building codes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Scores of Floridians are getting a crash course on the Federal Emergency Management Agency\u2019s (FEMA) 50% rule governing rebuilding homes after Hurricane Ian. And for many, the FEMA rule is an unpleasant, problematic surprise after all of Ian\u2019s damage and traumas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 50% rule dictates the future of hurricane-damaged homes in designated flood zones.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The federal rule prohibits repairs and improvements on damaged homes exceeding 50% of their market value unless the entire residential structure is brought up to the most current building codes and flood regulations. Basically, if the repairs to a home damaged by Ian are greater than 50% of its value, homeowners are compelled to rebuild at current codes and elevation requirements in coastal and other flood zone areas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The aim is to mitigate damages and insurance costs of future storms. But the reality for homeowners can be very tough and very expensive medicine and could price longtime homeowners and others out of coastal real estate markets \u2013 leaving more of the region\u2019s waterfronts to the wealthy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe FEMA rule is going to impact a lot of people,\u201d said Charles Whittington, a real estate attorney with the Grant Fridkin Pearson P.A. law firm in Naples. \u201cThe rule is going to significantly affect people\u2019s ability to rebuild.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 50% rule is part of the FEMA-managed National Flood Insurance Program which aims to control development on designated floodplains. The idea is to bring properties up to current codes after flooding and wind damage so residences are more resilient against future storms \u2013 thus lowering insurance and damage costs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Attorneys, appraisers, Realtors, and insurance agents across the region are fielding calls from Ian-impacted homeowners about their repair and rebuilding options after the storm. Some local homeowners have limited or no previous knowledge of the FEMA rule and potential restrictions on their post-hurricane path.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cA lot of people are calling because they had a flood and they\u2019ve got no idea what to do,\u201d said Cameron Woodward, a real estate and land-use attorney with the Woodward, Pires & Lombardo PA law firm on Marco Island.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Woodward points to Lee County data showing more than 48,500 residential properties were damaged by the Category 4 hurricane with more than 5,000 destroyed and another 13,100 with major damage. Woodward said the FEMA rule could make renovations and rebuilding tough on homeowners without ample financial cushions, such as retirees on fixed incomes, as well as those with older properties.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey are going to have issues,\u201d the attorney said. \u201cThere is no nice way to say it. They are going to have trouble. You are going to have a lot of rebuilding going on.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That rebuilding could entail more complete tear-downs and new construction of elevated and more expensive homes built to current codes and flood rules rather than repairs of existing older homes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou are going to see the nature of the community change structure by structure,\u201d Woodward said. \u201cYou are going to go to Fort Myers Beach 10 years from now and it is going to look nothing like it does now.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018The super-rich\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Patricia Staebler, principal with Bradenton-based Staebler Appraisal and Consulting, sees the 50% rule after Ian resulting in coastal areas being rebuilt mostly by wealthy buyers and investors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe super-rich,\u201d said Staebler on who will be able to afford to rebuild and live in hard-hit coastal areas and barrier islands that felt the brunt of the hurricane but offer expensive and attractive waterfront properties. \u201cWe normal people, we will all be priced out of the market.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Staebler said many transplants and homebuyers from other states have limited knowledge at best of the 50% rule.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere is a lack of information and a lack of knowledge,\u201d said Staebler. \u201cToo many people are buying homes not knowing what they are buying into,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Staebler wants more detailed disclosures of floodplains and the FEMA rule to prospective real estate buyers as well as a rethinking of developments on barrier islands after Ian pummeled Sanibel and Pine islands as well as coastal areas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere is no disclosure, no information,\u201d she said. \u201cThey prefer to remain ignorant and not disclose just to make a sale. It comes down to the five-letter word \u2013 greed. Greed in every aspect,\u201d Staebler said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Florida statutes do not require specific disclosures from sellers about their properties, but they do have to disclose material impacts on property values via a 1985 Florida Supreme Court decision in Johnson v. Davis, according to Marla Martin, media and communications manager for the Florida Realtors group. She said those disclosures can be made verbally or in writing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFlorida Realtors provides its members with a real property condition disclosure form that\u2019s used in many transactions involving a Realtor. This form provides prospective purchasers with a wide variety of information regarding the property they are considering purchasing, including water intrusion, drainage, and flooding,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

FEMA and local jurisdictions also have flood maps and other property information available \u2013 including the 50% rules and other substantial damage provisions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cape Coral residents<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The City of Cape Coral advises residents whose homes were built before 1981 to hold off on any repairs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The city is asking residents to wait to make repairs until Dec. 1, 2022.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 50% Rule, regulation of the National Flood Insurance Program, require structures with damage exceeding 50% of their market value to be rebuilt consistent with the current flood elevation and Florida Building Code, the city said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The City of Cape Coral doesn\u2019t want residents to pay additional costs to repair structures before determining whether it has received 50% or more damage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cape Coral\u2019s City Council is expediting the approval of an ordinance that may remove regulations, to make it easier on the homeowner when determining calculations for the 50% Rule.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

No easy solutions<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whittington said the determination of real estate values under the 50% rule applies to homes and residential structures, not the value of the land. But it is difficult to stay under the threshold with major roof and water damage from the storm, he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere\u2019s not an easy solution. A neighbor\u2019s situation is going to be different from the person immediately next door,\u201d Whittington said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Woodward said homeowners do have some ability to appeal damage estimates in the FEMA rule process. \u201cYou can appeal certain aspects of it,\u201d he said. \u201cIf you are right at 50 or 51%, there is something that can be done.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hurricane Ian caused as much as $70 billion in damage, according to real estate research firm CoreLogic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Staebler worries about the already stressed property insurance situation being worsened by Ian (including via lawsuits) and said the rebuilding process will take several years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis will take more than a year,\u201d she said of all the expected new elevated buildings and new and more expensive structures. \u201cThis will take five, six, seven years to rebuild.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For more information on Hurricane Ian’s recovery efforts and survivor options, visit\u00a0Florida Realtor’s Hurricane Recovery Center<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

If damage exceeds 50% of a home\u2019s market value, owners can\u2019t just repair what was destroyed \u2013 they must upgrade the entire home to current building codes. Scores of Floridians… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":55767,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[57,32],"tags":[1845],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55765"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=55765"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55765\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":55769,"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55765\/revisions\/55769"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/55767"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=55765"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=55765"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=55765"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}