What is bfe flood

In practice, the BFE is a fiction because floods are much messier than the sharp lines on a map depicting a very tidy edge of the water. The reason BFEs are useful fictions is because they can introduce elevation analysis into flood risk assessment.

Checking to see if a property is in a flood zone is OK. Checking two different flood models is better. Comparing the elevation of a property with the admittedly fictional elevation of water during a theoretical flood is a very nice addition to the flood models. Not only does it introduce a welcome empirical element into the risk assessment the elevation of the house is measured, not modeled , but it also provides a different way to evaluate the flood risk i.

The quality of BFE-based assessments are directly proportional to the quality of the elevation data used — if an insurer has access to superior elevation data, they can really differentiate themselves in their underwriting, which is a huge advantage these days. This post does not assume to cover every possible issue or condition, but provide a general overview of the topic.

I hope this was helpful. If you would like to speak with an architect, you can contact us at Fontan Architecture directly. Contact Fontan Architecture. Jorge has a background in construction and has been practicing architecture for 15 years where he has designed renovations and new developments of various building types. Homeowners and builders can also use BFEs when building or renovating a home.

All of your livable space should be above the BFE, and you may also want to place electrical, heating, air conditioning, and plumbing systems above your base flood elevation to reduce damage during a year flood.

All flood zones with base flood elevations are also named as Special Flood Hazard Areas with a significant risk for flood. One important requirement that comes into play because of the designation is that federally backed or regulated mortgage lenders can only loan money to people with flood insurance.

Lenders are particularly stringent about meeting flood insurance if they provide loans from the:. Climate change has caused more frequent and bigger natural disasters and more homes are at risk. If you live in a flood zone with a base flood elevation, you may want to reduce your flood risk and its subsequent damage. Risk mitigation is a good way to keep your insurance premiums from going up. A few ways you can do this is to:.

Search Search. Base Flood Elevation.