This summer could see even worse flood events than 2024. You have three options for preparing your house, none of them easy.
This summer, you may find yourself, like the residents of Asheville, N.C., last year, caught in a nightmare flood scenario. As weather patterns become more extreme and politicians declare Climate Change a hoax, places that have never flooded face grim new realities.
So, buckle up. Here are three strategies available to prepare your home for the next deluge—each with its own advantages, disadvantages and caveats.
1. Elevation: Raising the Building
If you can afford to elevate your home this is your best option. The thought behind elevating: let floodwaters pass below and beneath your living spaces. But raising the structure won’t be cheap. And it’s not 100 percent foolproof. Your neighbor’s unanchored shed or motorboat can still break loose and slam into your carefully planned pilings. Weigh not only the cost, but other variables of your location.
Basic Terminology
Pier and beam elevation: Lifting the house onto piers or stilts to keep the living space above expected flood levels.
Flood vents: Installed in crawl spaces or garages to allow water to flow in and out without building pressure that can damage walls.
Breakaway walls: Lightweight and inexpensive walls that are meant to fail safely under flood pressure.
Cost Considerations
When you raise a home, you’re looking at several variables. First, what will it cost, compared to simply moving to a new location (if that’s within financial reach)? Second, how much do you want to stay in this flood-prone location? Third, over the long term, can you recoup a large part of the elevation costs with discounts on insurance?
Here’s a rough idea of what elevating might cost:
Wood-framed house: In New Jersey, a single-story wood-framed house with a crawlspace was raised 8 feet for around $130,000, including new stairs, utility adjustments, and foundational work.
Concrete block on slab: In coastal Florida, a 1,600 sq. ft. concrete block house on a slab foundation was elevated using hydraulic jacks and cribbing, then rebuilt with a new elevated slab platform. That project cost $190,000, partly due to demolition of interior walls and plumbing/electrical rerouting. Another house near me on the West Coast of Florida, about 2,000 sq. ft, in size, was raised 16 ft. onto piers at a cost of about $270,000.
Financial Aspects of Elevating
Raising a home often qualifies you for sharply reduced flood insurance premiums. It also protects your largest investment from total ruin. But it’s a major investment, often equivalent to “starting over” with your mortgage. But you do gain some ROI advantages.
At least one recent study shows that elevated homes command higher resale values than non-elevated ones in flood zones. However, flood zone properties also start out at a handicap. A 2022 study of Miami found that homes located in a high risk flood zone typically command about 18 percent less than similar homes outside the zone. The same study found that for every foot you raise a home’s elevation, it gains 1.6 percent in resale value.
By this logic, if you raise a house in a flood zone 16 ft. on piers, you could expect it to sell for about 26 percent more than a non-elevated home next door. Subtract the 18 percent negative impact of the home’s flood zone, and you end up with a property that’s valued about 8 percent higher than a comparable one that’s NOT in a flood zone.
In addition, insurance savings for elevated homes can be substantial: A non-elevated property might pay$3,000–$6,000 annually for hurricane and flood insurance, while an elevated equivalent could payabout$1,000. Over 10–15 years, this can translate to $20,000–$50,000 saved, which may help justify elevation costs even if resale doesn’t fully cover it.
2. Waterproofing: Can Water Be Kept at Bay?
Attempting to keep flood waters outside your home is a reasonable goal. But achieving a complete defense may be much harder than you think. This approach is all about prevention—creating a strong, impermeable barrier to keep water out of the house.
Tools & Tactics
Sandbags: Useful in a pinch, but slow to deploy and not reusable.
Inflatable or water-filled flood dams & modular barrier systems: More reliable and reusable than sandbags. Some can be deployed in under an hour. This Guppy system looks promising. A 100-ft. section of 12-inch water filled barrier goes for $575.
Flood gates or shields for doors and garages: Rigid panels with rubber gaskets that seal off entry points.
Seal all penetrations: laundry vents, dryer ducts, HVAC lines, plumbing clean-outs, and even gaps where cables enter the home—every hole is a vulnerability.
Sump pumps with battery backups: Essential in areas where groundwater seeps in from below.
Caveat: Also, as noted in the video below, water pressure in a major flooding can overwhelm flood dams and waterproofing as pressure builds around the house.
This video taken during Hurricane Helene shows the limitations of flood dams, as “pressure has to go somewhere.”
Effective: Barrier systems with complete coverage and fast deployment.
Ineffective: Half-measures like relying on sandbags alone or skipping vent sealing. One missed gap = a flood path.
Crucial Tip: Even minor backflow through drains can turn into gallons of sewage indoors. Consider a backflow preventer.
Waterproofing concrete walls is possible, but requires careful attention to connection with slab and covering up of all penetrations.
3. Flexible Flight. Take Your Stuff and Go
From an economic standpoint, packing high-value belongings into a trailer and hauling them to high ground may be a least-worst option for some homeowners. This approach may make sense when elevating or waterproofing are too costly or technically unfeasible.
In this scenario, when floodwaters threaten, you rent a trailer or Uhaul, pack up and move high-value items to safety. This is not a new concept. It’s something that many old-timers in the South have done for decades, returning after a flood to hose out their homes and put furnishings back. However, you’ll need to rethink how you live. Is this constant vigilance worth the cost?
Prep in Advance
Freestanding appliances: Refrigerators, ovens, even washers/dryers should be easy to unplug and roll into a trailer.
Modular kitchen cabinets: Install on legs, not built-ins, and use quick-disconnect plumbing.
Furniture on wheels or risers: Makes evacuation faster and easier.
Roll-Up rugs. Wet rugs can be nightmarish to move after a flood. Make sure yours can be moved easily before water intrudes.
Trailer or storage pod: Keep one on standby if you're in a high-risk zone.
Water-Tolerant Interior Design
No drywall below 36 inches: Use plastic panels, fiberglass-reinforced board, or waterproof tile.
Flooring: Non-porous materials such as ceramic tile with epoxy grout or coated concrete that won’t absorb water.
Baseboards: Replace with plastic or vinyl trim that can be pulled and sanitized.
What to Know
This plan requires discipline and quick action, but it can limit damage to flooring and structural components while saving appliances and furnishings from destruction. It’s best for secondary homes or flood-prone properties where permanent retrofits aren’t cost-effective.
There’s no one-size-fits-all approach to the coming floods. Some homeowners will want to combine elements of all three tactics: raising the home, sealing critical entry points, and planning for rapid evacuation of valuables.
It won’t be fun, but it might allow you to keep living in your home. The only wrong move: Doing nothing.
Veteran journalist Matt Power has reported on innovation and sustainability in housing for nearly three decades. An award-winning writer, editor, and filmmaker, he has a long history of asking hard questions and adding depth and context as he unfolds complex issues.
The Floods are Coming. What’s Your Best Prep?
This summer could see even worse flood events than 2024. You have three options for preparing your house, none of them easy.
This summer, you may find yourself, like the residents of Asheville, N.C., last year, caught in a nightmare flood scenario. As weather patterns become more extreme and politicians declare Climate Change a hoax, places that have never flooded face grim new realities.
So, buckle up. Here are three strategies available to prepare your home for the next deluge—each with its own advantages, disadvantages and caveats.
1. Elevation: Raising the Building
If you can afford to elevate your home this is your best option. The thought behind elevating: let floodwaters pass below and beneath your living spaces. But raising the structure won’t be cheap. And it’s not 100 percent foolproof. Your neighbor’s unanchored shed or motorboat can still break loose and slam into your carefully planned pilings. Weigh not only the cost, but other variables of your location.
Basic Terminology
Cost Considerations
When you raise a home, you’re looking at several variables. First, what will it cost, compared to simply moving to a new location (if that’s within financial reach)? Second, how much do you want to stay in this flood-prone location? Third, over the long term, can you recoup a large part of the elevation costs with discounts on insurance?
Here’s a rough idea of what elevating might cost:
Financial Aspects of Elevating
Raising a home often qualifies you for sharply reduced flood insurance premiums. It also protects your largest investment from total ruin. But it’s a major investment, often equivalent to “starting over” with your mortgage. But you do gain some ROI advantages.
At least one recent study shows that elevated homes command higher resale values than non-elevated ones in flood zones. However, flood zone properties also start out at a handicap. A 2022 study of Miami found that homes located in a high risk flood zone typically command about 18 percent less than similar homes outside the zone. The same study found that for every foot you raise a home’s elevation, it gains 1.6 percent in resale value.
By this logic, if you raise a house in a flood zone 16 ft. on piers, you could expect it to sell for about 26 percent more than a non-elevated home next door. Subtract the 18 percent negative impact of the home’s flood zone, and you end up with a property that’s valued about 8 percent higher than a comparable one that’s NOT in a flood zone.
In addition, insurance savings for elevated homes can be substantial: A non-elevated property might pay $3,000–$6,000 annually for hurricane and flood insurance, while an elevated equivalent could pay about $1,000. Over 10–15 years, this can translate to $20,000–$50,000 saved, which may help justify elevation costs even if resale doesn’t fully cover it.
2. Waterproofing: Can Water Be Kept at Bay?
Attempting to keep flood waters outside your home is a reasonable goal. But achieving a complete defense may be much harder than you think. This approach is all about prevention—creating a strong, impermeable barrier to keep water out of the house.
Tools & Tactics
Caveat: Also, as noted in the video below, water pressure in a major flooding can overwhelm flood dams and waterproofing as pressure builds around the house.
This video taken during Hurricane Helene shows the limitations of flood dams, as “pressure has to go somewhere.”
Waterproofing the structure
Concrete block walls may look tough, but they’re semi-porous. In addition, older homes tend have hairline cracks in mortar that can be major water intrusion points. For example, a 2013 Durability + Design Magazine article found that a 20-mil-wide crack that is 3 feet long is equivalent to a 1-inch hole in the concrete wall. What if the crack is hidden under a stucco coating? You see how waterproofing can be more challenging than simply blocking up door thresholds.
What Works & What Doesn’t
Waterproofing concrete walls is possible, but requires careful attention to connection with slab and covering up of all penetrations.
3. Flexible Flight. Take Your Stuff and Go
From an economic standpoint, packing high-value belongings into a trailer and hauling them to high ground may be a least-worst option for some homeowners. This approach may make sense when elevating or waterproofing are too costly or technically unfeasible.
In this scenario, when floodwaters threaten, you rent a trailer or Uhaul, pack up and move high-value items to safety. This is not a new concept. It’s something that many old-timers in the South have done for decades, returning after a flood to hose out their homes and put furnishings back. However, you’ll need to rethink how you live. Is this constant vigilance worth the cost?
Prep in Advance
Water-Tolerant Interior Design
What to Know
This plan requires discipline and quick action, but it can limit damage to flooring and structural components while saving appliances and furnishings from destruction. It’s best for secondary homes or flood-prone properties where permanent retrofits aren’t cost-effective.
There’s no one-size-fits-all approach to the coming floods. Some homeowners will want to combine elements of all three tactics: raising the home, sealing critical entry points, and planning for rapid evacuation of valuables.
It won’t be fun, but it might allow you to keep living in your home. The only wrong move: Doing nothing.
By Matt Power, Editor-In-Chief
Veteran journalist Matt Power has reported on innovation and sustainability in housing for nearly three decades. An award-winning writer, editor, and filmmaker, he has a long history of asking hard questions and adding depth and context as he unfolds complex issues.Also Read