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Flood insurance cost · Los Angeles County, CA

Flood insurance cost in Los Angeles County, California

What homeowners with a National Flood Insurance Program policy actually pay, from FEMA's records of 10,204 home policies in force on August 31, 2026.

Los Angeles County, CaliforniaPolicies in force on Aug 31, 2026

Median annual cost of NFIP flood insurance for a home

$1,208a year

Half of insured homes paid between $983 and $1,490. That is 12% more than the California median ($1,079). Most insured homes here are rated in zone X (62%).

$0$983 · $1,208 · $1,490$1,862
+14.6% vs Aug 31, 2025 (median $1,054)
10,204home policies in force
$1,448average cost (mean)
36%of insured homes in high-risk zones (A, V)
$250,000median building coverage

This is what policyholders paid, not a quote. Two neighbors can pay very different prices: NFIP prices depend on the building (elevation, foundation, number of floors, replacement cost), the coverage and deductible chosen and the distance to water (FEMA FloodSmart: premium factors). For a price for your building, ask an insurance agent. Private flood insurance is not included in these figures.

Disaster declarations: 6 FEMA declarations · individual aid. FEMA declarations and IRS tax relief in Los Angeles County.

Cost by flood zone in Los Angeles County

The flood zone on FEMA's map is one of the main price factors. Median and middle half of what insured homes paid, by the zone used to rate the policy.

Flood zoneMedianMiddle half (25th–75th percentile)AveragePoliciesvs last year
Zone VE / V
High risk, coastal		$3,211$1,668–$4,392$3,285299 (3%)+0.5%
Zone AE
High risk		$1,525$1,213–$2,567$2,0022,102 (21%)+14.0%
Zone A
High risk		$1,368$1,026–$1,926$1,652196 (2%)+4.0%
Zone AO
High risk, shallow		$1,429$1,010–$2,256$1,672931 (9%)+1.2%
Zone AH
High risk, shallow		$1,490$1,141–$1,752$1,540133 (1%)+6.0%
Zone X
Moderate to low risk		$1,084$861–$1,261$1,1396,324 (62%)+16.4%
Zone D
Undetermined		$1,047$619–$1,453$1,358219 (2%)−0.7%

Not shown (fewer than 10 home policies): A99/AR. Shares are of all insured homes; a few policies have no rated zone. "vs last year" compares medians with policies in force a year earlier.

Cost by type of building

All NFIP policies in force in Los Angeles County, by what they insure.

Type of buildingPoliciesMedianAverage
Single-family home8,835$1,202$1,439
2–4 unit building759$1,490$1,986
Manufactured (mobile) home61$1,086$1,554
Condo or apartment unit549$710$839
Whole residential building (5+ units or condo association)
One policy covers the whole building, so the cost is much higher than for a single home.		389$2,432$3,636
Non-residential building or unit
Businesses, churches, farm buildings and other non-residential property.		828$2,264$3,289
11,421NFIP policies in force, any building
12,236insured units (condo association policies count every unit)
79%of home policies also cover contents
$100,000median contents coverage, when bought

One year on: Los Angeles County

Policies in force on August 31, 2026 compared with a year earlier. Nationwide, practically all policies in both years carry FEMA's Risk Rating 2.0 occupancy codes, so both years use the same pricing system. The policies are not the same: some were new, some lapsed.

Aug 31, 2025Aug 31, 2026Change
Home policies in force11,22510,204−9.1%
Median annual cost$1,054$1,208+14.6%
Average annual cost$1,330$1,448+8.9%
All policies in force (any building)12,52711,421−8.8%

How many homes have flood insurance?

0.5%of all homes in Los Angeles County have an NFIP policy
32.7%of homes in high-risk zones (special flood hazard area) have one
2,284,783residential buildings counted by FEMA
11,989of them in high-risk zones

FEMA NFIP Residential Penetration Rates, data as of August 3, 2026: residential contracts in force divided by residential structures.

Flood claims history

Since 1978, NFIP policyholders in Los Angeles County, California have filed 9,152 flood claims. 4,916 received a payment, for a total of $72.7 million (an average of $14,792 per paid claim). The year with the most claims was 1998 (1,400 claims). Amounts are in dollars of the time, not adjusted for inflation.

05001k1.5k2k1978: 405 claims, 232 paid, $1,527,039 in total1979: 162 claims, 80 paid, $560,307 in total1980: 1,295 claims, 808 paid, $5,218,573 in total198019801981: 97 claims, 45 paid, $135,045 in total1982: 135 claims, 59 paid, $227,712 in total1983: 1,135 claims, 700 paid, $9,272,710 in total19831984: 37 claims1985: 32 claims1986: 80 claims, 15 paid, $110,529 in total1987: 49 claims, 10 paid, $53,071 in total1988: 263 claims, 143 paid, $2,762,521 in total1990: 11 claims19901991: 84 claims, 42 paid, $563,859 in total1992: 368 claims, 228 paid, $2,322,882 in total1993: 353 claims, 195 paid, $2,203,931 in total1994: 81 claims, 52 paid, $743,745 in total1995: 644 claims, 348 paid, $6,430,290 in total1996: 43 claims1997: 79 claims, 32 paid, $402,986 in total1998: 1,400 claims, 778 paid, $9,170,737 in total19981999: 39 claims2000: 126 claims, 46 paid, $515,361 in total20002001: 198 claims, 89 paid, $925,213 in total2002: 31 claims, 11 paid, $118,165 in total2003: 56 claims, 24 paid, $293,820 in total2004: 98 claims, 59 paid, $665,201 in total2005: 413 claims, 258 paid, $4,327,577 in total2006: 14 claims2008: 53 claims, 20 paid, $498,315 in total2009: 30 claims, 15 paid, $222,582 in total2010: 200 claims, 103 paid, $3,082,503 in total20102011: 83 claims, 41 paid, $1,880,063 in total2012: 16 claims2013: 10 claims2014: 98 claims, 49 paid, $1,368,074 in total2015: 33 claims, 10 paid, $319,225 in total2016: 63 claims, 17 paid, $505,726 in total2017: 220 claims, 95 paid, $3,488,421 in total2018: 43 claims, 12 paid, $316,389 in total2019: 86 claims, 39 paid, $1,750,206 in total2020: 15 claims20202021: 35 claims, 20 paid, $471,155 in total2022: 24 claims2023: 187 claims, 81 paid, $3,488,015 in total2024: 158 claims, 94 paid, $5,301,820 in total2025: 46 claims, 16 paid, $923,075 in total2026: 14 claims
Flood claims per year of loss, 1978–2026. Years with fewer than 10 claims are left blank. Hover a bar for details.
All years with at least 10 claims (47)

Swipe the table sideways to see all columns.

Year of lossClaimsPaid claimsTotal paidAverage per paid claim
202614<10––
20254616$923,075$57,692
202415894$5,301,820$56,402
202318781$3,488,015$43,062
202224<10––
20213520$471,155$23,558
202015<10––
20198639$1,750,206$44,877
20184312$316,389$26,366
201722095$3,488,421$36,720
20166317$505,726$29,749
20153310$319,225$31,922
20149849$1,368,074$27,920
201310<10––
201216<10––
20118341$1,880,063$45,855
2010200103$3,082,503$29,927
20093015$222,582$14,839
20085320$498,315$24,916
200614<10––
2005413258$4,327,577$16,774
20049859$665,201$11,275
20035624$293,820$12,242
20023111$118,165$10,742
200119889$925,213$10,396
200012646$515,361$11,204
199939<10––
19981,400778$9,170,737$11,788
19977932$402,986$12,593
199643<10––
1995644348$6,430,290$18,478
19948152$743,745$14,303
1993353195$2,203,931$11,302
1992368228$2,322,882$10,188
19918442$563,859$13,425
199011<10––
1988263143$2,762,521$19,318
19874910$53,071$5,307
19868015$110,529$7,369
198532<10––
198437<10––
19831,135700$9,272,710$13,247
198213559$227,712$3,860
19819745$135,045$3,001
19801,295808$5,218,573$6,459
197916280$560,307$7,004
1978405232$1,527,039$6,582

From 2016 to 2026: 891 claims (counting only years with at least 10). 2026 is a partial year. Claims are counted where the insured property is; they include buildings and contents, homes and businesses.

ZIP codes in Los Angeles County

ZIP codes with at least 300 NFIP home policies in force have their own page.

Main NFIP communities in the county

Los Angeles (5,337 home policies) · Long Beach (1,375 home policies) · Unincorporated Los Angeles County (688 home policies) · Malibu (587 home policies) · Santa Clarita (217 home policies) · Santa Monica (169 home policies)