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Flood insurance cost · Forrest County, MS

Flood insurance cost in Forrest County, Mississippi

What homeowners with a National Flood Insurance Program policy actually pay, from FEMA's records of 458 home policies in force on August 31, 2026.

Forrest County, MississippiPolicies in force on Aug 31, 2026

Median annual cost of NFIP flood insurance for a home

$970a year

Half of insured homes paid between $748 and $1,315. That is 22% less than the Mississippi median ($1,240). Most insured homes here are rated in zone AE (71%).

$0$748 · $970 · $1,315$1,644
+4.1% vs Aug 31, 2025 (median $932)
458home policies in force
$1,106average cost (mean)
77%of insured homes in high-risk zones (A, V)
$150,000median 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.

Cost by flood zone in Forrest 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 AE
High risk		$1,081$795–$1,426$1,192324 (71%)+3.5%
Zone A
High risk		$818$708–$903$82628 (6%)+3.3%
Zone X
Moderate to low risk		$783$626–$1,124$918106 (23%)−5.8%

Not shown (fewer than 10 home policies): VE, AO, AH, A99/AR, D. 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 Forrest County, by what they insure.

Type of buildingPoliciesMedianAverage
Single-family home409$1,036$1,134
2–4 unit building35$783$909
Manufactured (mobile) home13$652$804
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.		11$672$786
Non-residential building or unit
Businesses, churches, farm buildings and other non-residential property.		120$2,150$2,544

Not shown (fewer than 10 policies): condo or apartment unit.

589NFIP policies in force, any building
589insured units (condo association policies count every unit)
61%of home policies also cover contents
$60,000median contents coverage, when bought

One year on: Forrest 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 force477458−4.0%
Median annual cost$932$970+4.1%
Average annual cost$1,046$1,106+5.7%
All policies in force (any building)618589−4.7%

How many homes have flood insurance?

1.8%of all homes in Forrest County have an NFIP policy
17.1%of homes in high-risk zones (special flood hazard area) have one
25,943residential buildings counted by FEMA
2,061of 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 Forrest County, Mississippi have filed 1,773 flood claims. 1,382 received a payment, for a total of $13.1 million (an average of $9,513 per paid claim). The year with the most claims was 1983 (561 claims). Amounts are in dollars of the time, not adjusted for inflation.

02004006008001979: 72 claims, 62 paid, $306,213 in total1980: 348 claims, 290 paid, $779,426 in total198019801983: 561 claims, 458 paid, $2,632,312 in total19831987: 25 claims, 19 paid, $46,817 in total1990: 168 claims, 134 paid, $785,612 in total199019901994: 20 claims, 16 paid, $82,948 in total1998: 64 claims, 53 paid, $488,725 in total1999: 78 claims, 70 paid, $828,181 in total20002001: 11 claims2005: 100 claims, 35 paid, $977,563 in total2008: 16 claims, 13 paid, $316,822 in total2009: 14 claims, 12 paid, $126,554 in total20102012: 38 claims, 26 paid, $324,413 in total2013: 14 claims2016: 56 claims, 39 paid, $783,703 in total2017: 15 claims, 11 paid, $288,449 in total2018: 55 claims, 51 paid, $2,180,803 in total20202022: 21 claims, 18 paid, $477,927 in total
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 (18)

Swipe the table sideways to see all columns.

Year of lossClaimsPaid claimsTotal paidAverage per paid claim
20222118$477,927$26,552
20185551$2,180,803$42,761
20171511$288,449$26,223
20165639$783,703$20,095
201314<10––
20123826$324,413$12,477
20091412$126,554$10,546
20081613$316,822$24,371
200510035$977,563$27,930
200111<10––
19997870$828,181$11,831
19986453$488,725$9,221
19942016$82,948$5,184
1990168134$785,612$5,863
19872519$46,817$2,464
1983561458$2,632,312$5,747
1980348290$779,426$2,688
19797262$306,213$4,939

From 2016 to 2026: 147 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.

Main NFIP communities in the county

Hattiesburg (252 home policies) · Petal (126 home policies) · Unincorporated Forrest County (69 home policies)