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Flood insurance cost · Union County, NJ

Flood insurance cost in Union County, New Jersey

What homeowners with a National Flood Insurance Program policy actually pay, from FEMA's records of 3,393 home policies in force on August 31, 2026.

Union County, New JerseyPolicies in force on Aug 31, 2026

Median annual cost of NFIP flood insurance for a home

$1,372a year

Half of insured homes paid between $958 and $2,306. That is 3% more than the New Jersey median ($1,328). The most common flood zone for insured homes here is zone AE (46%).

$0$958 · $1,372 · $2,306$2,882
+14.0% vs Aug 31, 2025 (median $1,204)
3,393home policies in force
$1,746average cost (mean)
67%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.

Cost by flood zone in Union 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		$1,503$1,016–$2,379$1,8911,568 (46%)+4.5%
Zone A
High risk		$1,416$1,008–$1,863$1,573113 (3%)+5.8%
Zone AO
High risk, shallow		$2,834$2,135–$3,319$2,687567 (17%)+15.2%
Zone AH
High risk, shallow		$1,005$861–$1,381$1,22827 (1%)−1.8%
Zone X
Moderate to low risk		$1,106$756–$1,364$1,0951,118 (33%)+7.9%

Not shown (fewer than 10 home policies): VE, 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 Union County, by what they insure.

Type of buildingPoliciesMedianAverage
Single-family home3,014$1,364$1,709
2–4 unit building325$2,138$2,274
Condo or apartment unit54$556$634
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.		165$4,101$5,253
Non-residential building or unit
Businesses, churches, farm buildings and other non-residential property.		409$3,564$4,658

Not shown (fewer than 10 policies): manufactured (mobile) home.

3,967NFIP policies in force, any building
4,357insured units (condo association policies count every unit)
61%of home policies also cover contents
$99,000median contents coverage, when bought

One year on: Union 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 force3,5123,393−3.4%
Median annual cost$1,204$1,372+14.0%
Average annual cost$1,614$1,746+8.2%
All policies in force (any building)4,1063,967−3.4%

How many homes have flood insurance?

2.9%of all homes in Union County have an NFIP policy
49.2%of homes in high-risk zones (special flood hazard area) have one
124,053residential buildings counted by FEMA
4,874of 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 Union County, New Jersey have filed 7,534 flood claims. 6,070 received a payment, for a total of $164.0 million (an average of $27,010 per paid claim). The year with the most claims was 2011 (1,679 claims). Amounts are in dollars of the time, not adjusted for inflation.

05001k1.5k2k1978: 118 claims, 85 paid, $315,413 in total1979: 145 claims, 112 paid, $194,944 in total1980: 67 claims, 43 paid, $238,577 in total19801981: 18 claims, 11 paid, $303,353 in total1982: 53 claims, 38 paid, $187,764 in total1983: 202 claims, 136 paid, $559,148 in total1984: 66 claims, 31 paid, $362,616 in total1985: 19 claims1986: 40 claims, 18 paid, $76,043 in total1987: 12 claims1988: 33 claims, 12 paid, $510,219 in total1989: 70 claims, 45 paid, $520,259 in total1990: 10 claims19901991: 24 claims1992: 84 claims, 52 paid, $1,294,931 in total1993: 19 claims1994: 67 claims, 38 paid, $555,556 in total1995: 46 claims, 32 paid, $224,606 in total1996: 345 claims, 243 paid, $1,637,610 in total1997: 96 claims, 73 paid, $747,594 in total1998: 16 claims1999: 945 claims, 788 paid, $9,716,220 in total19992000: 11 claims20002001: 13 claims2003: 53 claims, 28 paid, $84,327 in total2004: 31 claims, 14 paid, $74,435 in total2005: 35 claims, 20 paid, $88,904 in total2006: 32 claims, 23 paid, $189,047 in total2007: 656 claims, 559 paid, $9,223,431 in total2008: 35 claims, 28 paid, $347,728 in total2009: 12 claims2010: 304 claims, 241 paid, $2,262,442 in total20102011: 1,679 claims, 1,500 paid, $54,151,072 in total20112012: 173 claims, 133 paid, $10,523,463 in total2014: 70 claims, 44 paid, $390,520 in total2015: 39 claims, 29 paid, $302,852 in total2018: 23 claims, 12 paid, $73,249 in total2019: 26 claims, 15 paid, $316,257 in total20202021: 1,399 claims, 1,269 paid, $56,560,532 in total20212022: 10 claims2023: 52 claims, 30 paid, $889,899 in total2024: 18 claims, 13 paid, $430,330 in total2025: 307 claims, 283 paid, $9,051,702 in total2026: 27 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 (44)

Swipe the table sideways to see all columns.

Year of lossClaimsPaid claimsTotal paidAverage per paid claim
202627<10––
2025307283$9,051,702$31,985
20241813$430,330$33,102
20235230$889,899$29,663
202210<10––
20211,3991,269$56,560,532$44,571
20192615$316,257$21,084
20182312$73,249$6,104
20153929$302,852$10,443
20147044$390,520$8,875
2012173133$10,523,463$79,124
20111,6791,500$54,151,072$36,101
2010304241$2,262,442$9,388
200912<10––
20083528$347,728$12,419
2007656559$9,223,431$16,500
20063223$189,047$8,219
20053520$88,904$4,445
20043114$74,435$5,317
20035328$84,327$3,012
200113<10––
200011<10––
1999945788$9,716,220$12,330
199816<10––
19979673$747,594$10,241
1996345243$1,637,610$6,739
19954632$224,606$7,019
19946738$555,556$14,620
199319<10––
19928452$1,294,931$24,903
199124<10––
199010<10––
19897045$520,259$11,561
19883312$510,219$42,518
198712<10––
19864018$76,043$4,225
198519<10––
19846631$362,616$11,697
1983202136$559,148$4,111
19825338$187,764$4,941
19811811$303,353$27,578
19806743$238,577$5,548
1979145112$194,944$1,741
197811885$315,413$3,711

From 2016 to 2026: 1,862 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 Union County

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

Main NFIP communities in the county

Plainfield (725 home policies) · Cranford (613 home policies) · Rahway (343 home policies) · Union (280 home policies) · Scotch Plains (159 home policies) · Linden (157 home policies)