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Flood insurance cost · NC

Flood insurance cost in North Carolina

What homeowners with a National Flood Insurance Program policy actually pay, from FEMA's records of 101,871 home policies in force on August 31, 2026.

North CarolinaPolicies in force on Aug 31, 2026

Median annual cost of NFIP flood insurance for a home

$1,025a year

Half of insured homes paid between $736 and $1,352. That is 5% less than the national median ($1,082). Most insured homes here are rated in zone AE (50%).

$0$736 · $1,025 · $1,352$1,690
+9.6% vs Aug 31, 2025 (median $935)
101,871home policies in force
$1,170average cost (mean)
56%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: see FEMA declarations and IRS tax relief in North Carolina, county by county.

Cost by flood zone in North Carolina

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		$1,343$1,027–$2,016$1,6885,088 (5%)+7.0%
Zone AE
High risk		$1,171$891–$1,556$1,36651,211 (50%)+11.0%
Zone A
High risk		$768$577–$1,087$926153 (0%)+6.4%
Zone AO
High risk, shallow		$1,062$895–$1,275$1,116639 (1%)+4.8%
Zone AH
High risk, shallow		$856$743–$1,012$907245 (0%)+2.0%
Zone X
Moderate to low risk		$814$611–$1,102$88944,535 (44%)+2.6%

Not shown (fewer than 10 home policies): 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 North Carolina, by what they insure.

Type of buildingPoliciesMedianAverage
Single-family home95,706$1,033$1,173
2–4 unit building2,268$1,162$1,478
Manufactured (mobile) home1,851$987$1,172
Condo or apartment unit2,046$594$682
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.		3,418$2,186$3,122
Non-residential building or unit
Businesses, churches, farm buildings and other non-residential property.		6,839$2,069$2,993
112,128NFIP policies in force, any building
127,505insured units (condo association policies count every unit)
82%of home policies also cover contents
$100,000median contents coverage, when bought

One year on: North Carolina

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 force106,656101,871−4.5%
Median annual cost$935$1,025+9.6%
Average annual cost$1,081$1,170+8.2%
All policies in force (any building)117,950112,128−4.9%

Flood claims history

Since 1978, NFIP policyholders in North Carolina have filed 109,593 flood claims. 83,082 received a payment, for a total of $2.3 billion (an average of $27,781 per paid claim). The year with the most claims was 2018 (16,520 claims). Amounts are in dollars of the time, not adjusted for inflation.

05k10k15k20k1978: 182 claims, 124 paid, $372,931 in total1979: 473 claims, 293 paid, $2,316,079 in total1980: 172 claims, 111 paid, $1,394,978 in total19801981: 187 claims, 132 paid, $617,775 in total1982: 361 claims, 228 paid, $1,111,116 in total1983: 471 claims, 248 paid, $1,235,692 in total1984: 531 claims, 213 paid, $1,070,062 in total1985: 616 claims, 393 paid, $2,224,095 in total1986: 356 claims, 233 paid, $966,449 in total1987: 845 claims, 603 paid, $2,534,167 in total1988: 129 claims, 67 paid, $1,411,397 in total1989: 2,137 claims, 1,646 paid, $17,051,798 in total1990: 221 claims, 124 paid, $1,316,160 in total19901991: 1,081 claims, 854 paid, $9,589,630 in total1992: 428 claims, 333 paid, $2,581,600 in total1993: 3,170 claims, 2,218 paid, $20,228,856 in total1994: 588 claims, 410 paid, $4,928,725 in total1995: 832 claims, 553 paid, $14,561,121 in total1996: 12,878 claims, 9,544 paid, $189,175,430 in total19961997: 509 claims, 416 paid, $10,745,587 in total1998: 5,170 claims, 3,126 paid, $28,025,667 in total1999: 16,192 claims, 11,988 paid, $232,498,505 in total19992000: 309 claims, 200 paid, $4,166,757 in total20002001: 231 claims, 156 paid, $1,267,737 in total2002: 281 claims, 180 paid, $2,095,709 in total2003: 7,276 claims, 5,565 paid, $111,774,028 in total2004: 2,336 claims, 1,330 paid, $39,903,363 in total2005: 2,012 claims, 1,307 paid, $21,638,915 in total2006: 1,393 claims, 1,191 paid, $22,878,140 in total2007: 100 claims, 82 paid, $1,046,400 in total2008: 814 claims, 660 paid, $18,029,157 in total2009: 822 claims, 655 paid, $8,571,285 in total2010: 1,446 claims, 1,109 paid, $18,990,755 in total20102011: 9,604 claims, 7,644 paid, $177,508,147 in total2012: 993 claims, 782 paid, $13,220,393 in total2013: 549 claims, 403 paid, $10,925,913 in total2014: 654 claims, 492 paid, $6,522,960 in total2015: 796 claims, 487 paid, $9,676,034 in total2016: 6,721 claims, 5,503 paid, $218,967,401 in total2017: 272 claims, 177 paid, $2,565,914 in total2018: 16,520 claims, 14,020 paid, $653,063,094 in total20182019: 1,778 claims, 1,535 paid, $53,943,921 in total2020: 1,821 claims, 1,389 paid, $29,668,672 in total20202021: 484 claims, 379 paid, $18,948,848 in total2022: 377 claims, 261 paid, $4,632,569 in total2023: 317 claims, 234 paid, $5,612,058 in total2024: 3,341 claims, 2,815 paid, $260,747,139 in total2025: 698 claims, 595 paid, $43,689,708 in total2026: 119 claims, 74 paid, $2,097,765 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 (49)

Swipe the table sideways to see all columns.

Year of lossClaimsPaid claimsTotal paidAverage per paid claim
202611974$2,097,765$28,348
2025698595$43,689,708$73,428
20243,3412,815$260,747,139$92,628
2023317234$5,612,058$23,983
2022377261$4,632,569$17,749
2021484379$18,948,848$49,997
20201,8211,389$29,668,672$21,360
20191,7781,535$53,943,921$35,143
201816,52014,020$653,063,094$46,581
2017272177$2,565,914$14,497
20166,7215,503$218,967,401$39,791
2015796487$9,676,034$19,869
2014654492$6,522,960$13,258
2013549403$10,925,913$27,111
2012993782$13,220,393$16,906
20119,6047,644$177,508,147$23,222
20101,4461,109$18,990,755$17,124
2009822655$8,571,285$13,086
2008814660$18,029,157$27,317
200710082$1,046,400$12,761
20061,3931,191$22,878,140$19,209
20052,0121,307$21,638,915$16,556
20042,3361,330$39,903,363$30,003
20037,2765,565$111,774,028$20,085
2002281180$2,095,709$11,643
2001231156$1,267,737$8,127
2000309200$4,166,757$20,834
199916,19211,988$232,498,505$19,394
19985,1703,126$28,025,667$8,965
1997509416$10,745,587$25,831
199612,8789,544$189,175,430$19,821
1995832553$14,561,121$26,331
1994588410$4,928,725$12,021
19933,1702,218$20,228,856$9,120
1992428333$2,581,600$7,753
19911,081854$9,589,630$11,229
1990221124$1,316,160$10,614
19892,1371,646$17,051,798$10,360
198812967$1,411,397$21,066
1987845603$2,534,167$4,203
1986356233$966,449$4,148
1985616393$2,224,095$5,659
1984531213$1,070,062$5,024
1983471248$1,235,692$4,983
1982361228$1,111,116$4,873
1981187132$617,775$4,680
1980172111$1,394,978$12,567
1979473293$2,316,079$7,905
1978182124$372,931$3,008

From 2016 to 2026: 32,448 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.

Counties in North Carolina

Counties with at least 100 NFIP home policies in force have their own page.

Other counties (fewer policies, no separate page)
CountyHome policiesMedian
Alexander County17$1,182
Alleghany County19$1,347
Bertie County93$966
Burke County89$1,269
Cleveland County32$1,256
Davie County55$978
Franklin County85$892
Gates County69$776
Graham County42$1,608
Granville County37$716
Greene County68$852
Halifax County89$922
Hertford County46$1,046
Lincoln County94$746
Madison County75$1,202
Martin County76$1,028
McDowell County86$1,444
Mitchell County28$1,273
Montgomery County21$949
Northampton County27$873
Person County20$890
Polk County59$1,162
Richmond County34$942
Rockingham County52$1,186
Rutherford County77$1,458
Scotland County58$810
Stanly County43$1,315
Stokes County23$761
Surry County19$1,285
Swain County75$1,655
Vance County18$908
Warren County30$1,155
Wilkes County25$1,082
Yadkin County12$828

ZIP codes with the most insured homes