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Flood insurance cost · Carteret County, NC

Flood insurance cost in Carteret County, North Carolina

What homeowners with a National Flood Insurance Program policy actually pay, from FEMA's records of 8,755 home policies in force on August 31, 2026.

Carteret County, North CarolinaPolicies in force on Aug 31, 2026

Median annual cost of NFIP flood insurance for a home

$1,219a year

Half of insured homes paid between $896 and $1,600. That is 19% more than the North Carolina median ($1,025). Most insured homes here are rated in zone AE (62%).

$0$896 · $1,219 · $1,600$2,000
+11.6% vs Aug 31, 2025 (median $1,092)
8,755home policies in force
$1,416average cost (mean)
70%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 Carteret 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		$1,396$986–$1,934$1,604613 (7%)+7.4%
Zone AE
High risk		$1,302$997–$1,814$1,5745,459 (62%)+10.4%
Zone AO
High risk, shallow		$1,038$799–$1,361$1,15017 (0%)−1.8%
Zone X
Moderate to low risk		$1,018$703–$1,309$1,0502,666 (30%)+9.3%

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

Type of buildingPoliciesMedianAverage
Single-family home8,071$1,227$1,424
2–4 unit building205$1,339$1,627
Manufactured (mobile) home272$1,252$1,468
Condo or apartment unit207$679$828
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.		407$2,738$3,780
Non-residential building or unit
Businesses, churches, farm buildings and other non-residential property.		407$2,576$3,331
9,569NFIP policies in force, any building
14,020insured units (condo association policies count every unit)
81%of home policies also cover contents
$100,000median contents coverage, when bought

One year on: Carteret 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 force9,2168,755−5.0%
Median annual cost$1,092$1,219+11.6%
Average annual cost$1,295$1,416+9.3%
All policies in force (any building)10,0829,569−5.1%

How many homes have flood insurance?

21.5%of all homes in Carteret County have an NFIP policy
52.2%of homes in high-risk zones (special flood hazard area) have one
42,852residential buildings counted by FEMA
12,132of 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 Carteret County, North Carolina have filed 9,001 flood claims. 6,277 received a payment, for a total of $129.0 million (an average of $20,546 per paid claim). The year with the most claims was 2018 (2,520 claims). Amounts are in dollars of the time, not adjusted for inflation.

01k2k3k4k1980: 11 claims19801982: 12 claims1983: 53 claims, 22 paid, $101,310 in total1985: 72 claims, 43 paid, $108,585 in total1986: 30 claims, 18 paid, $29,288 in total1987: 12 claims19901993: 62 claims, 16 paid, $52,199 in total1994: 101 claims, 71 paid, $168,531 in total1995: 16 claims1996: 1,277 claims, 702 paid, $7,707,435 in total19961998: 535 claims, 248 paid, $1,753,879 in total1999: 1,266 claims, 844 paid, $10,700,059 in total19992000: 13 claims20002002: 13 claims2003: 884 claims, 702 paid, $16,724,048 in total2004: 23 claims, 15 paid, $359,818 in total2005: 816 claims, 549 paid, $8,718,425 in total2006: 14 claims2009: 27 claims, 23 paid, $151,349 in total2010: 51 claims, 35 paid, $614,475 in total20102011: 792 claims, 600 paid, $10,506,191 in total2012: 14 claims2014: 34 claims, 23 paid, $219,785 in total2015: 76 claims, 55 paid, $607,636 in total2016: 23 claims, 12 paid, $115,514 in total2018: 2,520 claims, 2,080 paid, $66,506,924 in total20182019: 78 claims, 62 paid, $1,266,093 in total2020: 14 claims, 11 paid, $82,161 in total20202022: 35 claims, 29 paid, $733,986 in total2023: 19 claims, 10 paid, $229,523 in total2024: 26 claims, 18 paid, $441,327 in total2025: 13 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 (32)

Swipe the table sideways to see all columns.

Year of lossClaimsPaid claimsTotal paidAverage per paid claim
202513<10––
20242618$441,327$24,518
20231910$229,523$22,952
20223529$733,986$25,310
20201411$82,161$7,469
20197862$1,266,093$20,421
20182,5202,080$66,506,924$31,974
20162312$115,514$9,626
20157655$607,636$11,048
20143423$219,785$9,556
201214<10––
2011792600$10,506,191$17,510
20105135$614,475$17,556
20092723$151,349$6,580
200614<10––
2005816549$8,718,425$15,881
20042315$359,818$23,988
2003884702$16,724,048$23,823
200213<10––
200013<10––
19991,266844$10,700,059$12,678
1998535248$1,753,879$7,072
19961,277702$7,707,435$10,979
199516<10––
199410171$168,531$2,374
19936216$52,199$3,262
198712<10––
19863018$29,288$1,627
19857243$108,585$2,525
19835322$101,310$4,605
198212<10––
198011<10––

From 2016 to 2026: 2,728 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 Carteret County

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

Main NFIP communities in the county

Unincorporated Carteret County (3,005 home policies) · Emerald Isle (1,560 home policies) · Morehead City (1,180 home policies) · Atlantic Beach (1,016 home policies) · Beaufort (838 home policies) · Pine Knoll Shores (448 home policies)