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Flood insurance cost · Wake County, NC

Flood insurance cost in Wake County, North Carolina

What homeowners with a National Flood Insurance Program policy actually pay, from FEMA's records of 2,582 home policies in force on August 31, 2026.

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

Median annual cost of NFIP flood insurance for a home

$885a year

Half of insured homes paid between $574 and $1,259. That is 14% less than the North Carolina median ($1,025). Most insured homes here are rated in zone X (73%).

$0$574 · $885 · $1,259$1,574
+0.6% vs Aug 31, 2025 (median $880)
2,582home policies in force
$1,016average cost (mean)
27%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 Wake 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		$1,381$1,056–$1,809$1,533701 (27%)+6.9%
Zone X
Moderate to low risk		$715$524–$1,084$8241,880 (73%)−4.2%

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

Type of buildingPoliciesMedianAverage
Single-family home2,452$904$1,020
2–4 unit building43$1,442$1,687
Condo or apartment unit86$452$561
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.		145$2,835$4,409
Non-residential building or unit
Businesses, churches, farm buildings and other non-residential property.		189$2,633$3,339

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

2,916NFIP policies in force, any building
3,278insured units (condo association policies count every unit)
89%of home policies also cover contents
$100,000median contents coverage, when bought

One year on: Wake 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 force2,7912,582−7.5%
Median annual cost$880$885+0.6%
Average annual cost$988$1,016+2.8%
All policies in force (any building)3,1312,916−6.9%

How many homes have flood insurance?

0.8%of all homes in Wake County have an NFIP policy
45.8%of homes in high-risk zones (special flood hazard area) have one
338,927residential buildings counted by FEMA
1,680of 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 Wake County, North Carolina have filed 1,653 flood claims. 1,278 received a payment, for a total of $31.8 million (an average of $24,871 per paid claim). The year with the most claims was 1996 (371 claims). Amounts are in dollars of the time, not adjusted for inflation.

01002003004001978: 60 claims, 47 paid, $167,089 in total1979: 17 claims, 10 paid, $77,167 in total1980: 12 claims19801982: 19 claims, 14 paid, $37,868 in total1983: 24 claims, 19 paid, $142,184 in total1986: 43 claims, 23 paid, $71,133 in total1989: 14 claims19901995: 65 claims, 41 paid, $435,338 in total1996: 371 claims, 310 paid, $8,347,847 in total19961997: 43 claims, 35 paid, $658,270 in total1998: 17 claims1999: 141 claims, 107 paid, $1,413,718 in total20002001: 14 claims2002: 64 claims, 47 paid, $678,998 in total2003: 29 claims, 24 paid, $491,624 in total2006: 185 claims, 172 paid, $7,415,567 in total20062009: 20 claims, 15 paid, $204,122 in total20102011: 19 claims, 13 paid, $264,001 in total2013: 32 claims, 26 paid, $376,176 in total2014: 24 claims, 18 paid, $292,618 in total2016: 182 claims, 156 paid, $6,020,401 in total20162017: 43 claims, 33 paid, $471,620 in total2018: 39 claims, 28 paid, $870,330 in total2019: 15 claims, 10 paid, $164,721 in total2020: 24 claims, 18 paid, $174,032 in total20202021: 17 claims, 16 paid, $1,060,962 in total2024: 15 claims, 10 paid, $747,522 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 (27)

Swipe the table sideways to see all columns.

Year of lossClaimsPaid claimsTotal paidAverage per paid claim
20241510$747,522$74,752
20211716$1,060,962$66,310
20202418$174,032$9,668
20191510$164,721$16,472
20183928$870,330$31,083
20174333$471,620$14,292
2016182156$6,020,401$38,592
20142418$292,618$16,257
20133226$376,176$14,468
20111913$264,001$20,308
20092015$204,122$13,608
2006185172$7,415,567$43,114
20032924$491,624$20,484
20026447$678,998$14,447
200114<10––
1999141107$1,413,718$13,212
199817<10––
19974335$658,270$18,808
1996371310$8,347,847$26,929
19956541$435,338$10,618
198914<10––
19864323$71,133$3,093
19832419$142,184$7,483
19821914$37,868$2,705
198012<10––
19791710$77,167$7,717
19786047$167,089$3,555

From 2016 to 2026: 335 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

Raleigh (1,084 home policies) · Cary (518 home policies) · Unincorporated Wake County (299 home policies) · Apex (131 home policies) · Garner (117 home policies) · Wake Forest (104 home policies)