Menu

Flood insurance cost · Luzerne County, PA

Flood insurance cost in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania

What homeowners with a National Flood Insurance Program policy actually pay, from FEMA's records of 3,795 home policies in force on August 31, 2026.

Luzerne County, PennsylvaniaPolicies in force on Aug 31, 2026

Median annual cost of NFIP flood insurance for a home

$1,198a year

Half of insured homes paid between $990 and $1,397. That is 3% less than the Pennsylvania median ($1,232). Most insured homes here are rated in zone X (63%).

$0$990 · $1,198 · $1,397$1,746
+15.7% vs Aug 31, 2025 (median $1,035)
3,795home policies in force
$1,239average cost (mean)
37%of insured homes in high-risk zones (A, V)
$220,000median 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 Luzerne 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		$1,292$1,025–$1,641$1,4181,272 (34%)+9.7%
Zone A
High risk		$1,484$1,149–$1,738$1,52893 (2%)+9.3%
Zone AO
High risk, shallow		$1,619$1,479–$1,745$1,57017 (0%)+12.2%
Zone X
Moderate to low risk		$1,182$962–$1,335$1,1302,405 (63%)+15.3%

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

Type of buildingPoliciesMedianAverage
Single-family home3,263$1,191$1,214
2–4 unit building497$1,402$1,442
Condo or apartment unit30$418$459
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.		66$1,383$1,767
Non-residential building or unit
Businesses, churches, farm buildings and other non-residential property.		552$2,796$3,536

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

4,413NFIP policies in force, any building
4,413insured units (condo association policies count every unit)
82%of home policies also cover contents
$84,000median contents coverage, when bought

One year on: Luzerne 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 force3,9553,795−4.0%
Median annual cost$1,035$1,198+15.7%
Average annual cost$1,121$1,239+10.5%
All policies in force (any building)4,5934,413−3.9%

How many homes have flood insurance?

3.3%of all homes in Luzerne County have an NFIP policy
52.7%of homes in high-risk zones (special flood hazard area) have one
118,414residential buildings counted by FEMA
2,670of 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 Luzerne County, Pennsylvania have filed 4,148 flood claims. 3,399 received a payment, for a total of $93.9 million (an average of $27,617 per paid claim). The year with the most claims was 2011 (898 claims). Amounts are in dollars of the time, not adjusted for inflation.

02505007501k1978: 101 claims, 57 paid, $88,708 in total1979: 426 claims, 356 paid, $709,715 in total1980: 49 claims, 39 paid, $27,376 in total19801981: 44 claims, 22 paid, $37,716 in total1982: 11 claims1983: 160 claims, 125 paid, $278,222 in total1984: 72 claims, 52 paid, $71,636 in total1985: 41 claims, 20 paid, $33,270 in total1986: 19 claims, 12 paid, $26,774 in total19901993: 100 claims, 54 paid, $281,615 in total1994: 10 claims1996: 744 claims, 632 paid, $7,046,794 in total19961999: 24 claims, 10 paid, $39,851 in total2000: 14 claims20002003: 42 claims, 27 paid, $114,447 in total2004: 539 claims, 486 paid, $9,651,326 in total2005: 125 claims, 103 paid, $529,815 in total2006: 541 claims, 491 paid, $8,508,346 in total200620102011: 898 claims, 798 paid, $62,955,500 in total20112013: 11 claims2017: 15 claims2018: 18 claims, 13 paid, $220,655 in total20202021: 48 claims, 33 paid, $573,041 in total2023: 10 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 (24)

Swipe the table sideways to see all columns.

Year of lossClaimsPaid claimsTotal paidAverage per paid claim
202310<10––
20214833$573,041$17,365
20181813$220,655$16,973
201715<10––
201311<10––
2011898798$62,955,500$78,892
2006541491$8,508,346$17,329
2005125103$529,815$5,144
2004539486$9,651,326$19,859
20034227$114,447$4,239
200014<10––
19992410$39,851$3,985
1996744632$7,046,794$11,150
199410<10––
199310054$281,615$5,215
19861912$26,774$2,231
19854120$33,270$1,664
19847252$71,636$1,378
1983160125$278,222$2,226
198211<10––
19814422$37,716$1,714
19804939$27,376$702
1979426356$709,715$1,994
197810157$88,708$1,556

From 2016 to 2026: 91 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 Luzerne County

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

Main NFIP communities in the county

Kingston (991 home policies) · Wilkes-Barre (713 home policies) · Forty Fort (402 home policies) · Swoyersville (281 home policies) · West Pittston (272 home policies) · Hanover (269 home policies)