Buying a home means thinking about more than whether you like the kitchen or the neighborhood. If you are concerned about floods, extreme heat, wildfires, or other natural disasters, those concerns deserve a place in your home search.
The increasing effects of natural disasters are creating obstacles in residential real estate. CoreLogic describes the challenge this way:
“As the specter of climate change looms large, the world braces for unprecedented challenges. In the world of real estate, one of those challenges will be the effects of natural catastrophes on property portfolios, homeowners, and communities.”
Research from Zillow also describes a growing number of Americans considering how climate risks and natural disasters could affect their homeownership plans. Those concerns influence where many people look for a home. Buyers want to know whether a property could be exposed to flooding, extreme heat, or wildfire.
If you share those concerns, you are not alone. The practical approach is to make them part of your buying process, with help from people who can guide you to the right information.
Start With the Risks That Matter to Your Search
You do not need to have every answer before you start looking. You do need a clear list of questions about the properties and areas you are considering.
Ask yourself what you want to understand before moving forward. Are you concerned about a flood-prone location? Past damage? The work needed to help protect a home? The cost and options for insurance?
Share those questions with your real estate professional early in the process. With the right help and resources, evaluating climate concerns can become a more manageable part of your home search.
The Mortgage Reports recommends three main areas of focus: evaluating climate risks, considering future preventative maintenance costs, and getting the right insurance. Here is how to organize your search around those priorities.
1. Evaluate the Property Before You Buy
Start with information about the location and the condition of the home. The Mortgage Reports recommends checking flood exposure, reviewing the seller’s property disclosure, and getting an inspection.
Check Flood Risk
Use the FEMA website to check whether a property is in a flood-prone area. Make this a specific item on your research list rather than leaving it as a general concern.
If you need help understanding what you find, ask your real estate professional to connect you with the appropriate expert or information.
Review the Seller’s Disclosure
Read the seller’s property disclosure for information about past damage. As you review it, write down anything you want explained.
The goal is to understand what the disclosure says about the property, not simply check off that you received it. Bring your questions to your real estate professional so they can help you identify the right next conversation.
Get an Inspection
The Mortgage Reports also recommends an inspection for issues such as cracks and mold as part of evaluating the home’s condition and safety.
Keep your concerns organized around three questions:
- What have I learned about the property’s flood exposure?
- What does the seller disclose about past damage?
- What issues does the inspection identify that I need to understand?
Use those questions to guide your review rather than expecting any single resource to answer everything.
2. Consider Future Preventative Maintenance Costs
When you tour a home, think about the protective measures you may want or need to take after buying it. The Mortgage Reports recommends factoring those future expenses into your decision.
The work you consider will depend on the risks associated with the area. Keep the discussion specific to the property rather than treating every home as if it needs the same measures.
For Areas With Tropical Storms
You may need to purchase hurricane shutters and sandbags to help protect the home. If you are looking in an area that gets tropical storms, include those items in your maintenance and expense questions.
Ask what measures you would need to consider and what expenses you should investigate before making your decision.
For Wildfire-Prone Areas
The Mortgage Reports suggests considering measures such as clearing plants five feet from the house, rooftop sprinklers, or gutter guards to help prevent fire hazards.
Treat these as items to discuss with the right experts, not an automatic shopping list. Ask which measures to consider for the property and what future expenses they could involve.
The practical point is simple: do not leave potential protective work out of your homebuying discussion. Factor it in while touring homes that may need it.
3. Explore Insurance Before Making an Offer
Getting the right insurance is crucial when buying a home in an area with high climate risk. The Mortgage Reports recommends shopping around and talking with multiple insurance agents before deciding to bid.
Compare prices and options. Give yourself room to ask questions rather than treating insurance as something to address only after choosing a home.
Use those conversations to work through a short list:
- What insurance options should I consider for this property?
- How do the prices and options compare?
- What do I still need explained before deciding whether to make an offer?
The purpose is to understand your choices and consider how to protect your assets as part of the buying decision.
Keep a Trusted Professional Involved
A trusted real estate expert is a valuable resource throughout this process. Their role is to keep your goals and concerns at the center of the search.
They may not have every answer about how a particular home could handle a natural disaster. They can, however, connect you with the right experts and information.
Your home is a major investment. If climate risks could affect it, you want those questions addressed before you decide to buy.
Your next step: Write down your climate concerns, then review flood information, disclosures, inspection questions, potential maintenance expenses, and insurance options with your real estate professional. Reach out to Ed Parcaut to discuss your homebuying plans and the questions you want to work through before moving forward.
