Recently FEMA revised the format of the Elevation Certificate Form and modified instructions for completion. Effective January, 1, 2007, FEMA Form 81-31 requires surveyors to certify square footage and to provide all building description related items and photographs. FEMA will no longer accept existing copies of the old form.
When a community adopts new flood maps, Elevation Certificates and Letters of Map Amendments for individual lots may no longer be valid. Subsequently, property owners may find that their building has been designated in a high-risk flood zone, which mandates the purchase of flood insurance if they hold a mortgage on the property; or, they may find that their building has been designated in a low-risk flood zone, which may reduce or eliminate the cost of flood insurance. In either situation, the property owner will need a new Elevation Certificate. Check with your community’s floodplain manager for any flood map updates, or, call us, Premier Elevation Certificate Network, Inc. at
561-253-9010.
Acronyms We Use
SFHA: Special Flood Hazard Areas
FEMA: Federal Emergency Management Agency
NFIP: National Flood Insurance Program
LOMA: Letter of Map Amendment
FIRM: Flood Insurance Rate Map
BFE: Base Flood Elevation
