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In response to financial hardships incurred as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak, FEMA has extended the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) renewal grace period from 30 to 120 days. The extension applies to all policies with an expiration date between February 13, 2020, and June 15, 2020.
Floods are the most common natural disaster in the U.S. and the NFIP is a critical tool for the rental industry to mitigate some of the financial risk posed by them. Under existing law, apartment properties in high-risk flood areas with federally regulated and insured mortgages must purchase flood insurance. That’s why FEMA’s recent move is so critical for those currently experiencing hardships in the multifamily industry.
“FEMA understands the sense of urgency related to financial hardships and wants to be proactive,” said David Maurstad, deputy associate administrator of FEMA’s Federal Insurance and Mitigation Administration in a recent statement. “We want to make sure that policyholders don’t have to worry that their policy will lapse during the spring flood season or into the start of hurricane season. We hope this extension will give policyholders some peace of mind and allow them extra time to renew their policies to ensure they are covered should a flood loss occur.”
For more information on NMHC’s prior advocacy work related to the NFIP, please visit our advocacy page. NMHC has also compiled a COVID-19 resource hub that features informative webinars, property operations guidance documents, policy updates and more. Visit www.nmhc.org/covid19 for more information.
Staff Resource
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