Tag: real estate

A Guide to Flood Zones (And What to Do If You’re in One)

Posted on Camille Smith

Estimated reading time: 5 minutes

Photo courtesy of ICA.

When buying home insurance, many homeowners overlook the possibility of flooding. However, assessing flood risk is crucial for all homeowners, especially those at the lake. According to Realtor Magazine, almost 6 million homes and commercial buildings in the U.S. are at high risk for flooding. In fact, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), flooding is the most common natural disaster in the country. Even if a hurricane doesn’t hit your home, even an inch of flooding can cause damage to your property and result in mold. These repairs are not inexpensive either. The average annual damage cost in the country due to flooding is $2 billion.  Given these consequences, knowing your risk based on the flood zones, preparing for these risks, and protecting your lake house are paramount. 

Flood Zones 101

Photo courtesy of Maurer Surveying, Inc.

If you’re a first-time homeowner, the concept of flood zones might be new. Essentially, flood zones are different areas distinguished by their risk of flooding. There are four flood zone classifications: 

  • A – high risk, usually along bodies of water
  • B or Shaded X – moderate risk
  • C or Unshaded X – low risk 
  • V – a high-risk coastal area 

In fact, in an A or V zone, flood insurance is required due to the risk level. Oftentimes, lake houses fall into zone A. However, this isn’t always the case. Your zone could also change over time. Due to the changing environment and warming atmosphere, more storms and hurricanes are possible. The result is that some homes previously in a low-risk flood zone are now higher risk. Your zone could also change due to nearby construction or recurring weather-related factors. Since flood zones are not static, it’s important to stay informed about your home’s risk.

Flood Zones and Lake Houses

Photo courtesy of betterflood.com.

No home is free from flood risk, so it’s best to stay vigilant no matter your residence. However, lake homes are at increased risk due to their proximity to a body of water. While most lake houses are situated on controlled water and elevated enough to prevent flooding, hazards can still occur. Due to the surrounding water, it’s best practice to investigate your flood risk and need for insurance.

Is Your House in a Flood Zone?

FloodSmart.gov

Thankfully, online resources can help you determine your house’s risk of flooding. With many of these free tools, you simply type in your address to receive a wealth of helpful information: your flood risk, the proportion of properties at risk in your county, the history of floods in your area, and recommendations. In addition to revealing this information within seconds, it includes climate data and risks of rainfall and flooding — both of which are not currently included on federal maps. Federal maps also tend to underestimate the number of homes that are actually in flood zones. If you want a more individualized approach to assessing your flooding risk, you can also hire a surveyor to evaluate your home. They will take more personalized features into account, such as the age of your home.

Protecting Your Property from Flooding

Photo courtesy of Lanyi Insurance.

If you’re in a flood zone, there are several precautions you can take. First, consider getting flood insurance from the National Flood Insurance Program or a private insurer. Since the typical homeowner’s insurance does not cover flood damage, you’ll need to buy flood insurance separately. According to FEMA, flood insurance typically costs $898 per year, but this is very little compared to the cost of repairing flood damage. However, this cost can differ depending on your home’s elevation. 

In addition to purchasing insurance, there are several solutions to control flooding on your own. Sealants, rain barrels, and sandbags are less expensive options, while installing a sump pump is a more pricey way to manage excess water. 

Although proximity to water is a huge selling point of owning a lake home, it also comes with increased flood risk. Know the flood zones, and prepare accordingly!

For more lake home improvement tips, visit Lake Homes Lifestyles.

This article was originally published on August 3, 2020.

[Hoover Sun] Lake Home Realty expands, creates mountain home website

Posted on Linda Thach

Lake Homes Realty, a Hoover-based company specializing in lake and beach properties across more than 40 states, announced this week its entry into the mountain real estate market.

From its headquarters in Meadow Brook Corporate Park, the company unveiled a new brokerage, Mountain Homes Realty, which features over $100 billion in mountain properties spanning 21 states on its website, MountainHomesRealty.com.

“Across all our specialty brands we’ve learned how to connect local and out-of-state buyers with unique lifestyle properties,” said Glenn Phillips, CEO of Lake Homes Realty, in a statement on the Mountain Homes Realty website. “The purchaser of a mountain home may live hundreds of miles away and scan listings in several states at once. We make that search – and the seller’s exposure to those distant buyers – dramatically easier.” – Hoover Sun

READ MORE

[280 Living] Lake Home Realty expands, creates mountain home website

Posted on Linda Thach

Hoover-based Lake Homes Realty announced this week that it is expanding into the mountain homes market with the launch of a new firm, Mountain Homes Realty. Both companies are headquartered in Meadow Brook Corporate Park. The new website, MountainHomesRealty.com, offers buyers and sellers access to over $100 billion in available mountain properties across 21 states.

“Across all our specialty brands we’ve learned how to connect local and out-of-state buyers with unique lifestyle properties,” said Glenn Phillips, CEO of Lake Homes Realty, in a statement on the Mountain Homes Realty website. – 280 Living

READ MORE

[AL.com] Birmingham area’s Lake Homes Realty branches out from waterfronts to mountain homes

Posted on Linda Thach
Mount Crested Butte, Colorado village in summer morning with hilldside houses on hills and Aspen green trees closeup

Hoover-based firm, Lake Homes Realty, the nation’s leading brokerage specializing in lakefront properties, has expanded into a new niche with the launch of Mountain Homes Realty. This independent brokerage caters to buyers and sellers of mountain properties across 21 states. Its online platform, MountainHomesRealty.com, already showcases over $100 billion worth of available mountain real estate. With Lake Homes Realty, Beach Homes Realty, and Mountain Homes Realty, the brand now operates in 40 states.

CEO Glenn Phillips said, as with the other sites, this one is geared toward making searches and purchases easier for distant buyers. “Across all our specialty brands we’ve learned how to connect local and out-of-state buyers with unique lifestyle properties,” he said. – AL.com

READ MORE

[Inman] Lake Homes Realty branches out with new firm for mountain homes

Posted on Linda Thach

Lake Homes Realty is expanding its real estate footprint by entering the mountain homes market with the launch of Mountain Homes Realty, the brokerage announced on Tuesday. The new brokerage will serve buyers and sellers across 21 states nationwide. Its website, MountainHomesRealty.com, already features over $100 billion worth of available mountain properties.

“Across all our specialty brands we’ve learned how to connect local and out-of-state buyers with unique lifestyle properties,” Lake Homes Realty CEO Glenn S. Phillips said in a statement. – Inman

READ MORE

[Birmingham Business Journal] Bham real estate firm launches Mountain Homes Realty nationwide

Posted on Linda Thach

Hoover-based firm, Lake Homes Realty, the nation’s leading brokerage specializing in lakefront properties, has expanded into a new niche with the launch of Mountain Homes Realty. This independent brokerage caters to buyers and sellers of mountain properties across 21 states. Its online platform, MountainHomesRealty.com, already showcases over $100 billion worth of available mountain real estate.

READ MORE
(Paywall)

Lake Homes Realty Launches Mountain Homes Realty in 21 States

Posted on Linda Thach

Lake Homes Realty, the country’s largest lakefront-focused real estate brokerage, has announced the newest addition to its waterfront niche market: Mountain Homes Realty. The stand-alone brokerage serves both buyers and sellers of mountain properties across 21 states. While the brand’s digital engine, MountainHomesRealty.com, currently features more than $100 billion in available mountain properties.

“Across all our specialty brands we’ve learned how to connect local and out-of-state buyers with unique lifestyle properties,” said Glenn S. Phillips, Chief Executive Officer of Lake Homes Realty. “The purchaser of a mountain home may live hundreds of miles away and scan listings in several states at once. We make that search – and the seller’s exposure to those distant buyers – dramatically easier.”

READ MORE

Whiteboard Topics: What Lake Homes Sellers Expect That Rarely Helps

Posted on Zac Parnell

Expectations are a part of everything in life. Real estate is not exempt from having expectations either. When selling your home, you might have certain expectations from your real estate agent in order to get your home sold. Glenn Phillips, Lake Homes Realty’s CEO, discusses the different things a seller might expect that don’t always help.

  1. Open Houses: Typically, when it comes to lake real estate, the buyer is many miles away. They might even be in a completely different state. These buyers will schedule a showing to see that house if they are interested. An open house, on the other hand, typically attracts people who come by to view the house, usually without any intention to buy.
  2. “Just Listed” postcards: Who would you be sending these to? You don’t really need to send them to your neighbors because they already live at the lake. It doesn’t logically make sense to send these across the country, but it makes the seller feel good when sending them out. That doesn’t inherently mean anything will come from it.
  3. “Just Listed” social media: This is related to the “Just Listed” postcards. Not only that, but the algorithms don’t typically like these kinds of posts. If it shows up to an audience, it will more than likely show up on a family or friend’s feed.
  4. “For Sale” signs: Most lake homebuyers start their search online. Going back to the first point, many buyers might not even live in the state you’re in, having a for sale sign doesn’t really help as much as you think.

A lot of the time, an agent will do these things out of habit or to make their sellers happy. However, that doesn’t mean it will sell the home. If you’d like to discuss these topics or anything else with an agent, please contact one today at https://www.lakehomes.com/.

Whiteboard Topics: Overpricing Your Lake Home Is Easy!

Posted on Zac Parnell

What comes to mind when you’re getting ready to sell your home? Pricing! Knowing how to and what to price your lake home is crucial in the selling process. If you go too high, more than likely, it will sit on the market longer than you’d like. Lake Homes Realty’s CEO, Glenn Phillips, delves into the importance of proper pricing and how easy it is to accidentally overprice.

  1. “What I have in it”: This is the concept of what you, as the owner, have financially put into the home. However, buyers do not care about this. The market is the market. When you were the buyer, you didn’t ask the seller what they had put into the home. The same goes for your potential buyers; they don’t care. The market sets the price.
  2. “What I ‘need’…”: At the end of the day, need has nothing to do with it. Need is market-independent and not relevant to any of the buyers.
  3. “I just ‘feel’ it is worth this”: There have been many studies that indicate we value our own possessions a lot more than other people’s possessions. This is something you need to be mindful of. It’s very easy to justify why you think your property is worth a certain amount.
  4. “The neighbor’s house sold for…”: That might be a true statement, or it might be a rumor someone has made up. If it is factual, there are many factors that could have been at play, such as selling when the market was hot. Having an agent who can pull a market analysis is more beneficial than basing pricing on the neighbor’s home.
  5. “The house nearby is listed for…”: “Listed for” is exactly what it sounds like, a listing. That house is still on the market.
  6. “If I can get this much, then I’ll sell”: This means you are not actively trying to sell the home. If something were to come along at a price you like, then you might. Something like this wastes time for all parties.

Having the correct pricing is truly the most important thing if you’re trying to sell. However, as mentioned above, it’s very easy to overprice a lake home. If you’re trying to figure out how to get accurate pricing, reach out to our lake experts at https://www.lakehomes.com/.