Do you need flood insurance
When you buy (or own) a home, you may be required to purchase flood insurance depending on whether you are in a flood zone or not. Some people are relieved that their home is not in a flood zone so they don't have to get flood insurance. But the flooding in Nashville should change your mind.
I was watching the Weather Channel and Jim Cantore was reporting on the disaster and mentioned that 50 percent of the residents probably didn't have flood insurance. But they have water damage that their insurance company won't cover because they didn't opt to have flood insurance.
In the Charleston area, you can find many homes that are not in a flood zone and flood insurance is pretty inexpensive. Of course, there are many homes that are in flood zones; some are in a minor flood zone and flood insurance is still fairly inexpensive while other homes could be in higher cost flood zones.
When you consider that you have hazard insurance on your home that covers things like wind, hail, fire, burglary, etc., but doesn't cover water damage, you might consider adding the extra protection for your peace of mind. According to FEMA, flooding is America's number one natural disaster. Get more information.
And if you can help Nashville flood victims with a donation to the Red Cross, that would be great.
Photo courtesy of flickr by Eric Hamiter