House Raising Long Beach Island New Jersey | Hurricane Sandy | LBI NJ Real Estate

Information about raising a home on Long Beach Island New Jersey, Hurricane Sandy, Flood Insurance and the LBI NJ real estate market. Raising a home on Long Beach Island may be required if the house has been damaged by Hurricane Sandy and is below base flood elevation.

Raising a Home on Long Beach Island

Flood Insurance, Hurricane Sandy and House Raising in the LBI NJ Real Estate Market

Let me begin by saying that not every house on Long Beach Island needs to be raised. Perhaps this is  the biggest falsity concerning house raising on LBI. FEMA has established a Base Flood Elevation or “BFE” for all properties on Long Beach Island. This is the level above sea level to which FEMA recommends a new house be built to or a house be elevated to, should a major renovation take place. The BFE is computed by adding the natural elevation of the ground above sea level with the elevation of the structure. For example:

• A house has a Base Flood Elevation (BFE) of 8 feet.
• The ground elevation is 5 feet above sea level.
• The house must be elevated 3 additional feet to meet FEMA’s requirement.
• A house needs to be raised only if the house was “substantially damaged”.

A house is considered to be “substantially damaged” when the costs of repairs exceed 49% of the replacement value of the structure. There are many locations on LBI where the ground elevation is already at Base Flood Elevation. Therefore, no additional elevation would be required to meet FEMA’s minimum standard. There is an inherent advantage to a house that is raised, as it will be safer in future storms and flood insurance will be less expensive.

The cost of raising a house on Long Beach Island will vary, but for most homes the cost will be between $40,000 and $60,000. It is important to make sure that the investment is worthwhile, as sometimes the cost of raising will cost more than the finished home is worth in the LBI real estate market.