It is just amazing. This congress seems to be oblivious to the effects of their inaction to approve The National Flood Insurance Program Florida is the epicenter of economic downturn. We no sooner seem to be coming thru this with hurricane season at our doorstep and no one can get flood insurance. WOW! How in the world could they have adjourned without putting this as a top priority?
Anyone needing a mortgage in a flood zone must have flood insurance or no mortgage,
We have loads of customers stuck in limbo; sellers trying to sell and buyers trying to buy and move in.
With hurricane season upon us, it could not be a worse time of year for Floridians to be without flood insurance.
The National Association of Realtors estimates that for each day Congress delays, 1,400 sales are tied up. In Florida, it’s affecting about 175 deals a day.
The flood insurance program expired May 31. Since then, some lenders have been willing to accept binders, or promises, to write flood insurance policies as soon as Congress reauthorizes the program. But others are refusing to allow deals to go through without insurance.
U.S. Rep. Ted Deutch, D-Boca Raton, who voted to reauthorize the program, said Congress’ delay has brought an already weak real estate market to a “total standstill.”
“To say that Florida’s economy is in a fragile state would be an understatement,” he said. “In this uniquely perilous economy, if someone is prepared to buy a new home, they should be able to buy it.”
The halt in flood insurance isn’t affecting only homebuyers.
People living in flood zones whose insurance has expired also are beginning to panic.
It is a wonder how Congress could allow so many citizens to be at risk.
The National Flood Insurance Program was jammed into a controversial $110 billion jobs package designed to extend unemployment benefits. House members stripped the insurance provision into a separate bill and passed it this week. But senators, who shot down the jobs bill, left for the weekend without taking up the insurance bill.
Florida Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty has called Congress’ delay “irresponsible.” So do I.
Write your congressman.