Bill Proposed to Protect Florida Second Home Owners from Flood Insurance Increases

WASHINGTON – July 8, 2015 – Reps. Patrick Murphy (D-Fla.) and Carlos Curbelo (R-Fla.) want to extend a law that limits annual flood insurance premium hikes. The law currently covers owners of primary residences, and the lawmakers want it to also cover owners of second homes and rental properties.

While a number of Florida homeowners and investors would hail passage, however, its eventual passage is a long shot.

The Homeowner Flood Insurance Affordability Act, enacted in March 2014, limited yearly increases for most homeowners to 18 percent at most. The bill averted sudden big jumps some homeowners faced under a 2012 law designed to shore up the flood insurance program's finances.

"Last year, by working with members of both parties, we made significant, positive changes to the National Flood Insurance Program to ensure Floridians' rates did not skyrocket," says Murphy. "Today, as we continue to improve upon that legislation, it's more important than ever for us to ensure access to affordable flood insurance."

Rental properties not only serve as primary income for the property owners, but they also "provide reasonably priced housing for the workforce in our coastal communities," adds Curbelo.

Second homes are prevalent throughout the Sunshine State, serving as the winter destination of many people who live in colder states during the rest of the year.

Nevertheless, the two Florida lawmakers face tough opposition. Former Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) said consideration was given to second homes in the original legislation, but many lawmakers felt that people who can afford vacation homes had sufficient income to pay actuarial rates for their flood insurance coverage.

FLORIDA Realtors® July 2015