The 50% rule regarding substantial improvement (SI) and substantial damage (SD) is not a one-size-fits-all problem or solution. Each community and each structure, whether mobile or conventional build, land rental or owned lot, has individual outcomes.
Acronyms
3 Ways to Get in Touch With FEMA
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What is the 50% rule?
The 50% Rule is a regulation of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) that prohibits improvements or repairs to a structure exceeding 50% of its market value unless the entire structure is brought into full compliance with current flood regulations. This may include elevating the structure, using flood-resistant materials, and proper flood venting among others.
What is Substantial Improvement and Substantial Damage?
Any combination of repair, reconstruction, rehabilitation, addition, or other improvement of a building, the cumulative cost of which equals or exceeds 50% of the (depreciated) pre-storm market value of the building or structure before the improvement or repair is started. If a project meets the definition of Substantial Improvement or Substantial Damage, it is considered new construction, and the entire building must be elevated at least one-foot above the Base Flood Elevation (BFE) and otherwise made fully flood compliant.
More information on the requirements and the history of on Substantial Improve-Substantial Damage in detail
FEMA Fact Sheet: Disaster Assistance When a Community is Not Participating in the National Flood Insurance Program
Why is it important to know if an improvement or repair is “substantial?”
Exceeding the Substantial Improvement/Substantial Damage threshold requires the entire structure to be brought into compliance with current Manatee County Floodplain Ordinance, NFIP regulations and the Florida Building Code. This may include but is not limited to elevating the structure, flood proofing, installing proper flood vents and using flood-resistant construction materials. See
mymanatee.org/floodadmincode.
What types of structures does the “50% Rule” apply to?
- All existing structures: Those that were built before, or during, 1974 when the NFIP floodplain management and Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRM) were adopted in Manatee County.
- New construction: Must meet the floodplain management regulations at the time of permit submission.
- Structures erected prior to 1974 may remain so unless they are substantially improved or substantially damaged. These structures are evaluated at the time of permit submission.
- Any additions, both attached and detached.
- Structures built after 1974 are considered compliant or not compliant based on the year they were built and are evaluated at the time of permit submission.
What is Market Value?
Market value is the value of buildings and structures, excluding the land and other improvements on the parcel. It is the actual cash value (in-kind replacement cost depreciated for age, wear and tear, neglect and quality of construction) tax-assessment value adjusted to approximate market value by a factor provided by the County property appraiser. This value also can be determined by an independent Florida-licensed appraiser.
Is Substantial Improvement and Substantial Damage cumulative?
According to current Manatee County Ordinance Section 2-10-21(b)(4), the definition of “substantial improvement” involves: “movement, enlargement, replacement, repair, change of occupancy, additions, rehabilitations, renovations, substantial improvements, repairs of substantial damage and any other improvement of or work on such buildings and structures, the floodplain administrator, in coordination with the building official, shall:
- Estimate the market value of the building or structure, or require the applicant to obtain an appraisal of the market value, prepared by a
Florida licensed qualified appraiser, of
the building or structure before the start of construction of the proposed work; in the case of repair, the market value of the building or structure shall be the market value before
the damage occurred and before any repairs are made;
- Compare the cost to perform the improvement,
the cost to repair a damaged building to its
pre-damaged condition, or the combined costs
of improvements and repairs, if applicable,
to the market value of the building or structure. Upon the request of the floodplain
administrator, the applicant shall furnish a
complete detailed breakdown of all labor
and materials for the construction projects and
all costs necessary to evaluate the substantial
improvement and substantial damage requirement;
- Determine and document whether the proposed work constitutes substantial improvement or
repair of substantial damage; the determination
requires evaluation of previous permits issued
for improvements and repairs as specified
in the definition of “substantial improvement”
and previous permits issued to repair flood-
related damage as specified in the definition of
“substantial damage”; and
- Notify the applicant if it is determined that the work constitutes substantial improvement or
repair of substantial damage such that
compliance with the flood resistant construction
requirements of the Florida Building Code and
this article is required.
Sec. 2-10-22. - Terminology; definitions. Substantial improvement or substantially improved: Any combination of reconstruction, addition, repair, rehabilitation, alteration, or other improvement of a building or structure taking place during a one-year period, the cumulative cost of which equals or exceeds 50% of the market value of the building or structure before the improvement or repair is started. For each building or structure, the one-year period begins on the date of the certificate of completion or the certificate of occupancy of the first improvement or repair of that building or structure subsequent to January 1, 2014. If substantial demolition is proposed, the structure shall be considered substantially improved. If the structure has incurred “substantial damage,” any repairs are considered substantial improvement regardless of the actual repair work performed. The term does not, however, include any project for improvement of a building required to correct existing health, sanitary, or safety code violations identified by the building official and that are the minimum necessary to assure safe living conditions.
Substantial damage. Damage of any origin sustained by a building or structure whereby the cost of restoring the building or structure to its before-damaged condition would equal or exceed 50% of the market value of the building or structure before the damage occurred. The term also includes flood-related damage sustained by a structure on two separate occasions during a 10-year period for which the cost of repairs at the time of each such flood event, on average, equals or exceeds 25 percent of the market value of the structure before damage occurred.
How is the value of an improvement determined?
This is determined using the information from the
SI/SD packet, which is submitted by the homeowner via the Online Services Portal.
Download an SI/SD packet
Mobile Home Owners should complete a
Storm Mobile Home (SMH) Record.
For all storm repairs in a block structure, Home Owners should submit for a regular residential alteration permit.
This application must also include copies of the construction contract and any subcontractor bids. Manatee County will evaluate the cost of improvements and determine if they are fair and reasonable. The cost of improvement includes the total costs for repair, reconstruction, rehabilitation, additions, placement or other improvements. These costs include all materials, labor, built-in appliances, overhead, profit, demolition, repairs, among other costs made to the structure. The application must be reviewed and approved prior to commencement of work. The purpose of these applications is to track the costs of improvements to ensure the 50% threshold is maintained in cases where proposed projects do not require a building permit under the Florida Building Code.
Is the cost of an improvement discounted if the owner does the work or the materials are donated?
No, the value placed on materials must equal the actual or estimated cost. The value placed on labor must be estimated based on applicable hourly wage scales for the type of construction work. Improvement costs cannot be discounted to keep the cost estimate below 50%.
Are there any items that can be excluded from the cost of improvement?
Items that should not be counted toward the cost of repair include plans, specifications, surveys, building permits and other items separate from, or incidental, to the repair or improvement of the structure.
How do I find the BFE of my property and what does it mean?
Find the BFE of Your Property
Base Flood Elevation (BFE), is the 1% annual chance of flooding in any given year. This translates to a 26% chance during the life of a mortgage. This is the national standard that is used by the NFIP and all Federal agencies for the purpose of requiring the purchase of flood insurance, also known as the Flood Insurance Rate Map (FIRM).
What are the flood zones within the Manatee County?
- A Zone: Special Flood Hazard Area that typically does not have a BFE determined.
- AE Zone: Special Flood Hazard Area that has a BFE determined.
- Flood Way: Special Flood Hazard Area that is always in AE, but is a more restrictive zone.
- VE and Coastal A Zones (CAZ): Coastal flood zone with a velocity hazard (wave action) and has a base flood elevation determined.
VE and Coastal A Zones are both seaward of the limit of moderate wave action line (LIMWA) and are susceptible to waves from 1-5 ft high.
How do I find out the elevation of my home?
Request an Elevation Certificate to determine the elevation at which a structure is built.
Why should an owner suffer what seems to be a penalty for repairing or improving a structure damaged by a storm event?
Structures located in a Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA) that are not built to today’s floodplain standards pose threats to the health and safety of the occupants of these structures. Over time, it is not only important to protect the property of the existing structures through substantial improvement but also protect the health and lives of the people that occupy the structure and surrounding areas. Manatee County currently holds a Class-5 rating in the Community Rating System (CRS), which allows residents in SFHA to automatically receive a 25% discount on flood insurance. Substantial Improvement/Substantial Damage requirements are part of Manatee County’s NFIP participation, and we are required to monitor our flood zones for all development to make sure we are adhering to our floodplain ordinance and the minimum NFIP Standards.
Title 42 United States Code 4106(a)
When a community is sanctioned under the National Flood Insurance Program, federal officers and agencies are prohibited from approving any financial assistance for acquisition or construction purposes in an area of special flood hazard in the community.
- “Federal agency” means any department, agency, corporation, or other entity or instrumentality of the executive branch of the federal government, and includes the Federal National Mortgage Association and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation;
- “Financial assistance” means any form of loan, grant, guaranty, insurance, payment, rebate, subsidy, disaster assistance loan or grant, or any other form of direct or indirect Federal assistance, other than general or special revenue sharing or formula grants made to states;
- “Financial assistance for acquisition or construction purposes” means any form of financial assistance which is intended in whole or in part for the acquisition, construction, reconstruction, repair, or improvement of any publicly or privately owned building or mobile home, and for any machinery, equipment, fixtures, and furnishings contained or to be contained therein, and shall include the purchase or subsidization of mortgages or mortgage loans but shall exclude assistance pursuant to the Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act2 (other than assistance under such Act in connection with a flood) for Public Assistance.
Rumor has it that Manatee County is condemning mobile home parks?
Manatee county has not, nor has any plans to condemn any mobile home parks. Each park and home will be assessed on an individual basis abiding by Federal, State and local regulations.
Can I repair the damage myself?
Repairs can be done by the homeowner; you may not work on someone else’s home. You must also include the cost of your labor (at a fair market rate) of substantial improvements cost for FEMA documentation.
Complete a Storm Mobile Home (SMH) Record Tip
What if I already own the materials, I need to fix my structure?
FEMA still requires documentation showing the value of your supplies (whether purchased or not) into your substantial-improvements cost.
Do I get a separate 50% for each storm?
No, Milton and Helene have been combined by FEMA.
What if my structure did not sustain flood damage?
It does not matter what kind of storm damage it sustained; you still must bring a non-conforming structure up to compliance and cannot spend more than 50% of the value of your structure.
What if it takes months to get a permit?
Manatee County is expediting our permit review process for all storm-related permitting requests (and in many cases, waiving fees).
Is Manatee County a part of FEMA?
No, Manatee County does not work for FEMA.
How do we document estimated cost if we did it ourselves? We will be working on the honor system for work hours; however, material costs will require some sort of documentation such as a receipt.
What is the County's SI/SD Process?
Immediately following a storm event, Manatee County teams begin Windshield Damage Assessments. These assessments involve drive-by evaluations in Unincorporated Manatee County neighborhoods that were impacted by the storm event. These assessments help determine the extent of damage to residential and commercial structures.
Once the Windshield Damage Assessment is complete, the County transitions to Substantial Damage Assessments. In partnership with the Florida Division of Emergency Management (FDEM), these inspections assess whether structures are considered “substantially damaged.” Evaluators focus on key areas such as foundations, roofs, windows, doors and siding to gather detailed information about the damages compared to the pre-storm condition.
Acronyms
BFE - Base Flood Elevation
CRS - Community Rating System
FEMA - Federal Emergency Management
FIRM - Flood Insurance Rate Map
LIMWA - Limit of Moderate Wave Action
NFIP - National Flood Insurance Program
SFHA - Special Flood Hazard Areas
SI/SD - Substantial Improvement/Substantial Damage
Next Step:
Download an SI/SD packet
Mobile Home Owners should complete a Storm Mobile Home (SMH) Record.
For all storm repairs in a block structure, Home Owners should submit for a regular residential alteration permit.
Look for a letter in your mail that will determine if your structure was estimated as substantially damaged (over 50%).
Get in Touch With the County:
Flood (for elevation questions)
941-748-4501, ext. 5871
[email protected]
Zoning
941-748-4501, ext. 6894
[email protected]
Permitting
941-748-4501, ext. 6893
[email protected]
3 Ways to Get in Touch With FEMA
1. Go to DisasterAssistance.gov
2. Use the FEMA APP
3. Call 800-621-3362