Housing.com News, Analysis & Opinion: Katrina Housing: Floods, FEMA, and Failure

Not to mention that, again, $43 million cut from the Army Corps of Engineers' budgets for the levees in 2004 could have saved us over $120 billion now. Somehow, the phrase "Penny wise, pound foolish" comes to mind, but just doesn't cut it.

Because I can never go a day without reminding you of just how bad FEMA screwed up, The SF Chronicle has a mind-boggling look at the communication breakdown at FEMA's highest levels in the first days of the hurricane. (It's amazing how prescient Led Zeppelin seems about this thing, isn't it?)

FEMAInfo provides an overview of the failures and boondoggles FEMA has involved itself in, or caused, when it comes to disaster rescue and relief efforts. Certainly not an unbiased site, but one well worth perusing.

Consumer Reports has an overview of flood insurance that breaks it down to the bare essentials. Of course, they're relying on FEMA data, so take the advice for what it's worth. Even if the messenger is discredited, the message itself is sound: If you're at even the slightest risk of flooding in your area, get flood insurance. A few hundred dollars a month could save you hundreds of thousands of dollars in the long term.

Now, this is fantastic news, but there's also a curious disconnect. The limit of the mortgage is $312,895...certainly not chump change by any means, but the message is strongly encouraging hurricane evacuees to move elsewhere in the country. However, with housing prices still in the mesosphere (As opposed to the stratosphere until just recently), $300k is not going to get you prime digs. I'd definitely be interested in finding out which regions have the most affordable housing and potential for receiving families dislocated by Katrina and Rita.

I also wonder if this is going to sabotage the frenzied efforts by Gulf Coast businesses and officials to get people to come back. We need that part of the country to survive, for culture, for economics, and for rebuilding. The economy will improve no matter where these families move to, but as I've said before, expecting impoverished, dislocated people to spend like madmen is just a fool's errand. Ok, there's the stupidity of the FEMA debit card spending sprees, but maybe we can call that the ultimate form of "retail therapy." ;)

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One of the primary concerns in the massive rebuilding effort in New Orleans is the fact that many of the hardest-hit residents don't have flood insurance. Flooding insurance often has to be purchased as a separate policy from your basic homeowners' coverage, and the calculations as to whether or not a home qualifies for coverage would make scholars of the Kabbalah blanch. As the Washington Post reports, the end result of that conundrum is thousands of families with destroyed homes and no insurance to provide them any relief. Not to mention that, again, $43 million cut from the Army Corps of Engineers' budgets for the levees in 2004 could have saved us over $120 billion now. Somehow, the phrase "Penny wise, pound foolish" comes to mind, but just doesn't cut it. Because I can never go a day without reminding you of just how bad FEMA screwed up, The SF Chronicle has a mind-boggling look at the communication breakdown at FEMA's highest levels in the first days of the hurricane. (It's amazing how prescient Led Zeppelin seems about this thing, isn't it?) FEMAInfo provides an overview of the failures and boondoggles FEMA has involved itself in, or caused, when it comes to disaster rescue and relief efforts. Certainly not an unbiased site, but one well worth perusing. Consumer Reports has an overview of flood insurance that breaks it down to the bare essentials. Of course, they're relying on FEMA data, so take the advice for what it's worth. Even if the messenger is discredited, the message itself is sound: If you're at even the slightest risk of flooding in your area, get flood insurance. A few hundred dollars a month could save you hundreds of thousands of dollars in the long term. No downpayment mortgages for hurricane victims, courtesy of HUD. Now, this is fantastic news, but there's also a curious disconnect. The limit of the mortgage is $312,895...certainly not chump change by any means, but the message is strongly encouraging hurricane evacuees to move elsewhere in the country. However, with housing prices still in the mesosphere (As opposed to the stratosphere until just recently), $300k is not going to get you prime digs. I'd definitely be interested in finding out which regions have the most affordable housing and potential for receiving families dislocated by Katrina and Rita. I also wonder if this is going to sabotage the frenzied efforts by Gulf Coast businesses and officials to get people to come back. We need that part of the country to survive, for culture, for economics, and for rebuilding. The economy will improve no matter where these families move to, but as I've said before, expecting impoverished, dislocated people to spend like madmen is just a fool's errand. Ok, there's the stupidity of the FEMA debit card spending sprees, but maybe we can call that the ultimate form of "retail therapy." ;)