Flood risk. It’s a coastal problem. It’s a hurricane problem. Right? Wrong.

This spring, thousands of homeowners across the United States faced flood events that had nothing to do with coastal living or tropical storms, illustrating that flood risk is a widespread issue. According to FEMA, 99 percent of all counties in the United States were impacted by flooding between 1996 and 2019. That’s 23 years – less than the life of a typical mortgage.

The problem is that many homeowners don’t realize they’re at risk. Let’s take a look at a few specific flood events from the month of May to spotlight different types of substantial – though often overlooked – flood risk.