Flood Mitigation & Buyouts by State
How many homes FEMA has bought out, elevated, relocated, or floodproofed under its Hazard Mitigation Assistance program, by state.
Last updated: August 2026
How Many Homes Has FEMA Mitigated?
Properties Mitigated
231,625
All actions, all programs
Total Cost
$11.5B
Estimated, federal + local
Median State Cost
$53,418
Per property, typical state
FEMA’s Hazard Mitigation Assistance programs have funded mitigation work on 231,625 properties across the 50 states and DC. Mitigation includes buying out flood-prone homes entirely, physically elevating them above the base flood elevation, or floodproofing them against future damage.
How to read the cost figures. FEMA’s data records a total payment per grant subapplication, not a cost per individual property, so every dollar figure on this page is an estimate that divides a subapplication’s payment evenly across the properties it covers. Treat the property counts as reliable and the dollar amounts as directional only.
All States Mitigation Data
| State | Properties | Total Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Oklahoma | 24,994 | $168.9M |
| Florida | 24,627 | $913.8M |
| Texas | 23,502 | $1.3B |
| California | 19,922 | $1.2B |
| Louisiana | 15,988 | $2.2B |
| Mississippi | 14,113 | $336.8M |
| Illinois | 10,124 | $190.7M |
| North Carolina | 10,033 | $531.8M |
| Alabama | 9,505 | $233.3M |
| New Jersey | 9,085 | $559.6M |
| Missouri | 6,632 | $393.4M |
| Iowa | 4,666 | $271.3M |
| Ohio | 4,146 | $122.4M |
| Kentucky | 3,885 | $183.2M |
| New York | 3,569 | $299.6M |
| Arkansas | 3,543 | $144.6M |
| Minnesota | 3,507 | $93.2M |
| Pennsylvania | 3,080 | $248.4M |
| Georgia | 2,938 | $150.1M |
| Kansas | 2,885 | $111.3M |
| Washington | 2,596 | $176.2M |
| Indiana | 2,415 | $78.9M |
| West Virginia | 2,351 | $85.2M |
| Tennessee | 2,318 | $158.7M |
| North Dakota | 2,194 | $130.5M |
| Virginia | 1,972 | $128.2M |
| South Carolina | 1,557 | $95.7M |
| Utah | 1,535 | $117.6M |
| Wisconsin | 1,494 | $116.5M |
| Michigan | 1,341 | $46.4M |
| Oregon | 1,200 | $96.8M |
| Nebraska | 1,098 | $42.7M |
| Colorado | 1,034 | $77.7M |
| Alaska | 820 | $37.6M |
| Massachusetts | 721 | $36.4M |
| Idaho | 694 | $11.8M |
| Arizona | 684 | $27.3M |
| Vermont | 659 | $62.2M |
| Maryland | 609 | $35.4M |
| South Dakota | 609 | $26.6M |
| Wyoming | 523 | $9.3M |
| Nevada | 513 | $16.0M |
| Connecticut | 446 | $41.7M |
| New Hampshire | 311 | $10.3M |
| Delaware | 267 | $12.5M |
| Maine | 236 | $13.2M |
| Montana | 225 | $12.0M |
| Rhode Island | 193 | $21.6M |
| Hawaii | 124 | $12.2M |
| New Mexico | 73 | $14.8M |
| District of Columbia | 69 | $9.5M |
Source: FEMA Hazard Mitigation Assistance via OpenFEMA. Data sourced August 2026. Sorted by mitigated properties (highest first).
What Kind of Flood Mitigation Does FEMA Fund?
Acquisition (a full buyout and demolition) and Elevation (raising the structure above the base flood elevation) are the two most common named actions. A large share of projects fall under FEMA’s own generic "Other" category - see the FAQ below for what that typically covers.
Which FEMA Program Funds the Most Mitigation?
The Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP), funded through post-disaster recovery, is the largest single source of mitigation funding. Flood Mitigation Assistance (FMA) and Pre-Disaster Mitigation (PDM) fund proactive projects outside of a disaster recovery window.
Has Flood Mitigation Funding Increased Over Time?
Mitigated properties by decade. Volume rises sharply after major flood disasters, when post-disaster Hazard Mitigation Grant Program funding becomes available to affected states.
The current decade is still in progress and its bar covers roughly 6.7 of 10 years, so it is not directly comparable to the completed decades beside it. Grant records for recent years also lag, since a subapplication only appears once it has been processed.
Top 10 States by Mitigated Properties
Frequently Asked Questions
Where does this hazard mitigation data come from?
All data comes from FEMA’s Hazard Mitigation Assistance program records via the OpenFEMA API - the official public record of federally funded mitigation projects, including property buyouts (acquisitions), elevations, and floodproofing.
What is a FEMA flood buyout?
A buyout (formally, an "acquisition") is when a local government uses FEMA grant funding to purchase a flood-damaged or flood-prone property from the owner, demolish the structure, and permanently deed the land as open space that can never be built on again. Owners are paid pre-flood or pre-disaster fair market value. Nationally, acquisitions account for 36,606 mitigated properties.
What is the "Other" mitigation action category?
FEMA’s own project records classify a large share of Hazard Mitigation Assistance projects under a generic "Other" action type rather than one of the six named categories (Acquisition, Elevation, Relocation, Floodproofing, Drainage, Retrofit) - it is the single largest category in this dataset. This reflects how FEMA itself codes the data, not a gap in FludZone’s extraction; many "Other" projects are drainage improvements, minor retrofits, or planning-only grants that don’t cleanly fit the six named types.
How much does FEMA pay per mitigated property?
In a typical state, Hazard Mitigation Assistance projects work out to roughly $53,418 per mitigated property (the median across states). This is an estimate, not a billed amount: FEMA publishes a total payment per grant subapplication rather than a cost per property, so the figure divides each subapplication's payment evenly across the properties it covers. Actual cost varies enormously by action type - a full buyout and demolition costs far more than a minor floodproofing retrofit - and in states where one large grant covers relatively few properties the estimate runs much higher than the true per-property cost.
Does a mitigated property still need flood insurance?
It depends on the action taken. A bought-out property is demolished and removed from insurable stock entirely. An elevated or floodproofed property typically still sits in its original FEMA flood zone and, if that zone is a Special Flood Hazard Area with a federally backed mortgage, still requires flood insurance - though the mitigation work usually qualifies it for a lower premium under Risk Rating 2.0.
Explore Flood Zones by State
Check flood zone information for cities across the United States.
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Enter any US address to see its FEMA flood zone, insurance requirements, and local mitigation history.
Disclaimer: This guide is for general informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional advice. Flood risk, insurance requirements, and property values depend on many factors specific to each property and location. Consult a licensed real estate attorney, insurance agent, or certified floodplain manager for guidance on your specific situation. FludZone results are informational and are not a substitute for an official flood zone determination from a certified provider.