As Hurricane Florence bears down on the southeastern United States, nearly 759,000 homes are in the storm’s path, and a worst-case rebuilding scenario could cost more than $170 billion, according to an estimate from real estate data provider CoreLogic.
CoreLogic calculated the reconstruction cost value, which is the total expense of completely rebuilding a property in case of 100% destruction, for 12 metro areas in the Carolinas and Virginia. The table below shows those estimates for a Category 4 storm, which is Florence’s current designation. Additional estimates based on other categorizations is available on CoreLogic’s web site.
| Area | Total Homes at Risk | Reconstruction cost value |
|---|---|---|
| Elizabeth City, NC | 31,166 | $6.55 billion |
| Greenville, NC | 1,447 | $271.6 million |
| Jacksonville, NC | 9,338 | $1.76 billion |
| Kill Devil Hills, NC | 22,566 | $4.54 billion |
| Morehead City, NC | 30,731 | $5.9 billion |
| New Bern, NC | 22,288 | $4.95 billion |
| Washington, NC | 10,859 | $1.98 billion |
| Wilmington, NC | 33,590 | $7.75 billion |
| Charleston-North Charleston, NC | 133,239 | $34.31 billion |
| Georgetown, SC | 23,200 | $5.91 billion |
| Myrtle Beach-Conway-N. Myrtle Beach, SC | 93,660 | $16.44 billion |
| Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News, VA | 346,573 | $79.93 billion |
On Tuesday, as Florence barreled toward the Eastern Seaboard, the National Association of Realtors renewed its call for Congress to enact a long-term reauthorization of the National Flood Insurance Program, the public program that’s the only insurance option for many homeowners in harm’s way.
Most stakeholders agree that the NFIP needs an overhaul to protect taxpayers, homeowners, and communities, but Congress has repeatedly punted on anything more than short-term renewals.
Meanwhile, insurance companies are also bracing for a hit.
The property-and-casualty insurers and reinsurers potentially exposed include RenaissanceRe Holdings, Everest Re Group, Travelers, Chubb, Allstate, Arch Capital and Berkshire Hathaway, said JPMorgan analyst Sarah DeWitt, who estimated the losses could approach one-quarter’s worth of earnings.