Data as of October 26, 2026. Flood zones from FEMA’s National Flood Hazard Layer for Alachua County (data dated September 3, 2026); parcels from the Florida Department of Revenue’s 2026 tax roll.
McGriff-Williams Insurance is an independent insurance agency in Gainesville, in business since 1983 and licensed in Florida. Clients often ask us whether their part of town is “in a flood zone.” To give a county-wide picture, we matched residential parcels in Alachua County to FEMA’s flood maps and counted how many fall in each zone, by city, by ZIP code and by type of home.
The short version:
- Homes other than condo units: of 72,883 single-family, mobile home and small multifamily parcels, 2,049 (2.8%) have their main building in a FEMA high-risk flood zone (Zone A or AE).
- Condo units: 646 of 7,313 (8.8%) are in a high-risk zone. Every unit in a building or complex usually shares one location in our data, so a single complex near a creek can add dozens of units.
- All residential parcels together: 2,695 of 80,196 (3.4%) are in a high-risk zone, 276 (0.3%) are in the moderate-risk shaded Zone X, and 77,225 (96.3%) are in Zone X, FEMA’s minimal-hazard zone.
- FEMA letters (LOMAs and LOMR-Fs) have removed the building or lot on more than 350 of those 2,695 high-risk parcels (about 14%). Our counts follow FEMA’s map and still include them; leaving them out would bring the county figure to about 2.9%.
Share of parcels in mapped flood zones. This is not a flood zone determination for any property and not an insurance requirement.
Lower risk isn’t no risk, though: nearly half of the NFIP flood claims filed in Alachua County communities since 1978 came from buildings rated outside the high-risk zones.
How we counted
- Which homes: parcels the Florida Department of Revenue codes as single family (01), mobile home (02), condominium (04) or multifamily with fewer than 10 units (08). Each condominium unit is its own parcel. Where the state’s map stores one parcel as several pieces, we counted it once.
- Where we checked the zone: at the main building on each parcel, using the center point of the largest building outline from the USA Structures data from FEMA and Oak Ridge National Laboratory. We did not count a parcel as high-risk just because a flood zone touches some part of the lot.
- When there was no building outline: about 29% of parcels, mostly single-family homes, had no building outline from FEMA’s data inside the parcel (the outlines come from imagery taken mostly in 2016 to 2018). For those, we checked a point inside the parcel instead. That method tends to count more parcels as high-risk.
- Which maps: FEMA’s effective flood maps only. Preliminary or proposed maps aren’t included.
Our methods note at the end of this page has more detail.
Flood zones by city
Cities are based on the U.S. Census Bureau’s current city limits. “Unincorporated” covers everything outside the nine cities and towns, including areas with a Gainesville mailing address.
| Area | Residential parcels | High-risk zones (A, AE) | Share high-risk | Share high-risk, excluding condo units | Shaded X (moderate) | Zone X (minimal) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gainesville | 32,042 | 1,374 | 4.3% | 2.8% | 192 | 30,476 |
| Alachua | 4,290 | 101 | 2.4% | 2.4% | 1 | 4,188 |
| Archer | 414 | 7 | 1.7% | 1.7% | 0 | 407 |
| Hawthorne | 571 | 6 | 1.1% | 1.1% | 0 | 565 |
| High Springs | 2,881 | 11 | 0.4% | 0.4% | 10 | 2,860 |
| La Crosse | 122 | 5 | 4.1% | 4.1% | 0 | 117 |
| Micanopy | 293 | 8 | 2.7% | 2.7% | 0 | 285 |
| Newberry | 3,308 | 0 | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0 | 3,308 |
| Waldo | 344 | 15 | 4.4% | 4.4% | 0 | 329 |
| Unincorporated Alachua County | 35,931 | 1,168 | 3.3% | 3.4% | 73 | 34,690 |
| Alachua County total | 80,196 | 2,695 | 3.4% | 2.8% | 276 | 77,225 |
A few things stand out:
- Gainesville has about 1,370 residential parcels in high-risk zones, and 192 of the county’s 276 shaded Zone X parcels. Condo units make up nearly half of Gainesville’s high-risk count; excluding them, the city’s share is 2.8%.
- Unincorporated Alachua County has about 1,170 residential parcels in high-risk zones (3.3%).
- In the City of Alachua, FEMA letters cover more than 25 of the 101 high-risk parcels. Our count follows FEMA’s map; leaving those out, the city’s share would be about 1.7%.
- Newberry had no residential parcels with the main building in a mapped high-risk zone, and High Springs had 11.
- In the smaller towns, a handful of homes can move the percentage a lot. Waldo’s 4.4% is 15 homes, and La Crosse’s 4.1% is 5.
Flood zones by ZIP code
ZIP codes are the ZIP of each parcel’s street address, so a “Gainesville” ZIP can include homes outside the city limits. ZIPs with fewer than 100 residential parcels in Alachua County are grouped as “Other ZIPs.”
| ZIP | Postal city | Residential parcels | High-risk zones (A, AE) | Share high-risk | Shaded X | NFIP policy records in force* |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 32601 | Gainesville | 4,159 | 114 | 2.7% | 14 | 66 |
| 32603 | Gainesville | 777 | 2 | 0.3% | 0 | 13 |
| 32605 | Gainesville | 9,598 | 140 | 1.5% | 32 | 270 |
| 32606 | Gainesville | 6,944 | 623 | 9.0% | 0 | 271 |
| 32607 | Gainesville | 7,753 | 315 | 4.1% | 159 | 337 |
| 32608 | Gainesville | 12,993 | 101 | 0.8% | 7 | 380 |
| 32609 | Gainesville | 4,967 | 450 | 9.1% | 10 | 203 |
| 32615 | Alachua | 6,225 | 141 | 2.3% | 9 | 115 |
| 32618 | Archer | 1,919 | 72 | 3.8% | 14 | 53 |
| 32622 | Brooker | 114 | 2 | 1.8% | 3 | 0 |
| 32631 | Earleton | 176 | 35 | 19.9% | 0 | 18 |
| 32640 | Hawthorne | 1,858 | 156 | 8.4% | 0 | 46 |
| 32641 | Gainesville | 4,421 | 113 | 2.6% | 0 | 66 |
| 32643 | High Springs | 3,729 | 42 | 1.1% | 17 | 40 |
| 32653 | Gainesville | 5,434 | 162 | 3.0% | 2 | 307 |
| 32666 | Melrose | 382 | 35 | 9.2% | 0 | 17 |
| 32667 | Micanopy | 906 | 108 | 11.9% | 9 | 46 |
| 32669 | Newberry | 6,959 | 2 | 0.0% | 0 | 75 |
| 32694 | Waldo | 797 | 79 | 9.9% | 0 | 28 |
| Other ZIPs | 85 | 3 | 0 | 2 |
*Approximate count of NFIP policy records in force as of September 8, 2026 (OpenFEMA), by the ZIP the policyholder reported, limited to Alachua County census tracts. Includes all building types.
By count, ZIP codes 32606 (623 parcels), 32609 (450) and 32607 (315) have the most residential parcels in high-risk zones, followed by 32653 (162) and 32640 (156). By share, several smaller ZIPs stand out: 32631 (Earleton, 19.9%, or 35 parcels), 32667 (Micanopy, 11.9%), 32694 (Waldo, 9.9%) and 32666 (Melrose, 9.2%). Among the larger ZIPs, 32609 (9.1%), 32606 (9.0%) and Hawthorne’s 32640 (8.4%) are well above the county’s 3.4%. FEMA letters cover a larger share of the high-risk parcels in 32653 (41 of 162) than in most ZIPs.
Flood zones by type of home
| Home type (DOR land-use code) | Residential parcels | High-risk zones (A, AE) | Share high-risk | Shaded X |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single family (01) | 65,578 | 1,627 | 2.5% | 234 |
| Mobile home (02) | 5,665 | 315 | 5.6% | 16 |
| Multifamily (2-9 units) (08) | 1,640 | 107 | 6.5% | 4 |
| Condominium unit (04) | 7,313 | 646 | 8.8% | 22 |
Mobile homes, small multifamily buildings and condo units have a higher share in high-risk zones than single-family homes. For condos, units in the same building or complex usually share one parcel outline in the state’s data, so they share one location and one zone in our count, and one complex near a creek can add dozens of units. Treat the condo figure as a rough guide.
Flood zones neighborhood by neighborhood
These are the same parcels and the same building-point rule, grouped into named areas. In Gainesville we used the City of Gainesville’s published neighborhood outlines. Outside the city, and in parts of Gainesville those outlines don’t cover, we grouped parcels by the subdivision names recorded by the Alachua County Property Appraiser, combining a development’s numbered units and phases under one name (every “Haile Plantation” unit counts as Haile Plantation, for example). We show only areas with 20 or more residential parcels. “High-risk” means FEMA Zones A and AE, including the floodway; shaded X is FEMA’s moderate-risk zone. An area’s figures describe the mapped zones across its parcels; they don’t tell you the zone of any single property. For a specific home, check FEMA’s map at its address.
Gainesville neighborhoods (among the 20 largest by residential parcels)
| Neighborhood | Residential parcels | Zone X (share) | Shaded X | High-risk (A, AE, floodway) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| University Park | 1,238 | 1,222 (98.7%) | 9 | 7 |
| Duval | 833 | 829 (99.5%) | 0 | 4 |
| Stephen Foster | 713 | 693 (97.2%) | 0 | 20 |
| Duckpond | 708 | 692 (97.7%) | 0 | 16 |
| Highland Court Manor | 698 | 607 (87.0%) | 0 | 91 |
| Hazel Heights | 698 | 690 (98.9%) | 0 | 8 |
| Northwood Pines | 628 | 627 (99.8%) | 0 | 1 |
| Ridgeview | 598 | 594 (99.3%) | 0 | 4 |
| Springtree | 592 | 586 (99.0%) | 0 | 6 |
| Turkey Creek Forest | 444 | 434 (97.7%) | 0 | 10 |
| Lincoln Estates | 441 | 439 (99.5%) | 0 | 2 |
| Northwood | 401 | 401 (100.0%) | 0 | 0 |
| Northwood Oaks | 366 | 361 (98.6%) | 2 | 3 |
| Fifth Ave | 364 | 364 (100.0%) | 0 | 0 |
| Sugarfoot | 351 | 192 (54.7%) | 116 | 43 |
| Mile Run | 313 | 313 (100.0%) | 0 | 0 |
| Millhopper Station | 305 | 294 (96.4%) | 0 | 11 |
| Capri | 291 | 291 (100.0%) | 0 | 0 |
Two neighborhoods among the 20 largest are left out of this table; their parcels are still counted in the Gainesville and county totals.
The City of Gainesville notes that its neighborhood outlines (GNV Neighborhoods, last edited Oct. 29, 2025) aren’t official boundaries and don’t cover every part of Gainesville. They take in 20,538 of the city’s 32,042 residential parcels and 442 of its 1,374 high-risk parcels. Most of the rest are condo units: 641 high-risk condo units sit outside the outlines, 488 of them in ZIP 32606.
Unincorporated Alachua County subdivisions (the 15 largest by residential parcels)
| Subdivision | Residential parcels | Zone X (share) | Shaded X | High-risk (A, AE, floodway) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Haile Plantation | 2,024 | 2,024 (100.0%) | 0 | 0 |
| Hammock Ridge | 398 | 398 (100.0%) | 0 | 0 |
| Greenleaf | 337 | 337 (100.0%) | 0 | 0 |
| Mentone | 336 | 336 (100.0%) | 0 | 0 |
| Longleaf | 306 | 306 (100.0%) | 0 | 0 |
| Broadmoor | 289 | 289 (100.0%) | 0 | 0 |
| Valwood | 252 | 252 (100.0%) | 0 | 0 |
| Tioga | 249 | 249 (100.0%) | 0 | 0 |
| Arredondo Estates | 231 | 225 (97.4%) | 0 | 6 |
| South Pointe | 224 | 224 (100.0%) | 0 | 0 |
| Willow Oak Plantation | 223 | 223 (100.0%) | 0 | 0 |
| Eagle Point | 196 | 196 (100.0%) | 0 | 0 |
| Deer Run | 189 | 176 (93.1%) | 0 | 13 |
| Belmont | 187 | 187 (100.0%) | 0 | 0 |
| Wellington Place | 183 | 183 (100.0%) | 0 | 0 |
About 61% of unincorporated residential parcels (21,949 of 35,931) are in a recorded subdivision. The rest are rural parcels without a subdivision name, and they hold about half of the unincorporated high-risk parcels (593 of 1,168).
Across the 252 named areas with at least 50 residential parcels, 69 have any residential parcels in a high-risk zone on FEMA’s map. In 6 of those, FEMA letters cover the high-risk parcels on the map; 5 of the 6 have four or fewer high-risk parcels each. A letter applies only to the building or lot it names. Where high-risk parcels cluster, they follow the creeks and lakes described below.
Area figures summarize FEMA’s effective flood map across each area’s residential parcels, using the same building-point rule as the rest of this page. They aren’t a flood zone determination for any property and may not reflect Letters of Map Amendment (LOMAs) FEMA has issued for individual buildings or lots. In a few areas, such as Ironwood (16 of 36), Highland Court Manor (15 of 91) and Northwood Oaks (2 of 3), FEMA letters cover a notable share of the high-risk parcels. Neighborhood outlines are from the City of Gainesville’s GNV Neighborhoods data (not official boundaries; last edited Oct. 29, 2025). Subdivision names are from the Alachua County Property Appraiser (last edited May 28, 2025).
Why the map reads the way it does
Alachua County’s high-risk zones follow its creeks, lakes and prairie basins. In Gainesville, the largest group of high-risk parcels sits along Hogtown Creek and its tributaries. FEMA’s map labels two of those streams as Hogtown Creek tributaries. Tributary 2 runs past Rustlewood and most of the high-risk condo units in ZIP 32606 (the county calls part of it Millhopper Creek), and Tributary 1, which the county calls Possum Creek, runs through Brywood, Appletree and Black Acres. Woodland Terrace, Raintree and Black Acres also sit near Hogtown Creek itself. Other clusters follow smaller streams that FEMA’s map doesn’t name along these stretches; we use the county’s names for them: Royal Park Creek along Golf Club Manor, Springstead Creek past Stephen Foster, Pine Forest Estates and part of Highland Court Manor, Little Hatchet Creek past Ironwood, and Sweetwater Branch through Duckpond. Most of the high-risk parcels near Tumblin Creek are condo units (75 of 80). Sugarfoot stands out for its shaded Zone X (116 parcels), alongside 43 parcels in an AE zone.
Outside the city, high-risk parcels gather at the edges of Lochloosa, Orange, Newnans, Santa Fe and Little Santa Fe lakes, along Cross Creek, along the Santa Fe River near Poe Springs and High Springs, and along Turkey Creek in the City of Alachua. Most of Paynes Prairie, south of Gainesville, is mapped as Zone A. Away from the water, most of the map reads Zone X: in our count, 13 of the 15 largest unincorporated subdivisions, Haile Plantation among them, had no residential parcels mapped in a high-risk zone. Zone X isn’t no risk, and nearly half of the county’s past NFIP claims came from outside high-risk zones.
What the flood zones mean
- Zone A: a high-risk area (1% annual chance of flooding, sometimes called the 100-year floodplain) where FEMA hasn’t set a base flood elevation. Most of Alachua County’s high-risk parcels, 1,873 of 2,695, are in Zone A. Without a base flood elevation on the map, an elevation certificate or a local floodplain office may be needed to show how a home sits relative to flood levels.
- Zone AE: a high-risk area with a base flood elevation set by a detailed study. Some AE areas are also marked as floodway, the channel and nearby land that carry floodwater; 33 residential parcels have their main building there.
- Zone AO: shallow flooding, usually sheet flow. It’s on Alachua’s map in a couple of small areas, but no residential parcel’s main building fell in it.
- Shaded Zone X: moderate risk (0.2% annual chance, sometimes called the 500-year floodplain).
- Zone X (unshaded): minimal flood hazard on FEMA’s map.
Alachua County has no coastal V or VE zones.
Is flood insurance required?
If a building, including a mobile home, is in a high-risk flood zone (an A or V zone) on FEMA’s effective flood map in a community that participates in the NFIP, and it secures a loan from a federally regulated or federally insured lender, or a loan made, insured or guaranteed by a federal agency, federal law requires flood insurance on that building for the term of the loan (42 U.S.C. 4012a). The required amount is at least the lesser of the loan balance or the most coverage the NFIP offers for that type of building, and private flood insurance that meets the federal standards can also satisfy the requirement. Every Alachua County community participates in the NFIP. The lender determines whether the building is in a high-risk zone, usually with a Standard Flood Hazard Determination Form. In shaded or unshaded Zone X, flood insurance isn’t federally required, but a lender can still require it.
FEMA estimates that about 18% of residential buildings in Alachua County’s high-risk zones (744 of about 4,050) had an NFIP policy as of August 2026, and about 2.5% of residential buildings county-wide (2,149 of about 84,600). FEMA counts buildings, not parcels, with its own method, so its totals differ from ours. County-wide, OpenFEMA lists about 2,300 NFIP policy records in force as of September 8, 2026.
Your lot’s zone and your house’s zone can differ
Many Alachua County parcels have a creek, pond or low area along one edge. On those lots, part of the land may be mapped high-risk while the house sits on higher ground. In our data:
- About 10,200 residential parcels (12.7%) have some high-risk zone somewhere on the lot.
- Only 2,695 (3.4%) have the main building in it.
That gap matters. Lenders look at where the building sits on FEMA’s effective map, not the whole lot. If your lot touches a flood zone, it’s worth finding out exactly where your house sits.
LOMAs and elevation certificates
- Letters of Map Amendment (LOMAs). A homeowner can ask FEMA to formally remove a building or lot from the high-risk area if it sits on naturally high ground. FEMA’s map data lists about 1,590 LOMA and LOMR-F cases for Alachua County communities since 1997 (a case can cover more than one lot or building); about 185 were denied. FEMA’s flood zone map layer doesn’t redraw zones for these letters, so a home with a LOMA can still look high-risk on the map. FEMA letters (LOMAs and LOMR-Fs) have removed the building or lot on more than 350 of the 2,695 parcels we count as high-risk (about 14%). Our counts follow FEMA’s map and still include them. A letter applies only to the building or lot it names. It doesn’t mean the home can’t flood, and a lender can still require flood insurance.
- Elevation certificates. An elevation certificate, completed by a licensed surveyor, records a building’s elevation compared with the flood level. It’s used for NFIP policies and for LOMA requests. If you’re buying, ask the seller whether one exists, or ask the floodplain management office for your city or the county.
Map dates and community discounts
Alachua County’s current flood maps took effect June 16, 2006, with later revisions on November 2, 2018 and September 24, 2021, plus smaller map revisions as recent as April 20, 2026 (FEMA NFHL data).
As of October 26, 2026, FEMA had no preliminary or pending flood maps for Alachua County. FEMA and the Suwannee River Water Management District are restudying the Santa Fe and Waccasassa watersheds, which include parts of the county; no preliminary maps have been released. You can check for updates on FEMA’s Map Service Center.
Two Alachua County communities take part in FEMA’s Community Rating System (CRS), a voluntary program that recognizes local floodplain management that goes beyond the NFIP’s minimum standards. In a CRS community, eligible NFIP policies receive a premium discount set by the community’s CRS class. According to FEMA’s Florida community status list (checked October 26, 2026):
- Unincorporated Alachua County: CRS Class 5, a 25% discount for eligible NFIP policies (class effective October 1, 2017).
- City of Gainesville: CRS Class 6, a 20% discount for eligible NFIP policies (class effective October 1, 2023).
Under FEMA’s current rating method, the discount generally applies to eligible NFIP policies throughout the community, inside or outside high-risk zones. FEMA doesn’t apply it in some cases, such as buildings with floodplain management violations or group and provisionally rated policies, and a policy already at a premium cap may get only part of it or none. The discount applies to NFIP policies only, not private flood insurance, and FEMA can change a community’s class. The other eight Alachua County cities and towns participate in the NFIP but aren’t in the CRS.
NFIP claims in Alachua County
FEMA’s OpenFEMA data, as of September 8, 2026, shows 268 NFIP claims from Alachua County communities since 1978. 125 of them (47%) came from buildings rated outside a high-risk zone (Zone X or the older C zone). The ZIP codes with the most claims were 32607 (45), 32606 (40) and 32605 (32). Claims are concentrated in a few years, led by 2017.
How we can help
These counts describe neighborhoods, not individual homes. If you’re buying a home, renewing, or just wondering about your own address, a licensed member of our team can look at FEMA’s flood map for the property with you, explain how lenders generally use flood zones, review your current flood coverage, and may be able to compare options from the insurance companies we represent. For a loan, the lender’s flood determination is the one that counts.
Frequently asked questions
What share of Alachua County homes are in a high-risk flood zone?
Excluding condo units, about 2.8% of residential parcels (2,049 of 72,883) have their main building in Zone A or AE on FEMA’s effective maps. For condo units it’s 8.8% (646 of 7,313). All together it’s 3.4% (2,695 of 80,196), and another 0.3% are in moderate-risk shaded Zone X. FEMA letters (LOMAs and LOMR-Fs) cover more than 350 of those high-risk parcels (about 14%); our figures follow FEMA’s map and still count them.
Which parts of Alachua County have the most residential parcels in high-risk flood zones?
By count, Gainesville ZIP codes 32606, 32609 and 32607. By share, the smaller Earleton (32631), Micanopy (32667), Waldo (32694) and Melrose (32666) ZIP codes, along with Gainesville’s 32609 and 32606 and Hawthorne’s 32640, are well above the county figure.
Which Gainesville neighborhoods are in a flood zone?
Using the city’s neighborhood outlines, the largest high-risk counts on FEMA’s map are in Highland Court Manor (91 residential parcels, 13.0%), Sugarfoot (43, 12.3%), Woodland Terrace (41, 21.7%) and Ironwood (36, 51.4%). FEMA letters cover 16 of Ironwood’s 36 and 15 of Highland Court Manor’s 91; leaving those out, Ironwood would be about 29%. Ten of the 18 neighborhoods in our table, including University Park, Duval and Northwood Pines, have under 1% of residential parcels in high-risk zones on FEMA’s map. Outside the outlines, the Pine Forest Estates and Golf Club Manor subdivisions and condo units along a Hogtown Creek tributary in 32606 also have high-risk zones. A neighborhood figure doesn’t tell you the zone of any single home.
Are the larger subdivisions outside Gainesville in flood zones?
Mostly not. Of the 15 largest unincorporated subdivisions, 13 have no residential parcels in a high-risk zone, including Haile Plantation (2,024 parcels). Where unincorporated subdivisions do have high-risk parcels, they tend to sit along creeks, such as a Hogtown Creek tributary northwest of Gainesville. Rural parcels without a subdivision name account for about half of the unincorporated high-risk parcels (593 of 1,168).
My lot shows a flood zone on the map, but my house doesn’t. Which one counts?
Lenders look at where the building sits on FEMA’s effective map, not the whole lot. About 12.7% of Alachua residential parcels have a high-risk zone somewhere on the lot, but only 3.4% have the main building in it. A surveyor’s elevation certificate, or a LOMA from FEMA, can document where your home sits.
Do I need flood insurance in Zone X?
It’s not federally required, but a lender may still ask for it. In Alachua County, nearly half of past NFIP claims came from buildings rated outside high-risk zones.
Is Zone A the same as Zone AE?
Both are high-risk. Zone AE has a base flood elevation set by FEMA; Zone A doesn’t. Most of Alachua County’s high-risk parcels are in Zone A.
How current are Alachua County’s flood maps?
The current maps took effect in 2006, with revisions in 2018 and 2021 and smaller changes through April 2026. As of October 26, 2026, FEMA had no preliminary or pending maps for the county; restudies of the Santa Fe and Waccasassa watersheds are underway. You can check FEMA’s Map Service Center for updates.
Talk with us
Want to know what your flood zone means for your home or mortgage? A licensed member of our team can review the flood map and your coverage with you and may be able to compare flood insurance options from the insurance companies we represent. Call (352) 371-7977 or contact us.
Share of parcels in mapped flood zones. This is not a flood zone determination for any property and not an insurance requirement.
General information, not legal, surveying or coverage advice. Counts are a summary of mapped areas from public data provided “as is” by FEMA, the Florida Department of Revenue, the U.S. Census Bureau, the City of Gainesville, the Alachua County Property Appraiser and Alachua County, and may not reflect LOMAs, recent construction or map changes after the data dates shown. Coverage depends on the policy issued, its terms and underwriting. McGriff-Williams Insurance is an independent insurance agency in Gainesville, licensed in Florida and in business since 1983. We are not affiliated with FEMA, the National Flood Insurance Program or any government agency, and this page is not endorsed by them.
How the numbers were built
We started with the parcels coded residential (01, 02, 04, 08) in the Florida Department of Revenue’s 2026 statewide parcel data for Alachua County: 88,824 map records, which combine into 80,196 parcels once parcels stored as several pieces are merged. Each parcel was assigned the FEMA flood zone at the center of its largest building outline in the USA Structures data from FEMA and Oak Ridge National Laboratory (57,276 parcels) or, if no outline was found inside the parcel, at a point inside the parcel (22,920 parcels, or 29%, mostly single-family homes). Parcels checked at a point inside the parcel came out high-risk more often (4.2%) than parcels checked at a building (3.0%). Where zones overlap, the higher-risk zone was used. Cities come from the Census Bureau’s 2026 city boundaries; ZIP codes from the parcel’s site ZIP. Owner names and addresses were not used or shown. Using a point inside every parcel instead of the building would put 3,435 parcels (4.3%) in high-risk zones; counting any overlap with the lot would put 10,218 (12.7%). FEMA’s LOMA and LOMR-F cases were counted by NFIP community number (1,593 cases). Removal letters were matched to high-risk parcels by the street address in each FEMA determination or, for single-lot letters without an address, by the letter’s location inside the parcel: 373 of 2,695 (369 by address, 4 by location). Another 21 parcels match a letter only by lot list and aren’t counted in these figures.
Sources
- FEMA National Flood Hazard Layer, Alachua County (12001C) county data package dated Sept. 3, 2026, via FEMA Map Service Center (downloaded Oct. 26, 2026): https://msc.fema.gov/portal/advanceSearch
- FEMA National Flood Hazard Layer map service (flood hazard zones, layer 28; LOMAs, layer 34): https://hazards.fema.gov/arcgis/rest/services/public/NFHL/MapServer
- Florida Department of Revenue, statewide cadastral (parcel) data, 2026 roll: https://services9.arcgis.com/Gh9awoU677aKree0/ArcGIS/rest/services/Florida_Statewide_Cadastral/FeatureServer
- Florida Department of Revenue, property data portal: https://floridarevenue.com/property/Pages/DataPortal_RequestAssessmentRollGISData.aspx
- USA Structures, FEMA and Oak Ridge National Laboratory (data service queried Oct. 26, 2026): https://services2.arcgis.com/FiaPA4ga0iQKduv3/arcgis/rest/services/USA_Structures_View/FeatureServer/0
- U.S. Census Bureau, TIGERweb incorporated places: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer
- OpenFEMA, NFIP Redacted Policies (v3) and NFIP Redacted Claims (v3), data as of Sept. 8, 2026: https://www.fema.gov/api/open/v3/NfipPolicies and https://www.fema.gov/api/open/v3/NfipClaims
- OpenFEMA, NFIP Residential Penetration Rates (as of Aug. 3, 2026) and NFIP Community Status Book (refreshed Aug. 25, 2026): https://www.fema.gov/about/openfema/data-sets (dataset index)
- OpenFEMA dataset pages: FIMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3 and FIMA NFIP Redacted Policies v3 (https://www.fema.gov/about/openfema/data-sets)
- This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency’s website(s). (OpenFEMA data retrieved October 26, 2026.)
- Suwannee River Water Management District, flood map project status (Santa Fe and Waccasassa watershed studies): https://www.srwmdfloodmaps.com/project-progress.htm
- FEMA Community Information System, Florida community status and CRS list (fetched Oct. 26, 2026): https://www.fema.gov/cis/FL.csv
- FEMA, Community Rating System: https://www.fema.gov/floodplain-management/community-rating-system
- FEMA, Community Rating System Discount FAQ (September 2024): https://www.fema.gov/crs-discount-faq
- 42 U.S.C. 4012a, flood insurance purchase requirements: https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/42/4012a
- FEMA, Standard Flood Hazard Determination Form: https://www.fema.gov/flood-insurance/find-form/underwriting
- City of Gainesville, GNV Neighborhoods (neighborhood outlines; the city notes they are not official boundaries; data last edited Oct. 29, 2025; downloaded Oct. 26, 2026): https://services2.arcgis.com/Zzhtlau4ccHkQgTu/ArcGIS/rest/services/GNV_Neighborhoods/FeatureServer/0
- Alachua County Property Appraiser subdivisions, via Alachua County GIS (data last edited May 28, 2025; downloaded Oct. 26, 2026): https://maps.alachuacounty.us/server/rest/services/Hosted/Subdivisions/FeatureServer/0
- Alachua County GIS, creek names (used to match FEMA’s tributary labels to local creek names; downloaded Oct. 26, 2026): https://maps.alachuacounty.us/server/rest/services/HYDRO_CREEKS_ALACHUA_COUNTY/FeatureServer/0
