Considering flood protection is vital to secure your incredibly profitable real estate investments – primarily if you work as a developer or run your own realtor firm.
However, there are certain risk factors that you must consider when investing in new builds or properties. For example, despite a worldwide push towards sustainability in recent years, the environment is in an incredibly tumultuous position, particularly concerning events such as flooding. While this does not mean that floods occur more frequently, they are more severe – and can often cause thousands of dollars in damages.
As a result, you must be well-versed in how you can protect your properties from flooding. Here are some top tips that you might want to take into consideration.
Site selection is key
Finding suitable land to build upon is one of the most important things to consider during site selection. After all, empty land doesn’t always mean that the site is right for you – especially when it comes to residential properties. To begin with, you need to ensure there is a demand for residential properties in that area, and you will need flood protection.
However, you should also do some research ahead of time to figure out what risk is associated with building in the area – for example, is this land prone to flooding?
Add flood protection to your risk assessment
Carrying out a risk assessment is likely already on your to-do list – especially as workplace safety is so important. However, your risk assessment can also be a helpful tool for those looking to build in a specific area and can help you determine whether or not it is worth the risk. If you aren’t sure where to start, you may find this sample flood risk assessment to be a useful starting point.
Invest in useful equipment
If you find that the area you are building upon is within the flood plain – this doesn’t mean that development is out of the question, but you need to take specific steps to mitigate this, including flood protection. For example, suppose your urban development is close to a dam. In that case, you may want to invest in dam monitoring software to help you assess the situation closely and put the appropriate safety plans in place.
Education
While you cannot eliminate the floods themselves, you can ensure that residents know how to tackle them when the situation does arise. For example, you may want to provide them with guidance on the various ways in which they can protect the home from water damage. This could include carrying out regular property inspections and staying on top of any necessary home maintenance. While flood protection is the individual homeowner’s responsibility, sharing this knowledge is beneficial.
Build properties that are flood-resistant
As a developer, you are also in a position wherein you can build properties resistant to certain forms of extreme weather, including floods. For example, you could use certain materials for the property’s foundation that can withstand flooding.
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