Project Number 3

by

Greg Biniukow

  

- The purpose of this project was to determine how the town of Bound Brook is affected financially by the frequent flooding in the floodplain.

 

 

This is the lovely town of Bound Brook. There are 2 major waterways surrounding the town, the Raritan River in the south and the Middle Brook in the west.

 

 

This is the not-so-lovely town of Bound Brook, following Hurricane Floyd. River levels rose over 40 feet. Most of the flooding came from the Raritan River, but a small amount of flooding also came from the Middle Brook.

 

 

This is the area that was flooded in Bound Brook. It shows the percentages of owners that reside in their own homes. For most of the Flood Zone, the homeowners don't live in their own homes. Lets compare that to the area in Bound Brook that is immune to floods.

 

 

Notice how a larger amount of owners in the "safe zone" live in their own homes. The northernmost portion of this zone blatantly displays that.

 

This chart shows how for every 1 homeowner in the Flood Zone, there is are 2 tenants, while in the Safe Zone, for every 2 homeowners, there is only 1 tenant. What this means is that the people that own homes in the Flood Zone don't want to bother living in an area where their belongings and possessions might get washed away every time there is a large storm. So instead, they just rent out the home and let tenants pay for the house while the owner lives in a safer place.

 

 

The history of flooding has created an obvious rift in the property values of Bound Brook as well.

 

 

This is the Flood Zone of Bound Brook again. None of the properties in this area are valued above $200,000 and the properties right next to the Raritan River aren't above $124,600.

 

 

Notice the value difference in the safe zone in Bound Brook. The most expensive property in this region is $400,000. There are very few properties under $124,601 in this zone.

 

This chart and graph show how a home in the Safe Zone will cost $194,000 on average but a home in the Flood Zone will cost only $137,558. These statistics are understandable. One of the most important aspects in property assessment is Location!!! Houses in the Safe Zone will cost more money since they sit in an area that is safe from the flood. If you are a parent of a family of 4, and you want to live in a safe area, consequently, you will have to pay more money to buy that safe home.

 

 

Now, even though property values in the Safe Zone are more expensive than property values in the Flood Zone, tenants in the Flood Zone have to pay almost $100 more a month than tenants in the Safe Zone. This happens even though the landlord of the home has to pay less for his home than a landlord in the Safe Zone. And he pays less taxes.

The reason why tenants pay more rent in the Flood Zone is because...

Flood Insurance!

Landlords and owners have to pay more money in insurance that homes in the Safe Zone. And how do the landlords get the money to pay for the insurance? Make the tenants pay more in rent.

So, the homes in the Flood Zone have:

-Lower Property Values

-Fewer Occupied Owners

-Higher Rent Prices

Only because they live in a major flood plain in Bound Brook.