Just a few weeks after the hurricane HeleneFlorida is preparing to absorb the damage Miltonwhich could be the most devastating in a hundred years, and some insurance companies could pay a high price, according to a real estate broker.
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According to Daniel Tremblay, a real estate broker in Tampa Bay, beachfront condos are very expensive to insure, given the high risk of flooding in a region regularly hit by hurricanes.
“For me, it costs me about $650 per year, because I’m in a condo, because the association takes care of the exterior of the condo (…), because I’m inside the land 30 minutes away, but if I had the same condo near the water, it would be around $1200-1500, but if it was a house, it would be $6000 or $7000 per year. But there, after the storm, (…) there are (insurance) companies which will go bankrupt. There are companies that will not be able to pay,” explained Mr. Tremblay, in an interview with TVA News.
Mr. Tremblay, who has been a real estate broker for 14 years, decided not to evacuate the premises.
“My decision was an informed decision, which means that when you have lived here for a while, you are used to hurricanes. I know it’s big, it’s gigantic, it’s scary, we’re not used to seeing that in Quebec, but when we’ve lived here for 15-20 years, we’ve seen others,” said – he said.
However, he is aware of the possible seriousness of this hurricane. “On the other hand, this one is historic, it hits us hard. We must not think that there is a hurricane like Milton which hits Tampa every year. This is the first time in 100 years.”
Mr. Tremblay, who is in evacuation zone E, was not required to leave his home.
“I am in evacuation zone E. (…) Anyone who decides to stay in zone A, it is not the best decision we can make. It’s a bit like playing with fire,” confided the real estate broker.
Even if you live far from the coast, the expected amounts of precipitation could increase the risk of flooding. However, this parameter does not really worry Mr. Tremblay.
“We’re used to it. It’s like when there’s a big 40 cm snowstorm coming to Quebec. We are prepared. The trucks are there, except that there is a bit of a shortage of staff becauseHelene took a lot of people,” continued Mr. Tremblay, who concedes, however, that the effects will be very different from those of a simple snowstorm.
