CoreLogic® Flood Services

Wednesday, 30 July 2008 13:24 - National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929 (NGVD ‘29)

Wed, 30 Jul 2008 19:24:31 +0100

National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929 (NGVD ‘29) - National standard reference datum for elevations, formerly referred to as Mean Sea Level (MSL) of 1929. Though the National Geodetic Survey has since established a more accurate vertical datum (NAVD '88), the prevalence of long-established elevation benchmarks that employ NGVD '29 has assured that NGVD '29 is still used in many locations around the country. NGVD ‘29 is used as the reference datum on most older FIRMs, and some recent FIRMs.

Wednesday, 30 July 2008 13:22 - National Flood Insurance Reform Act of 1994 (NFIRA)

Wed, 30 Jul 2008 19:22:34 +0100

National Flood Insurance Reform Act of 1994 (NFIRA) - This act resulted in major changes to the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). The law amended the Flood Disaster Protection Act of 1973, providing tools to make the NFIP more effective in achieving its goals of reducing the risk of flood damage to properties and reducing Federal expenditures for uninsured properties that are damaged by floods.

Monday, 28 July 2008 13:36 - Lowest Adjacent Grade (LAG)

Mon, 28 Jul 2008 19:36:06 +0100

Lowest Adjacent Grade (LAG) - The lowest measure of grade elevation immediately next to a building. The LAG is commonly found on an Elevation Certificate, and it is used by FEMA to determine if a building is eligible for a LOMC.

Wednesday, 09 July 2008 09:48 - Conditional Letter of Map Revision Based on Fill (CLOMR-F)

Wed, 09 Jul 2008 15:48:08 +0100

Conditional Letter of Map Revision Based on Fill (CLOMR-F) - Letter issued by FEMA based on its review of a proposal to build improvements on a site that has been (or will be) graded and filled in order to raise the level of the land above the BFE. A CLOMR-F indicates the map will be revised if the fill and construction are implemented as proposed. CLOMR-Fs do not affect the mandatory purchase of flood insurance requirement for the proposed construction site; to do so, final as-built construction data must be provided to FEMA confirming that the fill and construction were implemented as proposed. FEMA will then issue a final LOMR-F for the site, which can affect the mandatory purchase requirement.

Wednesday, 09 July 2008 09:40 - Conditional Letter of Map Amendment (CLOMA)

Wed, 09 Jul 2008 15:40:15 +0100

Conditional Letter of Map Amendment (CLOMA) - Letter issued by FEMA based on its review of proposed construction that indicates the map will be amended if the improvement(s) is/are built as proposed. CLOMAs do not affect the mandatory purchase of flood insurance requirement for the proposed construction site; to do so, final as-built construction data must be provided to FEMA confirming that the improvement(s) were built as proposed. FEMA will then issue a final LOMA for the site, which can affect the mandatory purchase requirement.

Wednesday, 09 July 2008 09:25 - Community Reinvestment Act (CRA)

Wed, 09 Jul 2008 15:25:26 +0100

Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) - A United States federal law enacted in 1977 that requires banks and thrifts to offer credit throughout their entire market area, including home ownership opportunities to underserved populations and commercial loans to small businesses. Among other provisions, the CRA requires these lending institutions to record census tract data for its loans, so they may reasonably know which neighborhoods are underserved and evaluate their loan portfolios accordingly. To help lenders comply with the Community Reinvestment Act, census tract data is available with any of the CoreLogic Flood Services flood determination products.

Wednesday, 09 July 2008 08:13 - Coastal Barrier Resources System (CBRS)

Wed, 09 Jul 2008 14:13:39 +0100

Coastal Barrier Resources System (CBRS) - A federally defined area established by the Coastal Barrier Resources Act of 1982, comprised of undeveloped coastal barriers along the Atlantic, Gulf, and Great Lakes coasts and administered primarily by the U.S. Department of Fish and Wildlife. The CBRS currently includes 585 defined areas, which comprise nearly 1.3 million acres of land and associated aquatic habitat. In the CBRS, land can be developed, but federal taxpayers do not underwrite the investments. NFIP flood insurance is unavailable for properties in the CBRS, as well as participation in any other federal program, subsidy, or security, if any structure acting as security for the loan is built after the date of the Act designating the CBRS area affecting the structure. CBRS areas are shown on appropriate FIRM panels, and if a structure acting as security for a loan is in a CBRS area, it should be noted on the SFHDF and the borrower should be notified of the CBRS status and any applicable restrictions.

Thursday, 05 June 2008 13:31 - Principal

Thu, 05 Jun 2008 19:31:51 +0100

Principal - Total amount loaned, shown as the face value of the mortgage note.

Thursday, 05 June 2008 13:30 - Participating Community

Thu, 05 Jun 2008 19:30:25 +0100

Participating Community - A community for which the FIA Administrator has authorized the sale of flood insurance under the NFIP. Under the terms of their agreement with the NFIP, participating communities must adopt and enforce comprehensive floodplain management ordinances to a minimum level proscribed by the NFIP in order to reduce future flood risks to new and existing construction in Special Flood Hazard Areas.

Thursday, 05 June 2008 13:28 - National Lenders Insurance Council (NLIC)

Thu, 05 Jun 2008 19:28:25 +0100

National Lenders Insurance Council (NLIC) - A non-profit trade association whose mission is to reduce insurable losses to assets for property owners through government/industry partnerships, education, and dialogue. (Visit NLIC website)

Thursday, 05 June 2008 13:27 - National Flood Insurance Act of 1968

Thu, 05 Jun 2008 19:27:01 +0100

National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 - This act created the National Flood Insurance Program, providing affordable flood insurance on a voluntary basis to willing purchasers. NFIA is one of three Acts under which the NFIP is currently administered, along with the Flood Disaster Protection Act of 1973 and the National Flood Insurance Reform Act of 1994.

Thursday, 05 June 2008 13:25 - National Credit Union Administration (NCUA)

Thu, 05 Jun 2008 19:25:31 +0100

National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) - A federal agency that charters and supervises federal credit unions and insures savings in federal and most state-chartered credit unions. Established by the FCUA. (Visit NCUA website)

Thursday, 05 June 2008 13:22 - Map Index

Thu, 05 Jun 2008 19:22:12 +0100

Map Index - A map showing the relative location of all the FIRM or FHBM panels in a given community, county, or parish. The map index includes the map number (or panel number) and relative location of each panel, as well as an effective date. In those communities, counties, or parishes where all the panels are revised at once, the effective date for the map index is the effective date for the panels in that area. However, in certain communities only some areas (and thus only some panels) are revised at a time, and in these areas different panels may have different effective dates. In these areas, the effective date of the map index is the effective date only for the most recent map panels; older panels that are still current retain their effective date.

Thursday, 05 June 2008 13:20 - Life-of-Loan Tracking

Thu, 05 Jun 2008 19:20:38 +0100

Life-of-Loan Tracking - A service that assures up-to-date flood determination data over the life of a mortgage. If a flood determination is purchased with life-of-loan tracking, then once the initial determination is issued, the flood zone determination provider will monitor for any flood map revisions-including Letters of Map Amendment or Letters of Map Revision-that might change the structure's insurance requirements. Besides changes in flood zone status, life-of-loan tracking should also monitor for any changes in community, community participation status, or CRBS/OPA status since any changes in these areas may also affect the mandatory purchase of flood insurance requirement for a property.

Thursday, 05 June 2008 13:19 - Letter of Map Revision Based on Fill (LOMR-F)

Thu, 05 Jun 2008 19:19:22 +0100

Letter of Map Revision Based on Fill (LOMR-F) - Letter issued by FEMA based on its review of as-built construction data regarding improvements on a site that has been graded and filled in order to raise the level of the land above the BFE. A LOMR-F indicates that a portion of a current effective FEMA flood map has been revised to reflect that increase in elevation by fill. A LOMR-F can only be issued by FEMA. On or after the effective date of the letter, the LOMR-F becomes the regulatory document with which lenders must determine whether the mandatory purchase of flood insurance requirement applies to a building affected by the LOMR-F. Once a LOMR-F goes into effect, it remains effective until rescinded or superseded by a subsequent FEMA map change or revision.

Thursday, 05 June 2008 13:18 - Letter of Determination Review (LODR)

Thu, 05 Jun 2008 19:18:13 +0100

Letter of Determination Review (LODR) - Letter issued by FEMA based on its review of property and structure location data and the current FEMA flood map for the property, to issue an official determination as to whether the structure is in or out of the SFHA on the flood map.

Thursday, 05 June 2008 13:16 - Improved Property

Thu, 05 Jun 2008 19:16:24 +0100

Improved Property - A parcel of land with an improvement located on it. NFIP flood insurance is only available for improved properties, and can only cover the insurable building and/or contents for which the policy is written. Flood damage to actual land - such as a loss of acreage due to erosion that is caused by a flood event - is not covered under the NFIP.

Thursday, 05 June 2008 13:15 - Hydraulics

Thu, 05 Jun 2008 19:15:24 +0100

Hydraulics - A topic of science and engineering dealing with the mechanical properties of liquids. Hydraulic topics range through most science and engineering disciplines, and cover concepts such as pipe flow, dam design, fluid control circuitry, pumps, turbines, hydropower, computational fluid dynamics, flow measurement, river channel behavior and erosion.

Thursday, 05 June 2008 13:14 - Hurricane Season

Thu, 05 Jun 2008 19:14:26 +0100

Hurricane Season - An annual period when hurricanes usually form. Worldwide, tropical storm activity peaks in late summer, when the difference between air temperatures and sea surface temperatures is the greatest. Each particular ocean basin has its own seasonal patterns. In North America most hurricanes originate as disorganized storms that drift from the tropical coastal regions of Africa to the open Northern Atlantic Ocean, where they may begin to exhibit tropical storm development. The Northern Atlantic has a distinct hurricane season that occurs from June 1 to November 30, sharply peaking from late August through September. The statistical peak of the Northern Atlantic hurricane season is September 10.

Thursday, 05 June 2008 13:12 - Grandfathering

Thu, 05 Jun 2008 19:12:32 +0100

Grandfathering - To recognize policyholders who have built in compliance with the FIRM or remained loyal customers of the NFIP by maintaining continuous coverage, FEMA allows for optional "Grandfathering" of the NFIP flood insurance rate. When a new FIRM goes into effect and updates the flood zone and/or BFE for a building, the grandfathered rate can be based upon a prior flood zone and/or BFE as shown on a historical FIRM, if:

An NFIP policy was obtained prior to the effective date of a current FIRM, in which case the policyholder is eligible to maintain the prior flood zone and/or BFE as shown on the historical FIRM as long as continuous coverage has been maintained; or
Even when continuous coverage has not been maintained, if the building was constructed in compliance with the FIRM in effect at the time of construction and has not since been substantially improved, the owner is eligible to obtain a policy using the flood zone and/or BFE from that FIRM provided that documented proof that the property meets the qualifying conditions is submitted to the insurance company.