Photo: Alessandro Abate from Miami Springs, USA · CC BY-SA 2.0FEMA expects more hazard damage per building in Verde Village than in 83% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Verde Village gets a C− for hazard risk: higher expected damage per building than 83% of U.S. towns, #83 of 140 in Arizona. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (86%). Flood insurance has paid 35 claims here since 1980.
Graded on FEMA’s expected yearly building damage per dollar of building value (NRI v1.20, December 2025), weighted by where residents live; flood claims are shown, not graded. How hazard risk is graded
What Verde Village faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
River and rain flooding
Wildfire
Shares are of FEMA’s expected building damage, the measure the grade uses; ranks compare each hazard’s building-damage rate with all 85,154 U.S. census tracts. In FEMA’s terms, river and rain flooding is FEMA’s “Inland Flooding” (rivers and streams overflowing their banks, or rain overwhelming drainage). FEMA defines coastal flooding as high or rising tides and storm surge, so surge damage is counted there. Drought isn’t listed: FEMA counts its losses in crops only.
What’s behind Verde Village’s grade
River and rain flooding is 86% of the building damage FEMA expects in Verde Village, and Verde Village’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 90% of U.S. census tracts. Wildfire adds 10%, at a rate in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts.
C− #83 of 140 in Arizona; higher expected damage per building than 83% of U.S. towns (21,298).
Verde Village’s residents live in 7 census tracts; FEMA’s figures are combined by where they live.
The typical Arizona town has higher expected damage than 78% of U.S. towns; within the state, Verde Village has more expected damage per building than 59% of Arizona towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $4.9M a year in losses across Verde Village: $3.7M to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Verde Village flood? Sometimes: 35 flood claims since 1980
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Verde Village, from FEMA’s records: 6.7 per 1,000 homes, more than 66% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Verde Village isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Yavapai County.The storms Verde Village remembers
None of the 10 disasters declared for Yavapai County shows FEMA aid or repair money reaching Verde Village itself in FEMA’s records, so these are its biggest flood-claim years.
- 199314 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Storms, Tornadoes and Flooding, declared for Yavapai County
- 20057 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Storms and Flooding, declared for Yavapai County
- 20044 flood claims paidThe year of Severe Storms and Flooding, declared for Yavapai County
Yavapai County has had 10 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then floods. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Also 13 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Yavapai County, 2002–2022.
Old photos of Verde Village after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Verde Village archive →Verde Village and its neighbors
Verde Village is 2nd of the 2 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cottonwood | Cmore damage than 71% | river and rain flooding | 5 |
| Verde Village | C−more damage than 83% | river and rain flooding | 35 |
Hazard risk = FEMA’s expected yearly building damage per dollar of building value, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade; the map is shaded by fifths of the same scale. Flood claims = paid federal flood insurance claims on record.
Get ready for what Verde Village faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- Turn around at flooded roads: a foot of moving water can carry off a car.
- Flood insurance usually takes 30 days to start, so buy it before the forecast.
- Keep papers and medicines up high, in a grab-and-go bag.
- Clear dead leaves and brush within 5 feet of the house.
- Sign up for local alerts and know two ways out.
- Keep N95 masks for smoky days.
- Look up the address on FEMA’s flood map.
- Ask the seller or landlord whether it has ever flooded, and what flood insurance costs there.
- Get a flood insurance quote early: policies usually start 30 days after you buy.
Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.
Questions about natural hazards in Verde Village
Is Verde Village at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Verde Village has higher expected damage per building than 83% of U.S. towns: C− for hazard risk, #83 of 140 in Arizona. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (86%) and wildfire (10%). This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Verde Village flood?
Flood insurance has paid 35 claims in Verde Village since 1980, $694K in all, or 6.7 per 1,000 homes, more than 66% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
Is Verde Village in a flood zone?
Flood zones are drawn street by street, so the answer depends on the address: look it up on FEMA’s flood map. In Yavapai County, 24% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.2% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Verde Village?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Verde Village’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
Is Verde Village at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (86%), and Verde Village’s rate for it is higher than 90% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Verde Village.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Verde Village’s residents lived in the 2020 census; OpenFEMA: NFIP redacted claims, multiple-loss properties, community status book and residential penetration rates, housing assistance (owners and renters), public assistance funded projects, hazard mitigation properties and disaster declarations. Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. Preparedness tips: Ready.gov. FEMA’s model is an average of expected damage, not a forecast. How hazard risk is graded.