Photo: Alexf · Public domainOn FEMA’s figures, Bal Harbour faces about as much hazard damage per building as the typical U.S. town, mostly from hurricanes
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Bal Harbour gets a B for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 55% of U.S. towns, #25 of 638 in Florida. Most of that expected damage is hurricanes (76%), then river and rain flooding (16%). Flood insurance has paid 30 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 Bal Harbour faces
Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.
Hurricanes
River and rain flooding
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 Bal Harbour’s grade
Hurricanes are 76% of the building damage FEMA expects in Bal Harbour, and Bal Harbour’s rate of hurricanes damage is in the top 7% of U.S. census tracts. Coastal flooding adds 4%, at a rate in the top 4% of U.S. census tracts.
B #25 of 638 in Florida; lower expected damage per building than 55% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Bal Harbour’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
The typical Florida town has higher expected damage than 79% of U.S. towns; within the state, Bal Harbour has less expected damage per building than 96% of Florida towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $959K a year in losses across Bal Harbour: $806K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Bal Harbour flood? Sometimes: 30 flood claims since 1980
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Bal Harbour, from FEMA’s records: 8.0 per 1,000 homes, more than 70% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- The June South Florida Flooding7 claims · $312K
- Hurricane Irma6 claims · $1.0M
- Hurricane Irene2 claims · $39K
Bal Harbour isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Dade County.4 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Bal Harbour
Disasters that paid out in Bal Harbour itself (aid to households or repair grants to the Village of Bal Harbour), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2017Hurricane Irma171 households applied for aid$65K aid approved$404K to the Village of Bal Harbour for repairs6 flood claims paid for it, $1.0M
- 2005Hurricane Wilma25 households applied for aid$9K aid approved$183K to the Village of Bal Harbour for repairs
- 2005Hurricane Katrina$8K to the Village of Bal Harbour for repairs
- 2004Hurricane Frances1 households applied for aid$12K to the Village of Bal Harbour for repairs
Its 2 counties have had 32 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often hurricanes and tropical storms, then severe storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Also 2 FEMA wildfire suppression grants (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in its 2 counties, 1999–2001.
Old photos of Bal Harbour after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Bal Harbour archive →Bal Harbour and its neighbors
Bal Harbour has the lowest expected damage per building of the 2 graded towns here. Tap a town to see its hazards.
| Town | Hazard risk | Mostly (buildings) | Flood claims |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bal Harbour | Bless damage than 55% | hurricanes | 30 |
| Surfside | B−more damage than 52% | hurricanes | 85 |
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 Bal Harbour faces
A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.
- The season runs June through November and peaks from mid-August to mid-October.
- Bring in porch furniture and anything the wind can throw.
- Fill the gas tank and charge phones before the storm arrives.
- 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.
- 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 Bal Harbour
Is Bal Harbour at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Bal Harbour has lower expected damage per building than 55% of U.S. towns: B for hazard risk, #25 of 638 in Florida. Most of the expected damage is hurricanes (76%) and river and rain flooding (16%). The figures are for the one census tract the town shares with its neighbors. This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.
Does Bal Harbour flood?
Flood insurance has paid 30 claims in Bal Harbour since 1980, $1.6M in all, or 8.0 per 1,000 homes, more than 70% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from June South Florida Flooding (7).
Is Bal Harbour 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 Dade County, 74% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 33.4% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Bal Harbour?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Bal Harbour’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.
What was the biggest storm in Bal Harbour?
By FEMA money that reached Bal Harbour, Hurricane Irma (2017): 171 households applied for aid, $65K approved, and $404K to the Village of Bal Harbour for repairs. By flood claims, June South Florida Flooding: 7 paid, $312K.
Is Bal Harbour at risk from hurricanes?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (76%), and Bal Harbour’s rate for it is in the top 7% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Bal Harbour.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Bal Harbour’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.