On FEMA’s figures, Mountain Home faces less hazard damage per building than 67% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Mountain Home gets a B+ for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 67% of U.S. towns, #69 of 290 in North Carolina. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (79%). Flood insurance has paid 4 claims here since 2017.
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 Mountain Home 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
Tornadoes
Earthquakes
Ice storms
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 Mountain Home’s grade
River and rain flooding is 79% of the building damage FEMA expects in Mountain Home, and Mountain Home’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is higher than 51% of U.S. census tracts. Ice storms add 5%, at a rate in the top 5% of U.S. census tracts.
B+ #69 of 290 in North Carolina; lower expected damage per building than 67% of U.S. towns (21,298).
All of Mountain Home’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.
The typical North Carolina town has lower expected damage than 51% of U.S. towns; within the state, Mountain Home has less expected damage per building than 76% of North Carolina towns.
In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.2M a year in losses across Mountain Home: $671K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.
Does Mountain Home flood? Rarely: 4 flood claims since 2017
Every paid claim on a federal flood insurance policy in Mountain Home, from FEMA’s records: 2.6 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 56% of the 13,809 U.S. towns with a flood insurance record.
- Hurricane Helene3 claims · $299K
Mountain Home isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.
Insurance rates: Henderson County.3 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Mountain Home
Disasters that paid out in Mountain Home itself (aid to households or repair grants to Mountain Home), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.
- 2024Tropical Storm Helene7 households applied for aid$12K aid approved3 flood claims paid for it, $299K
- 2004Hurricane Ivan13 households applied for aid$19K aid approved
- 2004Tropical Storm Frances3 households applied for aid$7K aid approved
Henderson County has had 13 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often hurricanes and tropical storms, then winter storms. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.
Also 1 FEMA wildfire suppression grant (Fire Management Assistance, not a disaster declaration) for fires in Henderson County, 2016–2016.
Old photos of Mountain Home after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.
Add to the Mountain Home archive →Mountain Home and its neighbors
Mountain Home 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Balfour | A−less damage than 82% | river and rain flooding | 12 |
| Mountain Home | B+less damage than 67% | river and rain flooding | 4 |
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 Mountain Home 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.
- Pick your spot now: the lowest floor, an inside room, no windows.
- A watch means be ready; a warning means take cover now.
- Keep shoes and a flashlight by the bed.
- Drop, cover and hold on.
- Strap tall furniture and the water heater to the wall.
- Know how to shut off the gas.
- Ice brings down trees and lines: plan for days without power.
- Run a generator outside, far from doors and windows.
- Keep sand or salt by the door.
- 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 Mountain Home
Is Mountain Home at risk for natural disasters?
On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Mountain Home has lower expected damage per building than 67% of U.S. towns: B+ for hazard risk, #69 of 290 in North Carolina. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (79%) and tornadoes (6%). 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 Mountain Home flood?
Flood insurance has paid 4 claims in Mountain Home since 2017, $303K in all, or 2.6 per 1,000 homes, fewer than 56% of U.S. towns with a flood insurance record. The most claims came from Hurricane Helene (3).
Is Mountain Home 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 Henderson County, 44% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 1.0% of all homes do.
How much is flood insurance in Mountain Home?
FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Mountain Home’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 Mountain Home?
By FEMA money that reached Mountain Home, Hurricane Ivan (2004): 13 households applied for aid, $19K approved. By flood claims, Hurricane Helene: 3 paid, $299K.
Is Mountain Home at risk from river and rain flooding?
It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (79%), and Mountain Home’s rate for it is higher than 51% of U.S. census tracts.
Storm stories
Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Mountain Home.
Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Mountain Home’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.