If one thing can distract coastal vacation-home owners from the horrific "oil spew" in the Gulf these days, it is hurricane season. It began June 1 and runs through November 30. And, of course, in this year of disasters, forecasters are predicting a particularly active season. 

That's undoubtedly why The Wall Street Journal did a story on June 19, 2010, titled "As Hurricane Season Begins, Insurance Gets Harder to Find." 

Among other things, we learn that:

• "Only one in five homes in a high-risk flood zone carries flood insurance—and new coverage is getting increasingly difficult to find. Congress hasn't yet extended the National Flood Insurance Program, which is administered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency and provides the vast majority of flood policies in the U.S., after it expired on June 1.... Congress's failure to extend the flood insurance program is delaying an estimated 1,200 real-estate closings a day [emphasis added] across the U.S., according to the National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies. Federal law requires homes with federally backed mortgages in flood-hazard areas to have flood insurance."
  
• "The average flood-insurance premium is about $570 a year for a $217,000 policy, according to FEMA, but it rises to $2,000 for $187,500 of coverage in areas of high storm-surge risk. (For more information, go to www.floodsmart.gov.)" NFIP's limit is $250,000, so if you have a high-end coastal home, you'll need to buy a private policy.

The article also covers "Dos and Don'ts" when shopping for flood insurance, including the crucial distinction between "extended replacement cost" and "guaranteed replacement cost." Also "emergency expenses" coverage.

The piece is well worth reading.  

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