No, thank you. Have you seen what people have to go through when mud and filth get into their homes? I would definitely not buy a home in a flood-prone area. It would not be worth it to me to lose my furniture and other valuables every couple of years or so. The clean-up process seems like miserable job and I cannot see how the house ever really gets clean, again. Also, some houses get carried off into the river. The lower price for the home does not seem like a good trade-off at all.

Yes, and in fact I live on in a home that is, technically, always on a flood plain and flooded ...

...because I live on a floating home! My home literally floats, on logs, on the Columbia River in Oregon. There is a wonderful floating home community here and it really is an amazing life style. But, even during a drought, I'm still surrounded by water. When the river swells and there is a "flood warning", I simply float on up the piling. If you are going to live in a flood plain, then there is no better house than a floating home ;)

But, for those who choose to live in a natural flood plain in a home stuck to terra firma ... I've only got one question. What are you thinking?! Nature naturally floods where your home is and, as much as we'd like to think we control the elements ...we don't. Mother Nature will always surprise us with something we hadn't foreseen or could have predicted. So why put yourself (and your belongings) at risk by living in a place where we CAN predict that something most likely will happen (like your home being flooded).

Hope this helps.

I have lived in a flood prone area before and I will tell you no amount of money that you save can compensate for the terror you feel when the rain starts to fall. It can get to be so bad that a slight drizzle could have you on your knees praying for the rain to stop because you know what could happen if a great downpour occurred.

Every time it rains your mind will focus on the fact that it might flood. You will have all kind of strategies on how to get out in time and how to save furniture, all the way down to getting a small boat just in case.

There is nothing that is as nerve wrecking as watching a river rise and the waters rage like rapids and knowing that it has and could once more enter your home. Even if you think being in a flood could be an adventure of sorts the clean up certainly is not. Snakes and mud all over the place is not worth the savings.

No, I would never buy a house in a flood-prone area even if it cost less. Then again, I am not really a risk-taker - perhaps someone more adventurous would be willing to take the risk, but personally I would rather live in a much more modest home that is away from a flood area.

There are several reasons why I wouldn't buy a house in a flood-prone area:
1. A higher risk of actually the house being flooded, and all the cleanup that entails if it happens. Yes there are risks everywhere but why make the risk higher?!
2. The increased cost of flood insurance, as you mentioned.
3. Making it harder for re-sale (if you move away from the area) versus a house on a non flood-prone area. You would be surprised how many people would be put off the fact of buying a house in a flood-prone area, even if it costs less. Thus, you have a smaller potential market of people looking to buy the house if you decide to sell it.

Like I said, I'm not a risk-taker, and perhaps someone who is may actually enjoy taking on the risk of a house in a flood-prone area. But, living in a city which gets some flooding in extreme weather, I can tell you from experience that it is such a huge relief to live in a part which is not prone to floods. And floods don't just come from nature - a burst water main will also flood homes in nearby low-lying areas, so your risk can be higher than you think compared to nature alone.