Does Washington Square West flood?

Washington Square West, Philadelphia, PA · ZIP codes 19023, 19107, 19147, 19106 and 19110: the ZIP codes on most of the flood insurance claims counted here. ZIP codes do not follow neighborhood lines.

Yes. Insured properties in and around Washington Square West have filed flood claims. No part of Washington Square West’s mapped area is inside FEMA’s Special Flood Hazard Area on the current effective map; it is in Zone X. NFIP flood insurance records list 17 claims from the Census block groups that cover Washington Square West, from 1978 through 2016. 13 of them received a payment, totaling $223,195 (not adjusted for inflation). The busiest years were 1999 (9 claims), 1978 (3 claims), 2007 (1 claims).

Past claims do not predict future flooding, and a neighborhood figure cannot tell you about one building. Look up the exact address on the FEMA Flood Map Service Center and get flood insurance quotes before you sign a lease or a contract.

Check a specific address in Washington Square West

Neighborhood figures are averages. Our address check looks up the FEMA flood zone at one address, from the same public maps: check if your address is in a flood zone.

Flood zones street by street in Washington Square West

The named streets in Washington Square West, longest first, with how much of each street’s length inside Washington Square West lies in FEMA’s high-risk flood zones (the Special Flood Hazard Area, zones A and V). Length is the part inside Washington Square West; the main zone is the FEMA zone covering most of that length. A street can cross several zones, so the zone at one address can differ from the street’s main zone: check the address above for that. 10 shorter streets are not listed.

Streets: U.S. Census Bureau TIGERweb, Transportation (primary, secondary and local roads). Flood zones: FEMA National Flood Hazard Layer (NFHL), Flood Hazard Zones and FIRM Panels, retrieved November 7, 2026. Each street is clipped to the neighborhood boundary and measured in an equal-area projection. Street lengths are rounded.

Flood zones in Washington Square West

Share of Washington Square West’s mapped area (about 0.85 km²) in each FEMA flood zone, from FEMA National Flood Hazard Layer (NFHL), Flood Hazard Zones and FIRM Panels. Effective date of the FIRM panel(s) covering it (34007C0009F, 42045C0150F, 4207570183G, 4207570184H): January 17, 2007, November 18, 2009, November 18, 2015, August 17, 2016.

What the zones mean

Zone AE (and A, AH, AO)

High-risk: part of the Special Flood Hazard Area (SFHA), the area FEMA maps as having a 1-percent chance of flooding in any given year (the “100-year” or base flood). AE areas have a mapped base flood elevation.

Zone VE (and V)

High-risk coastal areas, also in the SFHA, where the base flood is expected to bring additional hazards from storm waves.

Zone X (shaded)

Moderate hazard: between the limits of the 1-percent and the 0.2-percent-annual-chance (“500-year”) flood.

Zone X (unshaded)

Minimal hazard: outside the SFHA and higher than the 0.2-percent-annual-chance flood elevation. Minimal is not zero: flood claims are filed from X zones too.

Source: FEMA Glossary: Flood Zones.

Flood insurance claims over time

Claims filed under the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) from the 2010 Census block groups that cover Washington Square West. About 68% of the combined area of those block groups lies inside Washington Square West, so the claim figures also reflect some nearby blocks. Only insured properties appear, so these counts understate total flooding.

By decade

By year of loss

Named flood events with the most claims

• Hurricane Floyd: 8 claims
• Not a named storm: 1 claims

FEMA labels some events only as “Flooding”. Claims by the flood zone the property was rated in:

• A/AE/AH/AO (high risk): 9
• X/B/C (moderate or minimal): 5
• Not reported: 3

How much is flood insurance in Washington Square West?

The typical National Flood Insurance Program policy on single-family homes in Washington Square West costs $891 a year: the median of 10 policies that started between September 1, 2025 and August 31, 2026. Half of them cost between $644 and $1,000. That is the full amount paid for the year, the premium plus FEMA’s fees and surcharges, and every one of these policies is priced under Risk Rating 2.0. A quote for one building can be far from this: its elevation, foundation, age, coverage and deductible all change the price. Private flood insurance is not included.

Source: FEMA OpenFEMA Dataset: FIMA NFIP Redacted Policies - v3, computed November 7, 2026.

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Before you rent or buy in Washington Square West

• Look up the exact address on the FEMA Flood Map Service Center; a neighborhood can mix high-risk and minimal-hazard zones.
• Ask the landlord or seller about past flooding and flood insurance claims at the property.
• Get a flood insurance quote early: new NFIP policies usually take 30 days to start (FloodSmart (NFIP): Buy a Flood Insurance Policy).
• Ask which floor the unit is on and where parking, storage and mechanical equipment sit.

Living in Washington Square West

Flood maps are only one part of choosing a neighborhood. To compare Washington Square West with other Philadelphia neighborhoods on more than flooding, see Philadelphia on StrollPlace.

Buyer and renter FAQ

FAQ sources: FloodSmart (NFIP): Buy a Flood Insurance Policy; FEMA Fact Sheet: Think you don’t need flood insurance? Think again (Jan. 21, 2025); 44 CFR 61.11, Effective date and time of coverage.

Nearby neighborhoods

• Bella Vista – living in Bella Vista (StrollPlace)
• Center City East
• Graduate Hospital
• Hawthorne
• Old City – living in Old City (StrollPlace)
• Does Rittenhouse flood?

How these numbers were made

Neighborhood boundary: Philadelphia Neighborhoods by Robert Cheetham (Azavea), published on OpenDataPhilly, licensed CC BY 4.0 (CC BY 4.0). Flood zone shares: the neighborhood polygon intersected with FEMA National Flood Hazard Layer (NFHL), Flood Hazard Zones and FIRM Panels, area computed in an equal-area projection; retrieved November 7, 2026. Claims: OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3 records for Philadelphia County (county code 42101), dataset as of September 8, 2026, retrieved November 7, 2026. A 2010 Census block group is counted for a neighborhood when at least 25% of the block group lies inside the neighborhood, or at least 25% of the neighborhood lies inside the block group. Block groups used: 421010006001 (86.2% of the block group is inside Washington Square West), 421010009021 (65.5% of the block group is inside Washington Square West), 421010009022 (100.0% of the block group is inside Washington Square West), 421010009012 (99.9% of the block group is inside Washington Square West), 421010009011 (100.0% of the block group is inside Washington Square West), 421010011022 (100.0% of the block group is inside Washington Square West), 421010011012 (99.8% of the block group is inside Washington Square West), 421010011014 (100.0% of the block group is inside Washington Square West), 421010011011 (99.9% of the block group is inside Washington Square West), 421010005001 (32.9% of the block group is inside Washington Square West), 421010011021 (61.5% of the block group is inside Washington Square West), 421010011013 (100.0% of the block group is inside Washington Square West). Neighboring pages can share a block group, so their counts can overlap. Paid totals add building, contents and Increased Cost of Compliance payments and are not adjusted for inflation; a claim whose FEMA record shows a negative payment (an adjustment) counts as zero. See the methodology.

Sources

1. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), FEMA OpenFEMA Dataset: FIMA NFIP Redacted Claims - v3. Retrieved on November 7, 2026.
2. FEMA National Flood Hazard Layer (NFHL), Flood Hazard Zones and FIRM Panels. Retrieved on November 7, 2026.
3. Philadelphia Neighborhoods by Robert Cheetham (Azavea), published on OpenDataPhilly, licensed CC BY 4.0 (CC BY 4.0).
4. U.S. Census Bureau TIGERweb, 2010 Census Block Groups.
5. FEMA Glossary: Flood Zones.
6. FloodSmart (NFIP): Buy a Flood Insurance Policy.
7. FEMA Fact Sheet: Think you don’t need flood insurance? Think again (Jan. 21, 2025).
8. 44 CFR 61.11, Effective date and time of coverage.
9. OpenFEMA Terms and Conditions.
10. FEMA OpenFEMA Dataset: FIMA NFIP Redacted Policies - v3.
11. OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Policies v3.
12. OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3.
13. USDA Forest Service, Wildfire Risk to Communities, community summaries.
14. Wildfire Risk to Communities methods.
15. U.S. Census Bureau TIGERweb, Transportation (primary, secondary and local roads).

Data as of September 8, 2026 (FEMA claims) and November 7, 2026 (flood zones). Page last updated November 7, 2026.