Does Historic Downtown flood?

Historic Downtown, Savannah, GA · ZIP code 31401: the ZIP code on 36 of the 37 flood insurance claims counted here. ZIP codes do not follow neighborhood lines.

Yes. Insured properties in and around Historic Downtown have filed flood claims. About 7.7% of Historic Downtown’s mapped area is inside FEMA’s Special Flood Hazard Area; the rest is in moderate or minimal-hazard Zone X. NFIP flood insurance records list 37 claims from the Census block groups that cover Historic Downtown, from 1979 through 2024. 26 of them received a payment, totaling $439,937 (not adjusted for inflation). The busiest years were 2003 (7 claims), 1999 (7 claims), 2007 (5 claims).

What this page counts as Historic Downtown

We could not find an openly licensed official boundary for Historic Downtown, so this page uses a census-based area. For this page, Historic Downtown means the 2010 Census block groups whose center lies inside the National Register of Historic Places boundary of the Savannah Historic District (National Park Service) and inside the Savannah city limits (U.S. Census Bureau). Historic Downtown here is the National Register's Savannah Historic District (the downtown squares). Every number below is for exactly those block groups (listed in “How these numbers were made”), so the edges are approximate and may include or leave out a few blocks people would call Historic Downtown. Sources: U.S. Census Bureau TIGERweb, 2010 Census Block Groups, National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places boundaries (NRHP polygons) and U.S. Geological Survey, Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) domestic names.

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 Historic Downtown

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 Historic Downtown

The named streets in Historic Downtown, longest first, with how much of each street’s length inside Historic Downtown lies in FEMA’s high-risk flood zones (the Special Flood Hazard Area, zones A and V). Length is the part inside Historic Downtown; 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. 89 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 6, 2026. Each street is clipped to the area boundary and measured in an equal-area projection. Street lengths are rounded.

Flood zones in Historic Downtown

Share of Historic Downtown’s mapped area (about 2.594 km²) in each FEMA flood zone, from FEMA National Flood Hazard Layer (NFHL), Flood Hazard Zones and FIRM Panels. Mapped base flood elevations inside the neighborhood range from 9 to 10 feet. Effective date of the FIRM panel(s) covering it (13051C0153G, 13051C0154G): August 16, 2018.

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 Historic Downtown. This area is made of whole block groups, so every claim counted here comes from inside it. Only insured properties appear, so these counts understate total flooding.

By decade

By year of loss

Named flood events with the most claims

• Flooding: 7 claims
• Hurricane Matthew: 2 claims
• Hurricane Irma: 1 claims

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

• X/B/C (moderate or minimal): 33
• A/AE/AH/AO (high risk): 3
• Other (D): 1

How much is flood insurance in Historic Downtown?

The typical National Flood Insurance Program policy on single-family homes in Historic Downtown costs $1,261 a year: the median of 37 policies that started between September 1, 2025 and August 31, 2026. Half of them cost between $1,048 and $1,400. 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 6, 2026.

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Before you rent or buy in Historic Downtown

• 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 Historic Downtown

Flood maps are only one part of choosing a neighborhood. To compare Historic Downtown with other Savannah neighborhoods on more than flooding, see Savannah 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

• Victorian District
• Thomas Square – living in Thomas Square (StrollPlace)
• Eastside
• Cuyler-Brownville
• Does Ardsley Park flood?
• Does Cloverdale flood?

How these numbers were made

Area: the census-based definition above, using U.S. Census Bureau TIGERweb, 2010 Census Block Groups, National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places boundaries (NRHP polygons) and U.S. Geological Survey, Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) domestic names. Flood zone shares: the area polygon intersected with FEMA National Flood Hazard Layer (NFHL), Flood Hazard Zones and FIRM Panels, area computed in an equal-area projection; retrieved November 6, 2026. Claims: OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3 records for Chatham County (county code 13051), dataset as of September 8, 2026, retrieved November 6, 2026. Claims are counted for exactly the block groups that make up the area. Block groups used: 130510101011, 130510003001, 130510003002, 130510112001, 130510009001, 130510015001, 130510112002. 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 6, 2026.
2. FEMA National Flood Hazard Layer (NFHL), Flood Hazard Zones and FIRM Panels. Retrieved on November 6, 2026.
3. U.S. Census Bureau TIGERweb, 2010 Census Block Groups, National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places boundaries (NRHP polygons) and U.S. Geological Survey, Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) domestic names.
4. FEMA Glossary: Flood Zones.
5. FloodSmart (NFIP): Buy a Flood Insurance Policy.
6. FEMA Fact Sheet: Think you don’t need flood insurance? Think again (Jan. 21, 2025).
7. 44 CFR 61.11, Effective date and time of coverage.
8. OpenFEMA Terms and Conditions.
9. FEMA OpenFEMA Dataset: FIMA NFIP Redacted Policies - v3.
10. OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Policies v3.
11. OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3.
12. USDA Forest Service, Wildfire Risk to Communities, community summaries.
13. Wildfire Risk to Communities methods.
14. U.S. Census Bureau TIGERweb, Transportation (primary, secondary and local roads).

Data as of September 8, 2026 (FEMA claims) and November 6, 2026 (flood zones). Page last updated November 6, 2026.