Does Houston Heights flood?
Yes. Insured properties in and around Houston Heights have filed flood claims. About 18% of Houston Heights’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 804 claims from the Census block groups that cover Houston Heights, from 1979 through 2024. 584 of them received a payment, totaling $27,907,261 (not adjusted for inflation). The busiest years were 2017 (321 claims), 2001 (184 claims), 2008 (106 claims).
What this page counts as Houston Heights
We could not find an openly licensed official boundary for Houston Heights, so this page uses a census-based area. For this page, Houston Heights means the 2010 Census block groups whose center lies within 2.4 km (1.5 miles) of the U.S. Geological Survey (GNIS) map point for Houston Heights (feature 1374161), each block group going to the nearest of the places we cover. 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 Houston Heights. Sources: U.S. Census Bureau TIGERweb, 2010 Census Block Groups 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.
Flood zones in Houston Heights
Share of Houston Heights’s mapped area (about 14.364 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 (48201C0660M, 48201C0670M, 48201C0690N): June 9, 2014, January 6, 2017.
| FEMA zone | Share of area |
|---|---|
| X (unshaded, minimal) | 74% |
| AE | 18% |
| X (shaded, 0.2% annual chance) | 7.7% |
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 Houston Heights. 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
| Decade | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 13 | $32,488 |
| 1980s | 36 | $246,323 |
| 1990s | 18 | $115,530 |
| 2000s | 303 | $10,962,007 |
| 2010s | 428 | $16,534,299 |
| 2020s | 6 | $16,616 |
By year of loss
Named flood events with the most claims
- Hurricane Harvey: 315 claims
- Tropical Storm Allison: 184 claims
- Hurricane Ike: 106 claims
- Early summer storms: 62 claims
- Tropical Storm Imelda: 33 claims
FEMA labels some events only as “Flooding”. Claims by the flood zone the property was rated in:
- A/AE/AH/AO (high risk): 452
- X/B/C (moderate or minimal): 342
- Not reported: 9
- V/VE (coastal high hazard): 1
Hurricane storm surge in Houston Heights
Storm surge is seawater pushed onto land by a hurricane’s winds. NOAA’s National Hurricane Center (NHC) maps a near worst-case surge for each hurricane category, arriving at high tide, from thousands of simulated storms (NOAA National Hurricane Center, National Storm Surge Risk Maps, Version 4 (Texas to Maine, high tide scenario, GeoTIFF dated June 17, 2026)).
In those maps, about 0% of Houston Heights’s mapped area has surge flooding above ground in a Category 1 hurricane, 0% in a Category 3 and 0.6% in a Category 5.
| Hurricane | Area with any surge flooding | More than 3 ft | More than 6 ft | More than 9 ft | Deepest band mapped |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Category 1 | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | no surge flooding mapped |
| Category 2 | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | no surge flooding mapped |
| Category 3 | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 10–11 ft |
| Category 4 | 0.4% | 0.2% | 0.2% | 0.1% | 18–19 ft |
| Category 5 | 0.6% | 0.5% | 0.4% | 0.3% | more than 20 ft |
FEMA’s National Risk Index, which compares every U.S. census tract, rates hurricane risk (wind, surge and expected losses together) for the tracts that cover Houston Heights as: “Relatively Moderate” for 68%; “Relatively High” for 32% of the area. Their hurricane risk scores range from 84 to 92 out of 100; a score is a national percentile, so 92 means higher hurricane risk than about 92% of U.S. census tracts (FEMA National Risk Index, Census Tracts feature layer, Version 1.20.0 (December 2025)).
NHC: “The data, maps, and information provided should only be used as a tool for general education/awareness of the storm surge hazard at a city/community level (not for a parcel level/grid cell assessment).” The maps do not account for erosion, subsidence, sea-level change or future construction, and NHC says they “should not be used to replace the maps used for hurricane evacuation zones.” Find out whether your address is in an evacuation zone (below) and follow official orders.
Hurricane evacuation zone
We do not show evacuation zones for Houston yet. Check the official source: Houston-Galveston Area Council: Hurricane Evacuation Zip-Zone maps.
Extreme heat in Houston Heights
FEMA’s National Risk Index rates heat wave risk for the census tracts that cover Houston Heights as: “Relatively Moderate” for 78%; “Relatively Low” for 22% of the area. Their heat wave risk scores range from 48 to 73 out of 100 (national percentiles). The index weighs how often heat waves happen, what they are expected to cost, and how vulnerable and resilient the community is, so a dense area can rate differently from a nearby one (FEMA National Risk Index, Census Tracts feature layer, Version 1.20.0 (December 2025)).
Trees shade streets and buildings and cool the air around them (U.S. EPA: Using Trees and Vegetation to Reduce Heat Islands). In the USDA Forest Service’s 2025 satellite-based tree canopy map, trees cover about 12% of Houston Heights’s area on average, compared with 14% for Houston as a whole (the 18 Houston areas on this site combined) (USDA Forest Service. 2026. USFS NLCD Percent Tree Canopy CONUS v2025-6 (2025 map). Salt Lake City, UT).
During a heat advisory, follow the National Weather Service: Heat Safety guidance. Neighborhood averages cannot tell you how hot a particular home, block or unit gets.
This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s National Risk Index dataset API or downloadable datasets but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s). FEMA: “The National Risk Index data are meant for planning purposes only. This National Risk Index dataset was created for broad nationwide comparisons and is not a substitute for localized risk assessment analysis.”
Before you rent or buy in Houston Heights
- 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 Houston Heights
Flood maps are only one part of choosing a neighborhood. For what day-to-day life in Houston Heights is like, from parks to errands, see Living in Houston Heights, Houston on StrollPlace.
Buyer and renter FAQ
Does Houston Heights flood?
Yes. Insured properties in and around Houston Heights have filed flood claims. About 18% of Houston Heights’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 804 claims from the Census block groups that cover Houston Heights, from 1979 through 2024. 584 of them received a payment, totaling $27,907,261 (not adjusted for inflation). The busiest years were 2017 (321 claims), 2001 (184 claims), 2008 (106 claims). Past claims do not predict future flooding, and conditions vary street by street, so check the specific address.
Is Houston Heights in a flood zone?
About 18% of Houston Heights’s mapped area is inside FEMA’s Special Flood Hazard Area; the rest is in moderate or minimal-hazard Zone X. Shares by zone: X (unshaded, minimal) 74%; AE 18%; X (shaded, 0.2% annual chance) 7.7%. The FIRM panel(s) covering it took effect June 9, 2014, January 6, 2017.
Do renters need flood insurance?
Standard renters policies usually do not cover flood. Renters in a community that participates in the NFIP can buy contents-only flood coverage, up to $100,000 for belongings.
How long does a new flood policy take to start?
A new NFIP policy generally takes effect 30 days after purchase. Exceptions include no wait when the policy is bought while making, increasing, extending or renewing a mortgage, and a one-day wait in a newly designated high-risk zone within 12 months of the map change.
How much coverage can NFIP provide?
For a one-to-four family home, NFIP building coverage goes up to $250,000 and contents coverage up to $100,000. You can buy flood insurance even if you are not in a high-risk zone, as long as your community participates in the NFIP.
Does storm surge reach Houston Heights?
In NOAA’s National Hurricane Center near worst-case maps, about 0% of Houston Heights’s mapped area floods from storm surge in a Category 1 hurricane, 0% in a Category 3 and 0.6% in a Category 5. These maps are for awareness at a community level, not for a single building.
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
- Garden Oaks
- Woodland Heights
- Does Oak Forest flood?
- Does West University Place flood?
- Eastwood
- Does Braeswood flood?
How these numbers were made
Area: the census-based definition above, using U.S. Census Bureau TIGERweb, 2010 Census Block Groups 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 October 21, 2026. Claims: OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3 records for Harris County (county code 48201), dataset as of September 8, 2026, retrieved October 21, 2026. Claims are counted for exactly the block groups that make up the area. Block groups used: 482015303003, 482015105003, 482015105002, 482015105001, 482015115006, 482015115005, 482015303002, 482015302001, 482015116004, 482015112002, 482015112001, 482015115004, 482015115003, 482015115002, 482015115001, 482015114003, 482015114001, 482015113014, 482015113013, 482015113012, 482015113011, 482015113023, 482015113022, 482015113021, 482015112003, 482015115007. 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. Storm surge: the area polygon overlaid on NHC’s Category 1–5 high-tide inundation GeoTIFFs (about 10 m cells in 1-ft depth classes); each share is the fraction of cells whose center lies inside the polygon and that NHC maps with water above ground, counting cells NHC leaves blank as not flooded. Tree canopy: the mean of the 2025 NLCD Tree Canopy Cover values (0–100%, 30 m cells in an equal-area projection) for cells whose center lies inside the polygon. FEMA National Risk Index: census tracts intersected with the polygon in an equal-area projection; each rating’s share is the share of the polygon covered by tracts with that rating (tracts covering less than 1% are left out; together the tracts used cover 100%). We do not compute a new score. Tracts used: 48201511502 (13%), 48201511301 (13%), 48201510500 (12%), 48201511302 (11%), 48201530300 (9.4%), 48201511501 (8.7%), 48201511201 (7.7%), 48201511202 (6.9%), 48201530200 (6.8%), 48201511600 (6.6%), 48201511400 (5.3%). See the methodology.
Sources
- Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), FEMA OpenFEMA Dataset: FIMA NFIP Redacted Claims - v3. Retrieved on October 21, 2026.
- FEMA National Flood Hazard Layer (NFHL), Flood Hazard Zones and FIRM Panels. Retrieved on October 21, 2026.
- U.S. Census Bureau TIGERweb, 2010 Census Block Groups and U.S. Geological Survey, Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) domestic names.
- FEMA Glossary: Flood Zones.
- 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.
- OpenFEMA Terms and Conditions.
- NOAA National Hurricane Center, National Storm Surge Risk Maps, Version 4 (Texas to Maine, high tide scenario, GeoTIFF dated June 17, 2026) (computed October 21, 2026).
- Zachry, B. C., W. J. Booth, J. R. Rhome, and T. M. Sharon, 2015: A National View of Storm Surge Risk and Inundation. Weather, Climate, and Society, 7(2), 109–117 (NHC’s preferred citation).
- Houston-Galveston Area Council: Hurricane Evacuation Zip-Zone maps.
- USDA Forest Service. 2026. USFS NLCD Percent Tree Canopy CONUS v2025-6 (2025 map). Salt Lake City, UT (30 m cells; read October 21, 2026).
- National Weather Service: Heat Safety.
- U.S. EPA: Using Trees and Vegetation to Reduce Heat Islands.
- FEMA National Risk Index, Census Tracts feature layer, Version 1.20.0 (December 2025) (retrieved October 21, 2026).
Data as of September 8, 2026 (FEMA claims) and October 21, 2026 (flood zones); hurricane, evacuation and heat data computed October 21, 2026. Page last updated October 21, 2026.