According to the Houston Association of Realtors, if you already have a policy, you can still use it, but in terms of new policies or renewing a flood insurance policy right now through the program, they say it's not possible.
They also told ABC13 that, depending on how long this shutdown lasts, the money for the entire program could run out.
The National Flood Insurance Program expired this past Tuesday, Sept. 30. According to the National Association of Realtors, the program has been extended 33 times since 2017.
They said it's lapsed several times, but this lapse could potentially impact more than 600,000 residential policies in Texas, according to federal data.
Realtors say right now without NFIP, if a flood happened, people would have to rely on federal disaster aid, which they say is more limited than insurance.
The Houston Association of Realtors said not having a policy right now could be risky, but there are options that could help.
"If there's lapse in policy, then you don't have that protection. So, what I would encourage anyone if they do have the lapse in policy since we are in the shutdown, is to work with private insurance companies to see what flood programs they may have in order to make sure you do have that coverage, because in Houston we're still in the hurricane season until November. So, I think it's peace of mind insurance and it's something you want to have and not have and need," Kiley Rapier, Realtor and HAR Governmental Affairs Co-Chair, said.
Hurricane season aside, even everyday storms can cause major flooding. An economics professor at the University of Houston said even if you have a good standing NFIP policy, it is paid with federal funds and if those funds run dry, you could feel the impact.
"Should they not be able to draw enough money out of there, then basically it's going to be the government sending an IOU to people who might have lost everything and that's tough. If your house is flooded and all you have is an IOU to show for it, it's like, ok, maybe I'll get some money in six months, but I need to figure things out right now. And we're even though we're getting out of flood season more or less, we're entering into other disaster seasons in other parts of the country, and we're drawing on that same pool of money to kind of share the risk across all Americans," Vikram Maheshri, UH economics professor, said.
For anyone in the process of buying a home, if the house is in an area deemed high-risk for floods, in order to secure a mortgage, you must have flood coverage.
Kiley Raiper with the Houston Association of Realtors told ABC13 as many as 1,400 home closings per day could now be impacted as long as the program is lapsed.
"It could affect a lot of people. And I think the bigger thing right now, it seems to me for Houston at least. It's just extra friction into the housing market, which already has not been the smoothest housing market for the last couple of years for a variety of reasons," Raiper said.
For news updates, follow Brianna Willis on Facebook, x and Instagram.