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Elevation certificates: what they show for a building site

An elevation certificate is a FEMA form that records the heights of a building's floors and the ground beside it, and compares them with the base flood elevation. A licensed land surveyor seals it in North Carolina. The local floodplain administrator uses it to confirm that a building in a mapped flood zone was built high enough.

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Quick summary: This guide explains what an elevation certificate records, who prepares it, when a permit office, lender, or insurer asks for one, and how to find one that already exists. It is for buyers and owners of land in or near a mapped flood zone. The key takeaway: the certificate compares measured floor heights with the base flood elevation, and the local ordinance often sets the target above that line.

What an elevation certificate is

An elevation certificate is a standard FEMA form that records how high a building sits compared with the base flood elevation. The base flood elevation is the height that floodwater is expected to reach in the flood with a one percent chance of happening in any year. The FEMA form and instructions name three uses: to show compliance with the community’s floodplain ordinance, to inform the flood insurance premium, and to support a request to amend the flood map.

The certificate belongs to one building, not to one owner. FEMA’s instructions say a completed certificate does not expire and a sale does not void it. A physical change to the building, such as a new addition or a raised floor, can make it out of date.

What the form records

The form records where the building is, what the flood map says about that spot, and the measured heights of the building and the ground. The main parts are these:

  • Section A, the building. Address, parcel number, latitude and longitude, a building diagram number, and at least two photographs. The photographs must show the foundation and be taken within 90 days of certification.
  • Section B, the flood map. The community number, the map panel and its effective date, the flood zone, and the base flood elevation with its source and vertical datum.
  • Section C, the measured elevations. The top of the bottom floor, the next higher floor, the lowest machinery that serves the building, and the lowest and highest ground next to the building.
  • Section D, the certification. The signature and seal of the professional who measured the elevations.

Section C also says whether the numbers come from construction drawings, a building under construction, or finished construction. FEMA’s instructions require a new certificate when construction is complete, if the first one came from drawings or a partial build.

Who prepares an elevation certificate

A land surveyor, engineer, or architect authorized by state law signs and seals Section D. In North Carolina, the state floodplain quick guide says a licensed surveyor completes and seals the certificate. A registered professional engineer or architect may complete one only when it rests on construction drawings.

There is one exception. In approximate A zones, where the map shows no base flood elevation, and in AO zones, a community official or the owner may complete a separate section that needs no survey. That section measures heights from the ground, not from a datum. It serves the permit file, and it cannot support a map amendment.

When you need one

A permit office, a lender, an insurer, or FEMA can each ask for an elevation certificate.

The permit office. Federal rules require a community in the flood insurance program to obtain and keep a record of the lowest floor elevation of every new or substantially improved building in a mapped flood zone, under 44 C.F.R. § 60.3. Local ordinances set the timing. The Pitt County ordinance asks for a certificate within seven calendar days after the lowest floor level is set, and a final as-built certificate before occupancy. Raleigh asks for a final certificate before it issues a certificate of compliance or occupancy, under UDO Sec. 9.3.11. The same Raleigh section requires a licensed surveyor to set an elevation benchmark on the property before work starts.

The lender and the insurer. A lender often requires flood insurance on a building in a mapped flood zone. An insurer can use the certificate to rate the policy. The insurance agent and the lender answer the questions about coverage and price.

FEMA. An owner who believes the building or the lot sits above the base flood elevation can ask FEMA to amend the map. The certificate can support that request with certified ground elevations.

The short version: The certificate compares the measured floor with the base flood elevation. The local ordinance often sets the real target higher than that line, so read both before you plan a floor height.

Base flood elevation and the local freeboard rule

The base flood elevation is the federal minimum, and many North Carolina ordinances add freeboard above it. Freeboard is extra height, often one, two, or three feet, that covers unknowns such as debris at a bridge or new pavement upstream. The state quick guide notes that FEMA encourages communities to require at least one foot.

The federal rule sets the floor at the base flood elevation. For residential buildings in mapped zones with elevations, 44 C.F.R. § 60.3 requires the lowest floor, including a basement, to be at or above the base flood level. A local ordinance can ask for more.

Pitt County shows how. Its flood damage prevention ordinance defines the regulatory flood protection elevation as the base flood elevation plus two feet of freeboard. Where no base flood elevation exists, the target is at least two feet above the highest adjacent grade. The building must meet that local target, not only the federal line, so the certificate is read against it. Ask the floodplain administrator which number applies to your parcel.

How to find an existing elevation certificate

Ask the community floodplain administrator first, because the community keeps a record of certificates for permitted buildings. Raleigh, for example, sends a digital copy of a certificate on file at no charge, as its flood certifications page states. Other places to look:

  1. The seller, who may hold a copy from a past permit, insurance policy, or map amendment.
  2. The seller’s flood insurance agent, with the seller’s permission.
  3. The building permit file for the address.

Before you rely on an old certificate, compare its map panel date with the current effective map. North Carolina keeps the effective flood map data in the Flood Risk Information System, the map repository that the Pitt County ordinance names. A new map can change the zone or the base flood elevation. See Floodplain vs floodway: why the difference matters.

Take action: Before you make an offer on land in or near a mapped flood zone, find out where the flood zone crosses the tract. Then ask the floodplain administrator for any certificate on file. Start with Acreage that holds up after the survey.

What it means for vacant land

Vacant land has no building, so it has no finished elevation certificate. The questions are still the same. The flood map shows the zone and the base flood elevation, and the local ordinance adds freeboard. A topographic survey shows how far the ground sits below that target. See Topographic survey: what it shows and when you need one.

That distance decides the foundation height or the fill a building pad needs. Fill in a mapped flood zone needs a local permit, and in a floodway it needs an engineer’s analysis. See Bringing in fill dirt: permits, floodplain, and compaction.

We read the flood map, the local ordinance, and the permit record for a tract. We report flood acres apart from the rest and list the open questions for the surveyor and the floodplain administrator. See Gross acres are not usable acres.

Key recap

  • An elevation certificate is a FEMA form that compares a building’s floor heights with the base flood elevation.
  • In North Carolina, a licensed land surveyor completes and seals it. An engineer or architect may complete one from construction drawings.
  • Federal rules require communities to keep a record of the lowest floor elevation of new and substantially improved buildings in mapped flood zones.
  • Local ordinances can add freeboard. Pitt County sets its target at the base flood elevation plus two feet.
  • A completed certificate stays with the building. Check its map date against the current effective map.

Questions

Who can complete an elevation certificate in North Carolina?

A licensed land surveyor completes and seals it. A professional engineer or architect may complete one when it is based on construction drawings only. In approximate A zones and AO zones, a community official or the owner may complete a section that needs no survey.

Does an elevation certificate expire?

No. FEMA’s instructions say a completed certificate does not expire and stays with the building after a sale. A physical change to the building can make it out of date, and a new flood map can change the base flood elevation it was measured against.

How do I get a copy of an elevation certificate?

Ask the community floodplain administrator for the certificate on file for the address. If the community has none, ask the seller or check the building permit file. If no certificate exists, a licensed land surveyor can prepare a new one.

References

Primary sources cited on this page, in APA style.

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