Buy Out Programs

Table of Contents

Introduction

Buyouts help protect our most vulnerable citizens who, especially after many floods and damaging storms may not have the funds to keep rebuilding, nor to move away from dangerous, flood-prone areas. From a fiscal standpoint buyout programs reduce flood risk which reduces government liability and increased poverty which in turn increases strain on public funding.

Here is brochure explaining how Charlotte's Buyout Program benefits the community, protects assets, and the steps involved from applying to the program to vacating the property: - Charlotte NC: FPBuyoutBrochure (PDF) 

Examples

Buy Out Programs Benefits

They can allow communities to make a planned retreat that includes spaces that can be "sacrificed" to flooding or sea level rise. 

Public Benefits

Public Green Spaces & Flood / Sea Level Buffers

In the case of flood planes, communities might choose to create SUD infrastructure, plant riparian boarders, rebuild wetlands, greenways or greenbelts. These can even include playgrounds, benches, and other infrastructure that can benefit the remaining community during non-flood periods.

Public Safety & Lower Emergency Rescue Costs

During dangerous weather and serious flood conditions, communities can struggle to keep up with rescue and emergency shelter needs. By keeping more people out of harm's way, they don't need as many rescuers, less rescue personnel and flood victims are likely to be harmed or killed.

Both during and after the flood, less people need emergency shelters or medical aid. When communities and their sewage systems get flooded, disease spread can cause a secondary disaster, which can be avoided by ensuring from the beginning that large numbers of people will not be stranded in locations with these dangerous conditions.

Problems with Buyout Programs

Some important issues make these programs less effective than they could be. In this section we explore these issues as well as ways to improve outcomes.

Long Process

A major problem is that the average buyout process takes 5 years, which is far too slow for people facing homelessness, especially with the increasing rates and intensities of calamities including sea level rise which don't wait for bureaucracy. 

Long Waits Increase Costs

"Wait times for buyouts take five years on average. Costs for fixes and temporary housing stack up in the interim."  - Uprooted: As the Climate Crisis Forces U.S. Residents to Relocate, a New Conversation Emerges

Inequality

The other, and perhaps more concerning issue is the inequality that determines who is more likely to get financial support in this important strategy. Multiple studies have found that communities with higher wealth and population density are more likely to qualify, this often means white people may have a better chance at receiving aid than Native Americans or other ethnic groups who may have less community resources.

"One reason that wealthier counties might be receiving more buyouts is that it requires significant bureaucratic and monetary resources to apply for and distribute buyout funds. FEMA generally pays for 75% of the cost of a home, so local and state governments must find the remaining money elsewhere."

""Homeowners who want to relocate cannot apply to FEMA directly. They rely on their local government to apply on their behalf," explains A.R. Siders of the University of Delaware, who is one of the study authors. "If their local government doesn't have those resources, you're going to have people who are trapped in these at-risk places.""

...

"Miyuki Hino, a researcher at Stanford who also is one of the authors of the study. "That also provides a tax base where they can find a lot of money to invest in pumps, beach nourishment, things other than buyouts."" - NRP: Sweeping Study Raises Questions About Who Benefits from Buyouts of Flood-Prone Homes

Lack of Standards for Best Practices and Lack of Guidance or Support

One article pointed out that "despite federal buyout programs dating back decades, no official set of best practices or standards exists. ... Guidance for homeowners on navigating the buyout process is confusing or nonexistent, and relocation policies and funding focus on the individual, not on neighborhoods or communities that want to stay together. 

At the local level, communities considering relocation face a range of social and financial barriers. Municipalities don’t tend to encourage relocation, because they don’t want to lose population or tax revenue. And residents—especially those reeling from a crisis—often lack the capacity and resources to find a new, safe place to live, even if they are willing to leave."

Even though flood-driven relocations have been happening since the 1970's, "knowledge sharing is rare, as is coordination that could help other communities to refine or even reimagine the process." - Uprooted: As the Climate Crisis Forces U.S. Residents to Relocate, a New Conversation Emerges

Improving Buyout Programs

Benefits of Multiple-Property Buyouts

"Buying out multiple properties at once can serve as a demonstration project: Showing the benefits to other communities helps build support for similar projects in their own flood-prone areas. A neighborhood buyout eliminates the flood risk to a larger portion of the population and increases opportunities for reusing the property. Community-scale projects can also help us get the most out of our resources—funding, staff, equipment, maintenance, etc. Finally, individual buyouts can create a patchwork pattern and unintentionally diminish the character of the community."

Some examples include helping a trailer park owner carry out a buyout and restoration project, and removing multi-family structures from flood zones to relocate residents to safer areas. - Pew Trusts: Maryland Flood Risk Leads Property Owners Communities to Accept Buyouts


Promoting Equity in Retreat Through Voluntary Property Buyout Programs 

"... In this policy analysis, we first provide an overview of equity and justice issues in buyouts based on existing literature. We consider multiple relevant stakeholder groups: the communities in which buyouts occur, potential participants and relocating households, residents who choose to stay, and the destination communities. Second, we present policy options that may address and reduce existing social inequities in buyouts. Third, we outline how improved reporting on buyout programs by implementers can support buyout policy learning that will improve buyout outcomes and equity. Indicators can provide insight on who has access to buyouts, the effect of buyout implementation on outcomes, and the consequences of relocating—or not—for all affected. With increasing climate risks, voluntary property buyouts will remain an important means of reducing exposure to flooding and other hazards. For this method of retreat to occur effectively at greater scale, attention to social justice in program evaluation and policy learning is necessary."

"No comprehensive overview of strategies to proactively promote social justice in buyout programs currently exists, so this compilation is intended to provide a synthesis of policy options for practitioners and analysts." Human rights organizations, ethnic councils, and buy out programs need to work together to assure these gaps are filled with science-informed, ethical practices.

"... based on existing evaluations of buyouts and other disaster and adaptation strategies, we outline a range of entry points for improved data reporting in buyout programs to allow for better assessment and evaluation of social justice and equity, which can support the development of additional strategies to improve equity in buyout programs. To date, successive buyout programs occurring over decades and across many different communities in the USA have shown no significant policy changes or improvements, indicating little policy learning has taken place (Greer and Binder 2017). We argue that improved data collection and evaluation practices could enable lessons from past experiences with buyout programs—their funding mechanisms, policies, implementation, and outcomes—to improve future efforts." - Promoting Equity in Retreat Through Voluntary Property Buyout Programs


"Renters, however, are an overlooked population during implementation of post-disaster retreat programs that predominantly focus on homeownership. Racism is a substantial factor in homeownership disparities between black and white Americans that can be traced to the post World War II GI Bill-a law that delivered to returning veterans federally-backed home mortgage loans, loans that were largely denied to returning black soldiers. These inequities have not been overcome, leaving minority renters as some of the most vulnerable populations after a disaster. Indeed, some renters may be substantially worse off after a buy-out program is implemented in an area. Renters represent an atypical "trapped" population when it comes to relocation programs because they may be economically forced to move to even more climate vulnerable housing. " - Climate Justice and Home-Buyout Programs: Renters as a Forgotten Population in Managed Retreat Actions

Improve Data Gathering & Communication Around Buyouts and Managed Retreats

"Network members have started using more empowering alternatives to “managed retreat,” including “community-led relocation” and “supported relocation.” But the goal isn’t to come up with a single new term or a rigid plan that can be universally adopted. As Marcell notes, it can be “very offensive” when outsiders approach communities with nothing but models and templates. 

“You can’t expect to build trust in a community if you don’t start with an open-ended conversation about how to approach the issue, because [each] context is so unique,” she says. Instead, the network aims to co-create, with each of the three community-based organizations, a method for identifying the specific needs and goals of each place. That includes identifying and interviewing community “influencers” and, with the help of Buy-In Community Planning, developing questions for a door-to-door survey. 

“There’s a lot more individual interaction and coaching that needs to be done with people who are at the hard edge of climate change,” says Osamu Kumasaka of Buy-In Community Planning. He first came to this conclusion while working as a Consensus Building Institute mediator in Piermont, New York, in 2017. The Hudson River town was experiencing the beginnings of chronic flooding: water in basements, swamped backyard gardens, denizens wading through streets on their way to work. A wealthy small town with its own flood resilience committee and access to world-class flood risk data, Piermont nonetheless found itself uncertain about how to move forward. 

“We really struggled to figure out how to squeeze all the work that needed to be done with all these homeowners into public meetings,” Kumasaka says. Each household had very specific factors influencing decisions to stay or leave: elderly parents with special needs, kids about to graduate from high school, plans to retire. Organizing surveys, small discussions, and individualized risk assessments was a more effective approach, Kumasaka says, in helping the community get a better picture of where it stands and where it wants to go."

Additional Actions to Support Buy Out Programs

Create and Enforce Legislation Banning New Developments

Specifically in known flood zones and areas predicted to be lost to sea level rise.

In areas without this type of legislation, many people have been sold home in known flood zones, within 100 year flood zones, and other unsuitable places. These homes are prone to repeated flooding which can push families into a poverty situation where they are unable to sell their homes (because they flood repeatedly) which leaves them without the funds to leave or keep rebuilding. Governments need to offer buy-out programs and work with conservation organizations to clear the badly-placed buildings. The land can function as both wild space and as permeable land to help absorb future flood waters, protecting nearby communities.

Solutions to Combine with Buyout Programs

Managed Retreat 

"... the purposeful movement of people, buildings and other assets from areas vulnerable to hazards—has often been considered a last resort. But Siders said it can be a powerful tool for expanding the range of possible solutions to cope with rising sea levels, flooding and other climate change effects when used proactively or in combination with other measures."  - Managed Retreat: A Must in the War Against Climate Change 

Careful Choice in Relocation/Building Site Choices

We need to reduce the chance of failed relocation due to predictable threats such as sea level rise. New communities and buildings need to be built with flood mitigation as a primary concern, to reduce the chance of themselves flooding, or flooding neighbors down stream, thereby perpetuating the need to relocate or rebuild between current buy-out/evacuation zones and currently habitable ones. 


One idea that may help revitalize deteriorating communities inland would be to invest in rebuilding their infrastructure in preparation of sea level and flood evacuees' arrival. Investments for eco-friendly, passive, and renewable infrastructure would help protect the new and old inhabitants against climate change while providing jobs such as food production, circular economy, energy production (such as solar, thermal, wind) from the beginning, rather than the messy rush to retrofit out cities which will cost our current communities millions or more. 


Some locations are experiencing population decline due to aging populations combined with lower birth rate. In response they are paying people to move in, live in those areas. Some offer free land or rebates for fixing up historical properties such as farm houses. Some countries even pay parents to have children, so families may find these easier places to resettle. Organizations focusing on helping communizes move should consider these welcoming opportunities, with careful considerations to the evacuees' needs and the terms of the invite.

Coastal Defenses

These can include hard or soft engineering solutions from massive and expensive seawalls to those than help sequester carbon while boosting biodiversity, such as mangroves, coral reefs, and oyster reefs.

Information for Governments & Planners

Existing Buyout Programs

North America

United States

"Many states have established and administer floodplain buyout programs. These programs may provide the non-federal match for federal buyout projects or fund acquisitions outright." - Floodplain Buyouts: An Action Guide for Local Governments on How to Maximize Community Benefits, Habitat Connectivity, and Resilience

Alabama

Birmingham Buyout Program Enhances Community’s Resilience "This buyout program has had several benefits in addition to permanently reducing flood losses and claims. The implementation of these buyout programs has led to the creation of W.C. Patton Park, Ensley Trail and Village Creek Linear Park. Through the creation of these parks, the city has increased residents' opportunities for recreation and interaction with nature. The buyout program also assisted with the restoration of the floodplain from developed land to its natural state, contaminant loads of pollutants such as fecal coliform, organic matter, nutrients and sediments have been reduced by an estimated 97-99% compared to pre-buyout conditions. This has significant beneficial impacts on the water quality of Birmingham's creeks (Revell, 2011)."

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Maps by Region Check specific State and Country pages to see if there are more specific maps, tools, projects, and groups for specific areas. If you have suggestions, we would love to hear what else we can include. 

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The goal of A2 is to help communities fight back. We do that by providing them organizing support, scientific and technical guidance, and better access to foundation and government funding. Most of all, our work consists of listening to our frontline leaders. Their experience, research, and solidarity guide everything we do, and offer a path toward environmental and social justice.

Supported by outstanding partner organizations with expertise in engineering, hydrology, public health, planning, and the law, A2 leaders have successfully halted developments in climate-vulnerable areas; implemented nature-based hazard mitigation strategies; organized home buyouts; and pushed for clean-ups at superfund sites, toxic landfills, and petrochemical plants.

We support everyone we can, but our special priority is people who have suffered the worst environmental impacts for the longest time; that usually means low-income, Black, Latinx, Native American and other underserved communities.

To learn about our policies, read our A 10-Point Platform on Climate Change."


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