Cape May
A typical flood policy here (single-family) cost $421 in 2019 and $859 in 2025, a change of +104%. Single-family homes carrying flood insurance in this ZIP went from 2,178 to 1,669.
| Year | Median premium |
|---|---|
| 2019 | $421 |
| 2020 | $442 |
| 2021 | $464 |
| 2022 | $545 |
| 2023 | $636 |
| 2024 | $742 |
| 2025 | $859 |
A home like yours
Pick what matches and see what homes like it actually paid for federal flood insurance in 2025. This is the middle of real policies, not a quote, and not advice: only a licensed agent can price your house.
If your renewal just landed
The federal flood premium can rise at most 18% a year until it reaches the full risk-based rate. If yours jumped more than that, something else changed: coverage amount, a mapping change, a lapsed policy being re-rated, or a discount that fell off. Ask which.
The 18% cap is not a ceiling on the destination. The full-risk price is already set for your address; the cap only spreads the climb. Every 2025 number above is still on the way up.
Second homes are most of this market. 67% of single-family flood policies in Cape May County are not primary residences. That share is why the homeowners-insurance data (below) understates what the shore actually pays: it counts owner-occupied homes only.
Homeowners insurance, the part regulators can see
Average premium for owner-occupied homes with regular (admitted) carriers, from the federal ZIP-level release. Across these towns the average was $2,022 in 2018 and $2,127 in 2022. Treasury's own note on this file: it excludes FAIR Plan and surplus-lines policies, and single ZIP codes are statistically thin, so read town rows as direction, not precision. Where the average fell in the most expensive towns, that is not good news. It almost always means the costliest homes were dropped or pushed to carriers this data cannot see. The last column is what insurers paid out in claims per dollar of premium in 2022.
| Town | 2018 | 2022 | Change | Not renewed | Paid out |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cape May | $2,022 | $2,127 | +5% | 0.57% | 12¢ |
Questions people ask
How much is flood insurance in Cape May, NJ?
In 2025 the median federal flood premium on a single-family policy in Cape May (08204) was $859 a year, up from $421 in 2019 (+104%). Individual homes range widely around that figure depending on elevation, use, and coverage. About 1,669 single-family homes in this ZIP carried flood insurance in 2025, down from 2,178 in 2019.
Why did flood insurance go up in Cape May?
FEMA's Risk Rating 2.0 pricing, phased in from late 2021, prices each home on its own risk. Premiums below the full-risk rate rise by up to 18% a year until they reach it. That is the slope in the chart: +104% in 6 years.
Do second homes in Cape May pay more for flood insurance?
Across Cape May County, 67% of single-family flood policies are on homes that are not primary residences. Use the estimator above to see the 2025 premium for a second home versus a primary residence in Cape May.
Does a house on pilings pay less for flood insurance in Cape May?
Usually, and often by a lot. Elevated homes in the shore counties pay materially less than homes at ground level with the same use. Pick 'Elevated on pilings' versus 'Not elevated' in the estimator for the Cape May figures.
https://highwaterindex.com/nj/cape-may-county/cape-may/Work with this data
Realtors and brokers. A one-page insurability snapshot for a listing: flood cost for homes like it, the town trend, what to expect at renewal. Put it in the listing packet before the buyer's lender asks.
Insurance agencies. Be the agency shown to people looking at your ZIPs. We only list agencies that actually write coastal business.
Investors, lenders, condo boards. The county tables and the policy-level cuts behind them, as files or an API, plus custom pulls.
Part of the Cape May County tracker. All towns, counties, and how this is built.