Flood insurance for a typical insured single-family home in Wareham cost $1,645 in 2025, up 39% since 2021, FEMA data show
In Mattapoisett and Marion the typical bill rose about 60%. The most expensive policies got cheaper, while most policies cost more.
SOUTH COAST The typical flood insurance policy on a single-family home in Wareham cost $1,645 in 2025, up 39% from $1,181 in 2021, the last year before FEMA's new pricing system applied to every renewal, according to FEMA's National Flood Insurance Program policy records.
Wareham has more federal flood insurance policies than any other South Coast community, 1,182 in 2025, and 1,081 of them covered single-family homes. Across 17 South Coast cities and towns, the middle cost for a single-family policy rose to $1,561 from $1,078, an increase of about 45%. In Mattapoisett and Marion, the typical bill rose about 60%.
Under FEMA's rules, most of those homes face more increases. In 2025, 2,714 of the 3,762 single-family policies, or 72%, were priced below what FEMA calls the full-risk premium for the property. In Wareham, it was 831 of 1,081 policies, or 77%.
What changed in 2021
FEMA's Risk Rating 2.0 began pricing new policies on Oct. 1, 2021, and every policy that renewed on or after April 1, 2022, according to FEMA's fact sheet on the system. Before that, FEMA said, its rates were based mainly on flood zones and elevations and had not been updated in 50 years, which "caused disparities that resulted in individuals paying more than their fair share in flood insurance premiums." The new system prices each building by its own risk, including how often it could flood, how close it is to a flood source, the height of its first floor and the cost to rebuild.
FEMA says policyholders whose premiums go down get the lower rate at their next renewal, and those whose premiums go up see them rise gradually, "with most annual increases capped at 18%." Premiums rise only until they reach the full-risk rate, FEMA says.
Where costs went up and down
Since 2021, the most expensive South Coast policies have gotten cheaper while most policies have cost more. In 2021, 69 single-family policies cost more than $10,000; in 2025, five did. A policy at the 90th percentile, more expensive than 9 in 10 others, cost $4,175 in 2021 and $3,787 in 2025.
Lower in the range, costs climbed. A policy at the 25th percentile cost $797 in 2021 and $1,103 in 2025. The middle cost rose every year: $1,109 in 2022, $1,280 in 2023, $1,438 in 2024 and $1,561 in 2025, up 8.6% in the last year. Because the costliest policies dropped so sharply, the average policy cost $1,965 in 2025, slightly less than the $2,046 average in 2021, even though the typical policy cost more.
In Wareham, 200 single-family policies cost more than $3,000 in 2025, and 51 cost more than $5,000.
| Community | Policies in 2025 | 2021 | 2025 | Change | Share below full-risk rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wareham | 1,081 | $1,181 | $1,645 | +39% | 77% |
| Mattapoisett | 523 | $1,105 | $1,761 | +59% | 75% |
| Fairhaven | 494 | $1,199 | $1,514 | +26% | 72% |
| Marion | 344 | $1,026 | $1,647 | +61% | 69% |
| Dartmouth | 313 | $974 | $1,366 | +40% | 60% |
| Swansea | 263 | $1,516 | $1,463 | -3% | 73% |
| Westport | 202 | $974 | $1,212 | +24% | 69% |
| Somerset | 131 | $1,268 | $1,644 | +30% | 74% |
| New Bedford | 128 | $996 | $1,299 | +30% | 61% |
| Taunton | 90 | $974 | $1,370 | +41% | 69% |
| Freetown | 65 | $974 | $1,481 | +52% | 83% |
| Dighton | 55 | $1,712 | $1,528 | -11% | 80% |
| All 17 communities | 3,762 | $1,078 | $1,561 | +45% | 72% |
Swansea and Dighton were the only communities in the table where the typical bill was lower in 2025 than in 2021, though both rose from 2024 to 2025. Fall River, Rehoboth, Seekonk, Acushnet and Rochester had fewer than 30 single-family policies each and are counted only in the 17-community total.
How far from full price
For the 72% of South Coast single-family policies still priced below the full-risk rate in 2025, the median gap was $195 a year in premium. Counting every single-family policy, including those already at full price, the median premium before fees was $1,216, and the median full-risk premium FEMA assigned was $1,546. In Wareham, those figures were $1,297 and $1,699.
The cost of a policy also includes charges on top of the premium: a reserve fund assessment, a federal policy fee and a surcharge required by the Homeowner Flood Insurance Affordability Act of 2014. The costs in this story include them.
The number of policies has held steady. There were 3,776 single-family policies across the 17 communities in 2021 and 3,762 in 2025. In Wareham, the count went from 1,088 to 1,081.
How we got these numbers
FEMA publishes a record for each National Flood Insurance Program policy, with details that could identify the owner removed and locations rounded. We read every policy that took effect in each year from 2021 to 2025 in 17 South Coast communities, from the version of the data FEMA refreshed Oct. 14, 2026, which runs through Sept. 8, 2026. We counted single-family homes only, using FEMA's own building codes, and left out canceled policies. Of the 3,776 single-family policies in 2021, 120 that took effect from October on were priced under the new system; leaving out all 1,081 of the 2021 single-family policies that took effect from October on moves the 2021 median to $1,105 from $1,078. A policy's cost is FEMA's total of premium, reserve fund assessment, federal policy fee and surcharge. We used the median, the middle policy, so a handful of very high or very low bills do not skew the figure. The dollar figures are not adjusted for inflation. FEMA says the data lags its system of record and is not an official federal report. The figures cover National Flood Insurance Program policies, including those sold by private insurers on FEMA's behalf, not private flood insurance.
For more on what South Coast homeowners pay, SC360 has reported that single-family tax bills rose in all 19 communities it tracks.
Label: Reported by us, from the town's posted records.
Notes
Every figure comes from FEMA's National Flood Insurance Program policy records, refreshed Oct. 14, 2026, with records as of Sept. 8, 2026, and FEMA's July 2025 fact sheet on Risk Rating 2.0. We read them on Nov. 1. The counts, medians, percentiles and shares below the full-risk rate were figured from the policy records for single-family homes, leaving out canceled policies, and the change figures compare the 2021 and 2025 medians, in dollars not adjusted for inflation. We checked each date against a calendar. No person or agency is criticized in this story.
Corrections
No corrections to this story. If something here is wrong, tell us. Every correction is dated on the story and listed in our public log.
Sources (3)
- FEMA OpenFEMA, NFIP Redacted Policies, version 3Policy records for the NFIP communities of Wareham, Marion, Mattapoisett, Fairhaven, New Bedford, Dartmouth, Westport, Fall River, Swansea, Somerset, Acushnet, Freetown, Dighton, Taunton, Rochester, Rehoboth and Seekonk with effective dates in 2021 through 2025; dataset refreshed Oct. 14, 2026, records as of Sept. 8, 2026. Read Nov. 1, 2026.
- FEMA OpenFEMA data dictionary, NFIP Redacted Policies v3Definitions of policy cost, full-risk premium, occupancy type and policy count. Read Nov. 1, 2026.
- FEMA Fact Sheet: Understanding Risk Rating 2.0Dated July 2025: start dates, how rates are set, the 18% cap on most yearly increases. Read Nov. 1, 2026.