Hurricane Season – are you ready?

The 2005 hurricane season marked a time where Miami’s  real estate market began its major slow down.  Since that time, real estate insurance in some cases has doubled and people’s fear of major hurricanes hitting South Florida have contributed, amongst other things, to the slow down. Recently, we have been showing properties to potential buyers, some from out of town, and two of the questions they ask is whether the area we are showing is within the evacuation zone or if the area is at high risk during a major storm. This map will give you a good idea of the evacuation zones and which areas, because of geographic location, are at higher risk. Miami-Dade County has indentified three hurricane evacuation zones based on potential storm surge.  it is important to know if you reside in one o the zones and to have an evacuation plan in place.  Once evacuation order is given, Miami-Dade Transit will provide transportation to Red Cross Hurricane Evacuation Centers.  Residents can call 3-1-1 to find the bus pickup location closest to them.  Evacuation Centers are provided to those people that don’t have a place to go during a storm, either a friend or family member to provide temporary shelter. This map, together with a hurricane guide, is prepared yearly by the Miami-Dade County.  Within this guide, called MIAMI-DADE NOW, you will find information on how to develop a hurricane plan, emergency information numbers, safety measures (including generator safety) and a useful hurricane preparedness check list. Unfortunately, as real estate professionals, we cannot predict and much less guarantee if your property will be hit by a hurricane.  But we can inform you of resources that are available to help you prepare for these natural disasters.