Why The U.S. Government Is Buying And Destroying Homes

CNBC

The U.S. government is buying up and destroying American homes. Homeowners in the floodplain are choosing to voluntarily sell their doomed properties to the government. Since 1989, FEMA has helped fun around 45 to 50,000 home buyouts. FEMA is estimated to have spent somewhere around $4 billion on the project so far but that’s just a fraction of the total amount spend on buyouts, since there are programs outside of FEMA. But not everyone is convinced buyouts are a good idea. Watch the video to find out how floodplain buyouts work and if they are helping or hurting American homeowners. Chapters: 0:00 Introduction 1:39 How buyouts work 6:15 Costs 12:10 Managed retreat Produced and Edited by: Lindsey Jacobson Animation: Christina Locopo, Jason Reginato Additional Camer by: Andrea Miller Editorial Assistance from: Katherine Tarasov, Charlotte Morabito Additional footage: Getty Images, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, WCAU, Charlotte-Mecklenburg County, WOWT, Andrea Jones Additional sources: FEMA, Congressional Research Service Special Thanks to: John Wendel, Debra Schooley, Doris Breitfeller, Jonathan Altino » Subscribe to CNBC: https://cnb.cx/SubscribeCNBC » Subscribe to CNBC TV: https://cnb.cx/SubscribeCNBCtelevision About CNBC: From 'Wall Street' to 'Main Street' to award winning original documentaries and Reality TV series, CNBC has you covered. Experience special sneak peeks of your favorite shows, exclusive video and more. Want to make extra money outside of your day job? Take CNBC’s new online course How to Earn Passive Income Online to learn about common passive income streams. Register today and save 50% with discount code EARLYBIRD: https://cnb.cx/3Iwblnk Connect with CNBC News Online Get the latest news: https://www.cnbc.com/ Follow CNBC on LinkedIn: https://cnb.cx/LinkedInCNBC Follow CNBC News on Instagram: https://cnb.cx/InstagramCNBC Follow CNBC News on Facebook: https://cnb.cx/LikeCNBC Follow CNBC on Threads: https://cnb.cx/threads Follow CNBC News on X: https://cnb.cx/FollowCNBC #CNBC Why The U.S. Government Is Buying And Destroying Homes