Wind mitigation in Boca Raton: why the city's design wind speeds matter at renewal

Section 627.0629 of the Florida Statutes says a rate filing for residential property insurance has to include actuarially reasonable credits or discounts (or other rate differences, or deductible reductions) for houses fitted with features shown to reduce windstorm loss. Its list of features is a floor, not a ceiling.

In plain terms, the named features are wind uplift prevention, the roof's strength and how its covering performs, the connections that hold the house together (roof to wall, and wall to floor to foundation), and the openings (opening protection, plus the strength of windows, doors and skylights).

Credits for features meeting the minimum requirements of the Florida Building Code belong in the filing too. The statute puts no size on any credit, and neither does this page.

The City of Boca Raton's Building Department explains its reasoning in a wind loads memorandum. Broward County, directly to the south, is part of the High Velocity Hurricane Zone under the Florida Building Code, and the memo says that closeness leaves Boca Raton buildings facing virtually the same wind as buildings inside that zone. So the city set one design wind speed per risk category citywide, measured as a 3-second gust:

The building department sets the speed by the building's risk category under the Florida Building Code. The memo also places buildings in Exposure Category C unless Exposure D applies, and it applies these speeds to new buildings and to existing ones being repaired, renovated, altered or reconstructed.

Opening protection has its own section in the city's code, Sec. 19-96, which refers to "the wind borne debris region as defined in this building code." It is also one of the features the state rate filing law names, so it is worth knowing what guards your windows and doors.

My Safe Florida Home, a state program, offers free wind mitigation inspections and grants to eligible homeowners. You apply by creating an account on its site, and the program decides who qualifies, so check there before paying for an inspection elsewhere.

If a company also wants a 4-point inspection on an older house, this guide to passing a 4-point inspection explains that separate report.