A new report offers a data-driven assessment of flood-related risks on the commercial market in the US.
The report, ‘The 4th National Risk Assessment: Climbing Commercial Closures’, prepared by First Street Foundation and engineering and consulting firm Arup provides new insights for communities at risk of flooding. The report aggregates property-level data at the metro and state level.
This report employs novel techniques to assess the risk of flood damage to 3.6m retail, office, and multi-unit residential properties across the US and related economic impacts, considering today’s climate and the changes anticipated to happen over the next 30 years.
The report provides investors, business owners, financial institutions, and economists with crucial data on the extent of flood risk to commercial and multi-unit residential properties and helps to quantify economic loss associated with that risk in ways not previously possible.
Damage to commercial buildings has both revenue and downstream consequences for metropolitan areas and states. The annualised financial impact to local economies is expected to grow by 26.5% from $49.9bn in 2022 to $63.1bn in 2052.
Commercial real estate supports the economic heart of American cities and multi-unit residential properties also play an important part in keeping the economy moving by housing members of America’s workforce, many of whom have had to work from home during the pandemic.
As the frequency and severity of floods accelerate along with the changing climate, gaining a more comprehensive understanding of the total risk posed to these buildings and understanding the uneven effects of climate change across different metros and states is vital. M