Jakony Tribune. Continue Reading at - WFLA
CORTEZ, Fla. (WFLA) — Renee Ratajczak is one of many mobile homeowners in Bradenton Beach anxiously awaiting an appraisal.
“We’re doing as we can with what we can and hoping for the best,” she explained.
Ratajczak is waiting to find out if the hurricanes left enough damage to her home to cost 50% of what it’s worth.
If it is, her road to recovery could become an uphill battle.
Down the street, Lenny Robinson has lived in his home in Paradise Bay Estates for 18 years.
“This is a dying breed here,” he explained. “They want condos.”
“They want high rises,” he continued. “They want to generate more tax revenue.”
Robinson is worried about being pushed out because of all of the hurricane damage.
So what is this 50/50 rule anyway?
We went to Manatee County Flood Plains Management Coordinator Cheryl Bagby to find out.
“If your structure is damaged and the cost to put your structure back to its original pre-damaged position, if that meets or exceeds 50% of the value of the structure, then you have to come into current flood compliance,” she said.
To do that Bagby says in most cases, it means elevating your home.
“Current compliance can mean a few different things, but in most cases, it means that the finished flood meets the required elevation,” she explained.
As for Robinson, he said, it’s the camaraderie that keeps him going.
“As far as fixing things and doing things, we’re doing as much as we can to help each other,” he said.
