Know How Water Runoff Will Affect Your Property

by Kevin Smith Author

The Rain

When Trisha Yearwood warbled about the ubiquitousness (and romance) of precipitation in the Peach State in her 2005 country hit, “The Georgia Rain,” she wasn’t kidding. However, rain doesn’t fall exclusively on Jasper County Clay, and if you own a home in Alpharetta, GA, there’s a good chance you’ll be seeing a lot of it in northern Fulton County during the summer. You need to have a plan for water damage in Alpharetta should it affect your home.

Check Maps

That’s why it’s important to observe the floodplain designations and natural runoff tendencies of any property before you buy a house in this area. Before you even make an offer, you should check the Federal Emergency Management Agency maps, which are available online, to see if your potential home is in the risk zone for flooding. If it is, pass on the property. There are too many nice homes available in Milton and Alpharetta to put yourself at risk of losing everything should a 100-year flood overtake your home.

Know Your Land

If you’re in the clear for flooding, and you decide to purchase the house, you should still be aware of how the land handles water runoff. That’s because, from June to August, you’ll be seeing a lot of it due to the extra rains in the Southeast that are the result of tropical storms and hurricanes. Sometimes, droughts diminish the frequency of rainfall, but Georgia has a reputation for its relentlessly humid summers for a reason. If you haven’t lived in the northern portion of the Peach State before, be prepared for afternoon rain storms almost daily during any given summer.

The Devastation of Flooding

Water damage can run the gamut from a flooded basement to a cracked foundation, and you need to be aware of where water is hitting your home during these impromptu rainstorms as it gushes across the ground. For instance, if you have a finished, walk-in basement and water is not properly diverted away from your home, you could very well wind up with two inches of rain covering your carpets. If your home is built into a hill, make sure the water is diverted from the portion of the foundation that touches the soil. Otherwise, if it is allowed to continually soak the foundation, you could end up with a crack there that threatens to cave in.

Planning Ahead

Yes, rain is a serious thing in Georgia. That’s why you need to have a plan for water damage in Alpharetta. Prevention is better than a cure, however, and knowing how your property handles the influx of rain during a Georgia summer can potentially save you thousands of dollars in the long run by allowing you to avoid costly repairs to your home’s interior and foundation.