Often times a perfectlyy good real estate deal can sink like the Titanic when it is determined that a home or the land it is on  lies within a flood plane.

 This can happen during  any numeber of stages during the course of a transaction .....but is generally discovered, if not already known by the sellers, when the survey is performed or occasionally when an astute agent checks local flood plane maps of record including municipality or FEMA record. Additionally lenders often times use service companies to independently check the records to determine flood plane status on a property. Are these sources gospel?

Not always!

These maps are being amended all the time, so even if you have a pretty current one chances are that it may no longer be current. You can check alternate sources including other surveyors, municipalities and even FEMA, but the lender is still going to go with the independent source. So it will require some effort to convince that source if they are wrong.

This is why it is imperative that agents do a little homework themselves when listing or selling a property. It is always a headache and embarrassment to get almost to closing only to discover the property is in the flood plane

Of course there is always good old flood insurance if the buyer is willing.