If your home is in or near a flood zone and you have a mortgage or home equity loan, it is likely that your lender will require you to carry flood insurance. In order to determine a structure’s relative risk of flooding and thus determine the applicable flood insurance rate, the elevation of its features in relation to the flood plain must be determined. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has created the Elevation Certificate to do just this. SHA will come out to your home and complete the Elevation Certificate so that you can have the documentation required to purchase flood insurance.