Elevation Certificates in Harrison County, MS (2026)
Harrison County has some of the most extensive and complex FEMA flood zone designations in Mississippi. The Gulf Coast location, low elevations, extensive bayou drainage systems, and hurricane exposure have produced a mapped flood zone landscape that affects a large portion of the county's residential and commercial property. Elevation certificates are a routine and significant part of the local real estate and insurance market.
Flood Zones in Harrison County
Zone VE, FEMA's coastal high hazard designation, applies to beachfront and near-beachfront properties along the Harrison County coast. Zone VE requires buildings to be elevated above the Base Flood Elevation and adds specific documentation requirements to elevation certificates. Flood insurance premiums in Zone VE are the highest in the coastal flood insurance system.
Zone AE extends well inland from the coast, following the bayou systems and low-lying drainage corridors across much of the southern and central portions of the county. Back Bay of Biloxi, the bayou systems in D'Iberville and Long Beach, and the drainage corridors in the northern reaches of the county all generate Zone AE designations that affect residential properties.
Post-Katrina FEMA map revisions updated the flood zone boundaries significantly across Harrison County. Properties that were not in flood zones before Katrina may now be in Zone AE or Zone VE, and properties that were mapped may have had their boundaries adjusted. Owners of properties near zone boundaries benefit from checking current FEMA maps and obtaining elevation certificates to document their specific elevation.
Cost and Timeline
Elevation certificates in Harrison County cost $400 to $750. Inland properties in accessible locations fall at the lower end. Coastal Zone VE properties, properties with difficult access, and those requiring additional research run toward the higher end. Most certificates are completed in three to five business days after the site visit.
Find licensed surveyors who handle coastal elevation certificates in our Harrison County directory.