Metropolitan New York ranks as America’s largest hurricane exposure zone, Cotality report finds

- New York beats major Florida and Texas metros with 3.27M+ homes at risk from hurricane winds and storm surge

- More than $12.26T in national property value is exposed to hurricane wind risk

- ~1M homes face severe flood risk outside mandatory insurance zones - driving estimated $1.73B in annual losses

IRVINE, Calif., May 19, 2026 - More than 3.27 million New York homes face moderate or greater hurricane wind risk, representing nearly $1.93 trillion in reconstruction cost value (RCV) - the highest concentration in the nation - according to a new report from Cotality, a leading global property information, analytics, and data-enabled solutions provider. This represents only a small fraction of the more than 32.2 million U.S. homes at risk nationwide, accounting for more than $12.26 trillion in RCV.

Cotality's 2026 Hurricane Risk Report, released today, finds that hurricane risk increasingly extends far beyond traditional coastal danger zones - leaving nearly one million homes underinsured and exposed to severe flood risk.

New York emerges as nation's largest exposure zone

Despite hurricanes being more commonly associated with the Gulf Coast and Southeast, one of the surprising findings of Cotality's report is that the New York metropolitan area ranks first nationally for the number of homes at risk from both hurricane wind and storm surge - driven by the region's immense population density and high coastal property values.

Houston ranks second to New York with 2.17 million at-risk homes and roughly $824 billion in exposed value, while Miami ranks third with 2.04 million homes at risk and $616 billion in RCV.

New York also leads the U.S. in storm surge exposure, with more than 631,000 homes at risk and roughly $329 billion in RCV. Miami ranks second with nearly 495,000 at-risk homes, followed by Tampa, New Orleans, and Cape Coral.

"While hurricanes hit the Northeast less frequently than the Gulf Coast, the region's immense population density and property value mean the stakes are incredibly high," said Maiclaire Bolton-Smith, Vice President of Insurance Market Insights at Cotality. "It's critical that homeowners in the northeast understand that while landfalling hurricanes may not be as frequent as other states, the risk is still real.

"A single event can cause historic financial loss, making early mitigation a critical investment that pays significant dividends when a storm inevitably makes landfall."

Florida and Texas remain largest at-risk states

At the state level, Florida remains the nation's single largest concentration of hurricane exposure, with approximately 8.25 million homes at moderate or greater risk from hurricane winds, representing more than $2.56 trillion in reconstruction cost value. Texas ranks second nationally for hurricane wind exposure with nearly 4.8 million homes at risk, followed by North Carolina with more than 3.1 million exposed homes.

Florida also leads the nation in storm surge exposure, with approximately 2.47 million homes at risk and nearly $748 billion in exposed property value - more than three times greater than Louisiana, the second-highest state for storm surge exposure.

Hidden flood risk leaves ~1 million U.S. homes exposed and underinsured

Cotality's report also found that more than 927,000 homes, representing $405 billion in property value, face high hurricane-related flood risk despite sitting outside federally mandated flood insurance zones. Together, these properties account for an estimated $1.73 billion in annual flood losses. This hidden flood risk can lead to homes being underinsured and underprepared for the risks facing them.

Louisiana has some of the highest concentrations of hidden flood risk. Orleans Parish alone accounts for more than $41.8 billion in at-risk property value outside mandatory flood insurance zones, followed by neighboring Jefferson Parish with $28.6 billion. Brevard County, Florida, Harris County, Texas, and Suffolk County, New York, round out the five most exposed counties.

"Traditional flood maps have long provided a vital baseline for the industry, but as hurricane-driven rainfall becomes more intense and reaches further inland, it's clear that seeing the full picture requires a higher-definition lens," said Bolton-Smith. "By looking beyond traditional boundaries and analyzing structural elevation data down to the individual property level, we are expanding the view for homeowners and insurers to help prevent unexpected financial losses."

To read the full Hurricane Risk Report, visit the Cotality website.
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About Cotality

Cotality accelerates data, insights, and workflows across the property ecosystem to enable industry professionals to surpass their ambitions and impact society. With billions of data signals across the life cycle of a property, we unearth hidden risks and transformative opportunities for agents, lenders, carriers, and innovators. Get to know us at cotality.com.

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