Home buyout without relocation: An examination of dissonant hazard mitigation perceptions among Gulf Coast residents

Abstract

Relocation has become a major thrust of hazard mitigation policy. Home buyout programs are currently the primary policy tool to facilitate permanent voluntary relocation of households out of flood-prone areas. This study seeks to evaluate public perceptions of relocation and home buyouts to better understand: Are home buyouts perceived by the public as a means to relocate away from risk? If not—who has dissonant perceptions? An original survey of Gulf Coast residents demonstrates that about 30% of households have dissonant perceptions of home buyout programs in relation to relocation away from disaster risk. Among those with aligned perceptions, individuals with higher risk perceptions and disaster experiences are more likely to consider relocating and participating in a home buyout; the same is not evident among those with dissonant perceptions. The individual-level factors associated with dissonant relocation-home buyout perceptions suggest that this part of the community may be misdirecting efforts and resources dedicated for community-wide hazard risk reduction. These findings should be used to develop more efficient policy tools to facilitate retreat from the most flood-prone areas.