LOMR-F: LOMR-F survey, LOMR-F application requirements and cost to remove a filled lot from the flood zone
A LOMR-F (Letter of Map Revision based on Fill) is the FEMA letter that removes a lot or a building from the Special Flood Hazard Area after fill has raised it above the base flood elevation. You need a licensed land surveyor or professional engineer to certify the elevations on MT-1 Form 2, your local floodplain administrator to sign Form 3, and FEMA's review fee: $425 for a single lot through the Online LOMC tool or $525 on paper. FEMA answers within 60 days of receiving complete data. The survey itself typically costs $400 to $900 per lot, and the number that decides the outcome is not the pad height but the lowest ground touching the structure, attached deck posts and garage included.
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LOMR-F vs LOMA: which letter do you actually need?
FEMA issues three closely related letters, and ordering the wrong one wastes a review cycle. The test is simple: was fill placed on the property? If the ground was naturally at or above the base flood elevation and the map simply drew the flood zone too broadly, you want a LOMA, which is free. If the lot or the building pad was raised with fill, FEMA treats the request as a revision based on fill, which is a LOMR-F, and it carries a review fee. A CLOMR-F is the conditional version you can request before the fill goes in, to learn whether the finished grading plan would qualify.
The people who buy this service are mostly builders and developers. A typical case: a subdivision in Zone A where the site contractor raised the building pads two feet, and the lots now have to come out of the flood zone so buyers' lenders stop requiring flood insurance at closing. The other common buyer is an owner who bought a house built on a filled pad and just received a flood insurance requirement from the lender. Both need the same thing from a surveyor: certified elevations, tied to the same datum as the Flood Insurance Study, on FEMA's MT-1 Form 2.
Everything on this page comes from FEMA's published fee schedule, the MT-1 application instructions, the regulation at 44 CFR 65.5 and NFIP Technical Bulletin 10 (March 2023). If your lot was never filled, start with the LOMA flood zone removal guide instead. If you only need a certificate for insurance rating or a permit, the elevation certificate page covers that product.
How much does a LOMR-F cost?
A LOMR-F has two cost lines: FEMA's review fee, which is fixed and published, and the surveyor's elevation work, which you shop. FEMA's schedule has applied to every request postmarked on or after February 20, 2015. The online tool is $100 cheaper on every fee-bearing line.
| Request | Paper MT-1 forms | Online LOMC | When it applies |
|---|---|---|---|
| LOMA, single or multiple lots | No fee | No fee | Natural ground already above the BFE, no fill |
| LOMR-F, single lot or structure | $525 | $425 | Fill already placed on one lot or under one building |
| LOMR-F, multiple lots or structures | $900 | $800 | One request covering several filled lots, typical for a subdivision |
| CLOMR-F, single lot or structure | $600 | $500 | Before fill is placed, to test a proposed grading plan |
| CLOMR-F, multiple lots or structures | $900 | $800 | Before fill, several lots in one request |
| LOMR-F as-built after a CLOMR-F, single | $425 | $325 | Final letter once the approved fill is in place |
| LOMR-F as-built after a CLOMR-F, multiple | $800 | $700 | Final letter for a multi-lot conditional approval |
| Surveyor elevation certification, per lot | $400 to $900 | $400 to $900 | Field survey tied to the FIS datum, MT-1 Form 2 signed and sealed |
Budget for a single filled lot: about $825 to $1,425 for the survey and the FEMA review using the online tool. Add any local floodplain permit fee and, where the community asks for it before signing Form 3, a compaction or geotechnical report from whoever designed the fill, which is what takes many single lot LOMR-F projects to $1,400 to $3,000. The multi-lot fee is the reason developers batch lots: at $800 online, one request covering twelve filled lots costs FEMA review of about $67 a lot, against $425 each if filed one at a time. Surveyor pricing per lot also drops when the crew shoots a whole phase in one visit. FEMA waives the fee only in narrow cases, including map errors, natural changes and federally sponsored projects.
LOMR-F requirements: the elevation that decides your request
FEMA does not look at how high the pad is. It compares one specific elevation to the base flood elevation, and which elevation depends on what you are asking to remove. This is where most denied requests fail.
| What you want removed | Elevation FEMA compares to the BFE | Common way it fails |
|---|---|---|
| A vacant lot or part of a lot | The lowest ground elevation on the legally defined property | One low corner, a swale or a ditch at the rear lot line sits below the BFE |
| A building on fill | Lowest adjacent grade: the lowest ground touching the structure, including attached decks, patios, stairs, deck supports and garage | The pad is high but a deck post or a garage apron sits in lower ground |
| Both the lot and the building | Both the lowest point on the lot and the lowest floor of the structure | The building qualifies, the back of the lot does not |
| A building elevated on posts or piers | Every part of the structure, including the posts | Floor is above the BFE but any pier or piling is below it: not removed |
| A building with a crawl space | Lowest adjacent grade, with the crawl space classified by depth | A crawl space floor more than 2.0 feet below grade is treated as a basement |
| A lot in Zone AO | Lowest adjacent grade above the surrounding grade by the depth on the map | No drainage path shown, or the structure is not on an elevated pad |
| A lot touching the regulatory floodway | Same elevations, plus Form 3 Section B signed by the community | Fill in the floodway itself: a map-change request under MT-2, not a letter |
Two datum details catch experienced crews. The surveyor has to report elevations in the same vertical datum as the Flood Insurance Study, NGVD 29 or NAVD 88, or supply the conversion. And in areas with ground subsidence, which FEMA names Harris County, Texas as an example of, the most recently adjusted elevation reference mark must be used, or the elevations will not match the BFE they are compared against. A surveyor who does elevation certificate surveys in your county will know which benchmarks the local FIS uses.
What goes into a LOMR-F application
The regulation (44 CFR 65.5) and the MT-1 instructions list the same core package. Forms 1 and 2 are required on every request; Form 3 is required whenever fill has been placed or is proposed.
- Form 1, Property Information. Completed by the owner or the owner's representative: address, legal description, what is being removed, and whether fill was placed.
- Form 2, Elevation Form. Certified by a licensed land surveyor or registered professional engineer (architects in some states). It carries the lowest lot elevation and or the lowest adjacent grade to the nearest tenth of a foot, the BFE and its source, the datum, and latitude and longitude to five decimal places.
- Form 3, Community Acknowledgment. Signed by your local floodplain administrator, confirming the community has issued the permits and that the land and structures are reasonably safe from flooding. No signature, no LOMR-F. Get this conversation started before the survey is ordered.
- The recorded deed or recorded plat, showing book and page and the recorder's seal. If the property is not on a recorded plat, a tax map or another map that locates it.
- A topographic map or other information showing existing ground elevations and the date the fill was placed, certified by the surveyor or engineer.
- Endangered Species Act documentation, for a CLOMR-F. A conditional request needs proof of ESA compliance before FEMA reviews it: an incidental take permit or statement, a not likely to adversely affect determination, or a no effect concurrence letter from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service or NMFS. For a LOMR-F on fill already placed, you must comply with the ESA on your own; FEMA does not review it for you.
- The review fee, paid with the online submission or enclosed with the paper package. A LOMA carries no fee at all.
Two things builders are told about a LOMR-F that are not true
"FEMA requires fill compacted to 95 percent Standard Proctor." That figure comes from the 2001 edition of Technical Bulletin 10, and it is still copied into guides and contracts. The March 2023 edition, which replaced it, says plainly that the NFIP does not specify requirements for the design and placement of fill in flood zones. It points instead to the building codes and ASCE 24, which call for structural fill placed in lifts of no more than 12 inches, specified compaction densities and side slopes no steeper than 1 on 1.5, and it leaves the reasonably safe from flooding decision to your community. In practice this means the compaction spec that matters is the one your floodplain administrator will accept before signing Form 3. Ask for it in writing before the site contractor places a single lift.
"Once FEMA issues the LOMR-F, the flood insurance requirement is gone." The federal mandate is gone. The lender's discretion is not. FEMA's own instructions say it remains the lending institution's prerogative to require flood insurance as a condition of the loan, and they note that historically about 25 percent of flood claims come from outside the Special Flood Hazard Area. If the lender agrees to waive the requirement, the owner can get a pro rata refund of the current policy year's premium, provided no claim is pending or paid that year, by sending the LOMR-F and the lender's waiver to the agent who sold the policy.
A CLOMR-F does not remove anything either. It is a comment on a proposed plan. Once the fill is in, a second request with as-built elevations is needed for the actual LOMR-F, which is why the as-built line in the fee table exists.
How to get a LOMR-F without a second review cycle
1.
Talk to the floodplain administrator before the fill goes in
Confirm the floodplain development permit, the fill specification the community will accept, and whether the community wants a CLOMR-F first. The official who issues the permit is the one who later signs Form 3. Fill placed without a permit is the most common reason a request stalls, because FEMA defers it until the community resolves the violation.
2.
Decide between a CLOMR-F and going straight to a LOMR-F
The NFIP does not require a CLOMR-F, but on a multi-lot project it buys certainty before you spend money on dirt. Budget $500 to $800 online for the conditional review, plus the ESA documentation, then the as-built fee afterward.
3.
Order the survey after final grading, not before
The surveyor needs the finished grade around each foundation, including decks, stoops and garage slabs, because those set the lowest adjacent grade. Shooting a pad before landscaping is finished means shooting it again. Ask for elevations in the FIS datum and a topographic exhibit of each lot.
4.
Get Form 3 signed, then file online
Send the signed Forms 1 to 3, the recorded deed or plat, and the topographic information through FEMA's Online LOMC tool, which is $100 cheaper than paper. FEMA issues the determination within 60 days of receiving all required data, and an additional data request restarts that clock.
5.
Deliver the letter to the lender and the insurance agent
The LOMR-F removes the federal purchase requirement. The lender still decides whether to waive insurance, and the refund only flows once the agent has both the letter and the waiver.
LOMR-F questions
What is the difference between a LOMA and a LOMR-F?
A LOMA removes property whose natural ground was already at or above the base flood elevation, and it is free. A LOMR-F removes property that was raised above the base flood elevation by placing fill, and FEMA charges $425 online or $525 on paper for a single lot. The LOMR-F also needs the community to sign Form 3.
How much does a LOMR-F cost?
For one lot, FEMA charges $425 through the Online LOMC tool or $525 on paper, and multiple lots in one request cost $800 online or $900 on paper. The licensed surveyor who certifies the elevations typically charges $400 to $900 per lot, less per lot when a whole phase is surveyed in one visit. Local permit fees are extra.
How long does a LOMR-F take?
FEMA notifies the requester within 60 days of receiving all required data. The clock starts when the package is complete, so a missing Form 3 signature or a datum question adds time. Allow one to three weeks before filing for the survey and the community sign-off.
Who can certify a LOMR-F elevation form?
A licensed land surveyor or a registered professional engineer certifies MT-1 Form 2, and some states also allow architects. The certifier gives a license number and expiration date and signs the form. Check your state board rules, because not every state authorizes engineers and architects to certify elevations.
Does a LOMR-F remove the flood insurance requirement?
It removes the federal requirement to buy flood insurance as a condition of a federally backed loan. The lender can still require coverage at its discretion. If the lender waives it, the owner can request a pro rata refund of the current year's premium, provided no claim was paid or is pending that policy year.
Can you get a LOMR-F if the fill is in the floodway?
Not through the MT-1 letter process. Fill placed in the regulatory floodway requires a map revision under the MT-2 process with a hydraulic analysis showing no increase in flood levels. A property only inadvertently shown inside the floodway can use MT-1 with Section B of Form 3 signed by the community.
Do I need a CLOMR-F before placing fill?
The NFIP does not require one, but many communities do, so ask the floodplain administrator. A CLOMR-F costs $500 online for a single lot and requires Endangered Species Act documentation before FEMA reviews it. It does not remove the property from the flood zone; you still file the as-built LOMR-F afterward.
Can one LOMR-F cover multiple lots?
Yes. One request can cover several lots or structures for a flat fee of $800 online or $900 on paper, and the surveyor lists every lot on the Form 2 elevation table. Each lot is judged on its own elevations, so one low lot does not sink the others, but it will not be removed.
Why was my LOMR-F denied?
Usually because the compared elevation is below the base flood elevation: a low corner of the lot, a deck post or garage apron in lower ground, or piers under an elevated house. Other causes are a missing community signature, fill without a permit, or elevations reported in a different datum from the Flood Insurance Study.
Related pages
- Elevation certificate cost: FEMA flood elevation certificate
- Elevation certificate surveyors
- How to get a LOMA: flood zone removal
- Do I need an elevation certificate for flood insurance?
- Elevation certificate cost in San Antonio
- Elevation certificate cost in Tampa
- Topographic survey cost
- As-built survey cost
- Land survey quote: compare 3
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