How Strong is Your Home? New "Strong Homes Scale" from Federal Alliance for Safe Homes Gauges Building Strength in Disasters

Nonprofit introduces the Strong Homes Scale to help homeowners evaluate resilience and explore customized strengthening options for six different disaster types.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla., March 25, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- The Federal Alliance for Safe Homes (FLASH)® today launched Strong Homes Scale (Scale), a groundbreaking new tool designed to help homeowners assess their home's ability to withstand six natural disasters, including earthquakes, floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, wildfires, and winter storms. The Scale and new tools are part of the enhanced InspectToProtect.org platform that empowers users with information to answer the questions, "How will my home hold up in a disaster?" and "How can I make it stronger?"

FLASH created the offerings using research insights from a one-year behavior-focused study with homebuilders and homeowners to help identify priorities and informational needs. The focus groups and surveys revealed a profound disconnect: respondents expressed a high interest in disaster-resilient homes but did not understand how to identify or create one. While 47% of homebuyers ranked "sturdiness of construction" as a top priority, only 2% understood the vital role of building codes in achieving that sturdiness.

Building codes play a vital role in home survival during disasters, as highlighted in the recent Florida Resilience Story video showcasing homes that weathered Hurricanes Ian, Idalia, Helen, and Milton.

The new Scale closes the understanding gap regarding building codes by providing a simple, user-friendly way to gauge a home's construction features that help it withstand the six most common and costly U.S. disasters. The Scale and tools are free and can be used standalone or in conjunction with an in-person home inspection to understand resilient construction best practices for various weather and natural disasters.

Your Home's Resilience Potential - Demystified

The Scale provides users with what the research participants asked for—a simple, visual framework to identify modern resilience features for the home compared to features required in the original code, if any, followed when their house was built. The Scale is a home rating tool that compares methods and products in the home's original construction code with the current 2024 International Residential Code. The data provided on this website is derived in whole or in part from publicly available, individually researched, and source-provided data, including "as is" data via the Zestimate® API.

It is embedded in the enhanced InspectToProtect.org platform with new functionality and information identified through the research, including:

• Disaster Resilience Feature Information: Offers six peril checklists, 3D and 2D illustrations, links to building science technical manuals, videos, and advice for hiring contractors. Recommendations are based on engineering analysis, such as tornado suggestions for sealing roof decks from water intrusion, reinforcing roof systems, installing impact-resistant doors and windows, selecting a certified tornado safe room, and other methods to secure homes in severe and extreme winds.
• Building Code Lookup Tool: This tool allows users to discover which building codes apply to their residence and its resilience features.
• Disaster History: Indicates Presidentially-declared disasters for specific home locations to help prioritize resilience upgrades.
• Risk Identification: The FEMA National Risk Index is used to identify risks for addresses entered, along with a low, moderate, and high designation ranking.

How It Works

• Homeowners enter their home's address, city, or zip code into the tool.
• The Scale then provides a custom home strength rating and identifies ranked disaster risks in the area, such as earthquake, flood, hurricane, tornado, wildfire, or winter storm.
• Users then click on features to reflect post-construction upgrades and see how they may impact a home's overall resilience rating. For example, they may have:
  • Added hurricane shutters or impact-resistant windows,
  • Braced and bolted a foundation for earthquake resilience,
  • Reroofed using a sealed deck to prevent wind-driven rain intrusion, or,
  • Placed wire mesh over vents to prevent wildfire ember entry.
• Once they click on features they have added, the Scale rating will adjust dynamically.
• Users receive a printable checklist on their homes' resilience features and recommendations for upgrade options.

"The Strong Homes Scale is a game-changer because it provides custom information to families that increases safety and protects their valuable financial asset simultaneously," said FLASH President and CEO Leslie Chapman-Henderson. "Users will learn how their home compares to the latest model building codes and how to upgrade for a stronger, more disaster-resistant future."

For more information or to access the Strong Homes Scale, visit InspectToProtect.org.

About FLASH

The nonprofit Federal Alliance for Safe Homes (FLASH) is the country's leading consumer advocate for strengthening homes and safeguarding families from disasters. The FLASH partnership includes more than 100 innovative and diverse organizations that share a vision of making America a more disaster-resilient nation, including FEMA, Florida Division of Emergency Management, Huber Engineered Woods, International Code Council, ISO – Verisk Analytics, MyRadar, National Weather Service, Renew Financial, Simpson Strong-Tie, State Farm, and USAA. In 2008, FLASH and Disney opened the interactive weather experience StormStruck: A Tale of Two Homes in Lake Buena Vista, FL. FLASH's signature program No Code. No Confidence. – Inspect2Protect.org provides consumers with a one-of-a-kind building code transparency tool to identify their community's building code easily. Learn more about FLASH and access free consumer resources by visiting www.flash.org and www.Inspect2Protect.org, calling toll-free (877) 221- SAFE (7233), following @federalalliance on X, and Facebook.com/federalalliance.

SOURCE Federal Alliance for Safe Homes (FLASH)