House elevation
around Houma

Terrebonne Parish: Houma, Bayou Cane, Gibson, Schriever and the bayou towns

Raised houses are part of the landscape here. Houses stand on tall pilings at Cocodrie, and in October 2002 raised houses at Pointe-aux-Chenes stood above the water Hurricane Lili's surge pushed in. The parish has used FEMA grants to raise homes in groups. Its current mitigation program covers elevating, or demolishing and rebuilding, homes that were substantially damaged by Hurricane Francine, flooded repeatedly, or are at risk and carry flood insurance. Applicants must hold an NFIP policy. Application windows open and close, so check with the parish.

Lafourche Parish: Thibodaux, Raceland, Lockport, Larose, Cut Off, Galliano, Golden Meadow

Thibodaux, Raceland, Lockport and the towns south of them follow Bayou Lafourche toward the Gulf. We don't have program details for Lafourche and won't guess at them. The parish permit office is the place to ask which permit, height and grant rules apply to your lot before you collect quotes for a house elevation or a leveling job.

Restore Louisiana: both parishes

Restore Louisiana is a state program, so it applies on either side of the parish line. Its standard is the highest of several heights, and one of them is base flood elevation plus 2 feet. It says it will not fund elevating a slab-on-grade house; see slab homes and elevated rebuilds. Whether you qualify is the program's decision.

Bayou-side houses, camps and manufactured homes

The form asks whether the home is site-built, manufactured or a camp, and what it stands on today: slab, pier and beam, crawl space or pilings. Say which, and add photos if you can. The answers change how a house can be lifted and what a quote has to cover, so contractors want them up front. Not sure? "Not sure" is a valid answer.