Integrating Community Concerns and Recommendations Into Home Buyout and Relocation Policy

Abstract

Home buyout programs are implemented in the aftermath of disasters, with the goal of moving households or entire communities out of areas that are at risk for a future hazard event. Buyout programs offer residents pre-disaster market value for their homes to relocate away from a hazardous area, and land purchased through buyouts is required to be maintained as open space in perpetuity. Our understanding of how these programs impact affected households and communities, however, is limited. Using a mixed methods design, 36 residents of Oakwood Beach, NY, were asked to describe their experiences with a home buyout program that was implemented in their community after Hurricane Sandy in 2012. While survey results showed that residents were generally satisfied with the buyout, a different picture emerged when they were asked to qualitatively describe the process of being bought out. Their experiences centered around three themes: (i) lack of information and communication from buyout officials; (ii) challenges surrounding the process of sale; and (iii) the buyout as a foregone conclusion. In light of these findings, recommendations are made to inform future home buyout programs and relocation policies.KEY WORDS: disaster planning and preparedness, disaster recovery

When rebuilding no longer means recovery: the stress of staying put after Hurricane Sandy

“…Due to the lengthy timeline of most buyout programs, it is likely that some of our survey participants were still in the midst of leaving their old homes and transitioning to new ones; more longitudinal studies are needed to understand potential increases in stress over time for those who move, as they may struggle to develop ties in new places (Binder et al 2019 ), or face increased housing instability in the future (Elliott and Howell 2017 ). While Oakwood Beach residents reported satisfaction with the buyout when surveyed in general terms, interviews revealed mixed feelings (Baker et al 2018 ). Such studies show experiences of retreat to be complex and nuanced, involving trade-offs and lingering effects unlikely to be readily apparent even to participants themselves.…”

“…Yet even in cases like this decisions to take a buyout are complex, involving various interacting individual, household-level, social, and contextual factors (Robinson et al 2018 ; Seebauer and Winkler 2020 ). Decisions can change over time (Solecki et al 2017 ), and participants may reevaluate their initial preference or look back with regret as they move through the process (Binder and Greer 2016 ; Baker et al 2018 ). Understanding buyout outcomes requires attention to such longer-term trajectories and transformations, including the places where people move and those they leave behind.…”

“…It is also worth considering whether participants moving from higher-income, whiter neighborhoods were contributing to neighborhood change, even displacement, in their destinations—a buyout-fueled form of “climate gentrification” (Keenan et al 2018 )—given that historically disinvested higher-ground parts of Staten Island were undergoing redevelopment after Sandy. At the same time, interviews with some participants reveal their difficulty accessing comparable housing elsewhere in the borough (Baker et al 2018 ). Compensation exceeding pre-storm value may still not account for the lower cost of flood-prone housing, and the timing of an acquired property’s closing and “duplication of benefits” rules, which subtract prior disaster aid and insurance payments from the purchase price, are program elements that present additional barriers (ibid.).…”

Why climate migration is not managed retreat: Six justifications

“…On the issue of discourse, we argue that labels such as ‘climate refugees’ further reinforces a disempowering vulnerability narrative that permits governmental agencies to ‘act upon’ people rather than ‘act with them’ to mitigate current and future climatic risk. Whereas what is needed is a transformative resilience-based discourse that fosters the self-determination of communities and the agency of individuals in decision making, planning, and implementation, – as seen in the case of New York residents after Hurricane Sandy ( Baker et al, 2018 ). Although, this example also suggests that the socio-economic status of affected populations, the lack of information and communication, and the persuasiveness of local mitigation officials, – can influence the acceptance of retreat, thereby undermining people’s agency ( De Vries and Fraser, 2012 , Baker et al, 2018 ).…”

Promoting equity in retreat through voluntary property buyout programs

“…Tens of thousands of households across the nation have relocated through buyout programs, often in post-disaster contexts (Braamskamp and Penning-Rowsell 2018;Mach et al 2019). However, concerns have been raised about the equity of buyout processes and outcomes (Baker et al 2018;Gotham 2014;Mach et al 2019;Muñoz and Tate 2016;Siders 2019). The links among environment, climate, and justice are unavoidable (Bullard and Johnson 2000;Schlosberg 2012;Schlosberg and Collins 2014;Shue 1992).…”