How much flood risk does Goodhue County actually carry?
Goodhue County lands at the 53.6th percentile of FEMA's National Risk Index for flooding, "Relatively Low" territory — below the national norm for flood hazard — with the hazard driven by inland rivers and flash flooding rather than the coast — FEMA's model puts a flood event here at about once every 1 years. That's a county-wide figure, not a per-address one — FEMA's parcel maps are a live lookup, not a bulk file.
Goodhue County's flood-insurance compliance gap
Out of 307 homes FEMA counts inside Goodhue County's mapped flood zone, 53 carry the flood policy federal law requires there — 17.3% compliance, short of full coverage. Across all residential structures in Goodhue County, not just the ones FEMA mandates, 0.4% carry an NFIP policy — most flood damage nationally happens outside the mapped high-risk zone, so that broader number matters too.
Where Goodhue County ranks
Goodhue County sits at rank 1521 of 3144 counties on FEMA's flood hazard scale (1 is worst) and rank 1035 of 3144 by population (1 is biggest). About 47,982 people live in Goodhue County, Minnesota, spread over 756.742 square miles.
What to do next if you own or are buying in Goodhue County
Across all of Goodhue County's 18,074 residential structures, 78 carry an NFIP policy today — a county-wide count that still can't tell you one address's own mapped zone.
More on how this number was built
The methodology guide shows exactly which FEMA and Census tables feed Goodhue County's numbers. The guide to what the Special Flood Hazard Area actually means explains why the mandatory-insurance rule exists and who it applies to.