Homeowners who are required, all of a sudden, to carry flood insurance have a way to appeal their property's placement in a flood zone.

The process isn't simple -- not by a long shot. But following it could save you hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars, especially since premiums under the federal National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) keep getting bumped up.

First, a little background.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) recently remapped most of the country using 100-year flood plain projections. The result was that many homes were placed into flood zones that never before existed, despite the fact that many of them had never (or rarely) experienced flooding.

The bottom line: If a house's mortgage is touched by the government in any way -- insured by the Federal Housing Administration, backed by the Veterans Administraion or purchased by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac -- borrowers are now required to carry flood insurance. And some lenders now require coverage, no matter what.

Flood insurance is not a bad thing. Indeed, damage from flooding is costly: The average flood claim to the NFIP is $30,000. Flooding is the nation's most frequent natural disaster, and it's not always associated with hurricanes or broken dams. Floods can happen from busted pipes and torrential rains, and they occur in all 50 states.

Consequently, many borrowers elect to buy coverage, even if their lenders don't demand it. But if you don't want it and it isn't necessary, you shouldn't have to pay for it. And you may not have to, if you follow the steps set up by FEMA to appeal your flood zone designation.

To appeal your home's placement in what officially is called a "Special Flood Hazard Area," you must show that the lowest adjacent grade, or the lowest ground touching your home, is at or above the "base flood elevation." That's the elevation to which floodwater is projected to rise during a so-called "100-year flood," also called a "base flood."

Remember, though, the term "100-year" is something of a misnomer. It doesn't mean that a major flood happens once every 100 years. Rather, it means that the area has a 1 percent chance of flooding every year. Another name for it is the base floodplain.

Wow! And understanding all that is just the beginning of the process.

To start, you have to submit a request to FEMA for a Letter of Map Change, which, according to FEMA, "reflects an official revision/amendment to an effective Flood Insurance Rate Map." The map is said to offer much useful information and represents the official depiction of flood hazards for your community.

All of this is outlined on the FEMA webpage at fema.gov/information-homeowners, where you can start the step-by-step process and find out what supporting documents you might need. Follow the detailed instructions to ensure that your request is complete and logically structured.

Meanwhile, bipartisan legislation intended to remove barriers to the development of a private market alternative to Uncle Sam's program has cleared a key House committee by a resounding 53-0 vote.

"In many cases, we have found comparable private flood coverage is much less expensive than the NFIP product," according to Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner Teresa Miller.

Currently, only a few carriers -- most notably, Lloyd's of London -- offer flood insurance, primarily because many lenders are unsure if private coverage meets government requirements. Also, private companies may not cover higher-risk properties, leaving the NFIP as the only choice in those cases.

Another drawback to the development of a private market is that borrowers who switch to a private policy and then decide to return to the government's program will probably not be eligible anymore for any rate subsidy they enjoyed with the NFIP previously.

The bill by Florida representatives Dennis Ross and Patrick Murphy would require lenders to accept private coverage if it complies with state laws and regulations and includes the required limits of coverage. Acceptable policies would have to be issued by a company that is licensed, admitted or otherwise approved by the state in which the property is located.

Rookie homebuyers should have a better go at financing over the next few years, compared with those who have gone before them.

At least, that's the story as laid out at a recent meeting of lenders in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Speakers said they expected hundreds of thousands of first-time buyers to enter the housing market in the coming years, and talked about what lenders are doing to try to satisfy the coming demand for mortgages.

David Stevens, a former federal housing official who now leads the trade group Mortgage Bankers Association, said household formations will increase to about 1.6 million a year between 2015 and 2024, compared to the increase of 1.2 million a year between 2010 and 2014.

Millennials and minorities will drive this demographic boom, with two-thirds of new household formations coming from minorities, Stevens said at the Regional Conference of Mortgage Bankers.

People form new households either by marriage or by moving out of Mom's house (or both). These new "households" either rent apartments or houses, or buy places of their own.

The popular wisdom suggests they will become renters first. But Stevens believes ownership may soon come first, especially for those not saddled with student loans. If ownership doesn't come first, than at least it will follow soon after an initial rental period, he predicts.

"The homeownership rate will go up again," he told the conference. "Younger renters want a home."

The ownership rate has plunged since the mortgage crisis of 2008. But in tandem, the rental sector has become tight and less affordable. Which means owning a home rather than leasing one is now a better option, in many places.

The challenge, said Regina Lowrie, a former MBA chair, will be "to access credit."

But on that score, major players already are looking forward. One is mortgage giant Fannie Mae, which has a program called HomeReady.

As described by Jennifer Whip, a vice president and head of customer management for Fannie Mae, HomeReady is designed to provide expanded mortgage eligibility in low-income, minority and disaster-impacted communities through low down payments and other features.

Fannie Mae isn't a lender itself, but it and its cousin, Freddie Mac, drive an enormous percentage of the mortgage market by purchasing loans from primary lenders. That helps lenders replenish their supplies of cash so they can make loans to more and more homebuyers.

Finding the up-front money is always a major obstacle for any borrower, but it is especially difficult for those of modest means. Under the HomeReady program, though, Fannie will buy loans with only a 3 percent down payment. Better yet, other sources of funds -- say, a gift from Dad -- can be used to help make a down payment and pay closing costs, so it is possible young buyers will need little or no money of their own.

Fannie and Freddie require all borrowers to obtain private mortgage insurance on any loan with less than 20 percent down. The insurance, which can be expensive, sometimes adding several hundreds dollars to the monthly house payment, serves as a backstop in case a borrower defaults on his loan. But for HomeReady, Fannie Mae has adopted a more flexible mortgage insurance program that trims premiums substantially.

Whip said HomeReady represents her company's attempt to get ahead of the next wave of buyers. Fannie Mae sees "a demographic sea change in the housing market, characterized by the rise of the millennials, increased diversity and a growing elderly population," she said. "And new household growth is being driven by traditionally underserved segments."

Radian Guaranty, a private mortgage insurer, is yet another big mortgage market player looking to cash in with future homebuyers. It has built a robust website full of advice for newbies on obtaining financing. The site -- achievethedream.com -- has articles that should be required reading for first-time buyers. Topics include what previous borrowers wished they'd known when they bought their first homes, how to repair damaged credit, how to save for a down payment, and how to connect to good real estate agents and mortgage lenders.

Meanwhile, Bank of America, in conjunction with a community development financial institution called the Self-Help Credit Union, is offering a program called the Affordable Loan Solution that gives eligible borrowers what it labels "an affordable entry price." (Full disclosure: I write a monthly column for a BoA newsletter.)

Under BoA's program, the giant bank will make the loans, then sell them to Self-Help. The credit union will then sell the loans to Freddie Mac, but it will continue to collect the payments on Freddie's behalf.

"The strength of the Affordable Loan Solution program is how it brings each partner's special expertise together to address the barriers faced by aspiring homebuyers with limited savings," according to Danny Gardner, vice president, affordable lending and access to credit at Freddie Mac.

-- Freelance writer Mark Fogarty contributed to this report.

Few of us can afford to dabble in the million-dollar home market. But today's sellers can learn a thing or two from the folks who do.

One of those people is Pam Danziger of Unity Marketing in Stevens, Pennsylvania. She's not a big-money real estate agent, but she is an expert on the affluent market. And she just released a report on effective marketing for upper-crust houses.

The good news is that many of Danziger's research-based tips apply to houses at any price.

One tip: Danziger says you should stress "brands" that speak to the quality of your home. For example, if you know your home was built by a company with a great reputation in your community, make sure potential buyers know that. Tell the company's story: how long they've been in business, how many houses they've built, what awards they've won, and so on.

But don't stop there, advises Danziger. "Take a full inventory" of the brand-name products you have in your home.

Appliances are a good place to start. Whatever brand (or brands) they might be, find out about their quality and repair records from a resource such as Consumer Reports.

For instance, Kenmore has a reputation as being the least expensive -- but that brand also lasts longer than most others, and has one of the best repair records. So if you happen to have a Kenmore fridge, stress that fact in your marketing materials.

Brands go beyond appliances, though. How about your light fixtures? The contractor who redid your bathroom? The architect who designed your house in the first place? They all have reputations that can help make your house look better than the competition in the eyes of would-be buyers.

"They testify to the price tag," Danziger says.

Next, the luxury expert wants sellers to "tell stories" about their homes, as opposed to just listing their features.

Of course, a clear-cut, objective list of the home's details -- square footage, lot size, number of bedrooms and baths, etc. -- is necessary. But, she points out, a list "tells a prospective buyer nothing about the experience of living" in the place.

Rather than just describing features, Danziger wants sellers to "talk about what it feels like to live there."

"Story-based listings that weave the home's facts and figures into the story 'romance' the listing and make it come alive," she says. "(You) must tell stories engaging enough to make the prospective buyer curious enough to call your agent and set up an appointment to experience the home for themselves."

Here's an example that Danzinger used in recent presentations to three large realty firms: "Enter this breathtaking 2.36-acre estate in prestigious Wyomissing County and drive down a beautiful tree-lined lane that flanks a majestic, sweeping front lawn."

You may not have two-plus acres or a tree-lined driveway, but you get the idea. Tell what it's like to walk in the front door. What do you see? Where does it lead? Play up what is striking or different about the home. A winding stairway with lots of natural light filtering in, perhaps. Or a finished basement that serves as your cozy man cave.

Here, you or your listing agent might want to hire a professional writer to do your storytelling. Danziger goes so far as to suggest realty brokers make a writer part of their staffs. "Put one on the payroll and see the difference it makes to the listings and sales," she says.

Too expensive? Not necessarily. It's certainly cheaper than hiring a photographer, and real estate agents and brokers think nothing about hiring a pro to do their photography and videography.

Yet they write up their listings themselves. And that, Danziger says, is "a huge mistake! A big missed opportunity!"

"Writers can take that fact-based listing description, including the extensive brand-name inventory, and tell a story about the home that will romance the listing and make it pop."