Smith County has a flood damage prevention rule for unincorporated land

Building near a floodplain in unincorporated Smith County is not a free hand. The county's Flood Damage Prevention Regulation adds review before you build in or near a floodplain. That rule helps keep the county in the federal flood insurance program.

You can check an address at the FEMA Flood Map Service Center. In this part of East Texas, the Neches River and smaller creeks are the usual places to watch. If a parcel sits near that water, look at the flood map before earnest money changes hands.