Water damage costs around Apex, NC
Census, FEMA and NOAA figures for the Apex area, and what to do with them.
Homes built before 1980 make up 4% of the housing in Apex; across Wake County the share is 19%.
- Calls answered 24/7
- Written estimate before work starts
- Water removal, drying and repair
Your call, step by step
Call (833) 728-2327
Say what is wet, where the water came from and whether it is still running. The call is answered any hour.
Stop the source
If water is still coming in, you are walked through the shutoff valve or the breaker first.
Inspection and written estimate
The crew checks the water category, measures moisture in walls and floors, photographs the damage and writes the estimate before work starts.
Written for homeowners in the Apex area.
25% of homes in Apex are rented, against 36% across Wake County. If you rent, tell your landlord or property manager about the leak right away.
What a Apex job usually costs
Apex homeowners get one real price for water damage, the written estimate the local restoration company writes after it inspects. That estimate is built from the water category, the area affected, the materials removed and the number of drying days.
Young housing keeps many jobs simpler. Census figures show 4% of homes were built before 1980, against 19% across Wake County. Materials are mostly drywall, carpet, engineered floors and modern supply lines. A failed washer hose or water heater upstairs can still spread water across ceilings, walls and floors below. Cold adds cost in some homes. With 67 nights a year at or below 32 degrees, pipes in crawl spaces, exterior walls and attics can split. Drying a crawl space means pulling wet insulation and running dehumidifiers under the house. That is why burst pipe cleanup can cost more than the size of the leak suggests.
A flooded crawl space or room costs the most. Wake County storm reports show flooding on 67 days from 2016 to 2025. Floodwater is Category 3, which means removal and disinfection rather than drying in place. Ask for drying, removal and rebuilding as separate lines for any home in the Apex area.
Typical price ranges
Typical US ranges from published cost guides, not quotes.
| Item | Typical range | Unit |
|---|---|---|
| Water damage restoration, typical home job | $1,300 to $6,400 | per job |
| Small clean-water leak, part of one room (Class 1) | $150 to $500 | per job |
| Long-standing water through much of the home, or standing for days | $15,000 to $100,000 | per job |
| Water removal and drying, clean water (Category 1) | $3 to $6 | per sq ft |
| Water removal and drying, gray water (Category 2) | $4 to $9 | per sq ft |
| Water removal and drying, black water (Category 3) | $7 to $12 | per sq ft |
| Air mover on site | $29 to $40 | per unit, per day |
| Refrigerant (LGR) dehumidifier on site | $65 to $145 | per unit, per day |
| HEPA air scrubber on site | $45 to $140 | per unit, per day |
| Restoration labor, standard hours | $60 to $200 | per hour |
| Floodwater cleanup and drying (outside water is Category 3) | $7 to $12 | per sq ft |
| Flooded basement cleanup, 500 to 1,000 sq ft | $2,000 to $8,000 | per job |
| Basement water removal, drying and sanitizing | $4 to $12 | per sq ft |
| Sewage backup cleanup (Category 3) | $2,000 to $10,000 | per job |
| Sewage cleanup and disinfection | $7 to $15 | per sq ft |
| Burst pipe repair, plumbing only | $400 to $2,000 | per repair |
| Burst pipe repair with related water damage | $1,000 to $4,000 | per job |
| Water-damaged ceiling repair | $350 to $2,500 | per ceiling area |
| Wet drywall removal and replacement | $1.5 to $4 | per sq ft |
| Water-damaged wall repair, drywall | $275 to $850 | per wall area |
| Hardwood floor repair or replacement after water damage | $7 to $25 | per sq ft |
| Wet carpet drying and repair | $300 to $2,000 | per room |
| Carpet replacement after water damage | $2 to $8 | per sq ft |
| Camera inspection to find a hidden leak | $125 to $500 | per visit |
| Mold inspection after water damage | $300 to $650 | per visit |
| Mold remediation, a separate job, if water sat too long | $1,100 to $6,000 | per job |
| After-hours, weekend or holiday call charge | $50 to $500 | per visit |
Typical US ranges compiled on 17 October 2026 from public cost guides and price lists, not prices from 911 Water Damage Fix or any one company. Most guide figures trace back to Angi and HomeAdvisor customer surveys (HomeAdvisor water damage cost guide, updated June 17, 2026); independent checks: HomeGuide (2025 and 2026), Fixr (January 2025), a State of Iowa restoration contract price list effective May 22, 2026, and a published restoration equipment rental list. The written estimate after an inspection is the only price that applies.
Apex figures behind the price
Apex figures: about 67,765 residents in the city, by the Census.
14% of homes in Apex are in buildings with five or more units.
FEMA's National Risk Index expects inland flooding to cost about $82 a year for every $100,000 of building value in Apex's ZIP codes.
- 25,148 Housing units
- 4% Homes built before 1980Wake County: 19%
- 67,765 Residents
- 25% Homes that are rentedWake County: 36%
- 14% Homes in buildings with 5 or more unitsWake County: 24%
- 82 Yearly inland flood loss per $100,000 of building valueWake County: 91
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2019-2023 5-year estimates; FEMA OpenFEMA, FIMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3, claims from 2016 to 2025 (not endorsed by FEMA); FEMA OpenFEMA, NFIP Residential Penetration Rates v1 (not endorsed by FEMA); FEMA National Risk Index v1.20, December 2025 (not endorsed by FEMA); NOAA NCEI, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020, nearest weather station; FEMA OpenFEMA, Disaster Declarations Summaries v2 (not endorsed by FEMA); NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, 2016 to 2025.
Price drivers in Wake County
Census figures show only 4% of Apex homes were built before 1980, against 35% across North Carolina. The old-house drivers that raise prices elsewhere are rare here. Drywall over plywood dries faster than plaster, and plank subfloors are uncommon. In a newer home the cost comes from where the water starts. Many newer houses put the laundry or a water heater upstairs, so a failed washer hose can run into the rooms below. Ceiling leak repair then becomes part of the job.
Cold is the second driver. NOAA's climate normals show 67 nights a year at or below 32 degrees and 9 at or below 20. A pipe in an exterior wall, an attic or a crawl space can split on those nights. Drying the inside of a wall adds days. Storm water is the third driver, with flash flood or flood reports on 67 days in Wake County from 2016 to 2025. Water from outside is Category 3, so flood damage restoration usually means carpet, pad and lower drywall come out. Hurricane exposure is low, at 5 per $100,000 of building value against 50 statewide.
Apartments matter less here, with 14% of homes in buildings of 5 or more units and 25% rented. A homeowners policy usually covers a sudden leak, while flood water and sewer backup need separate cover. Only 0.8% of Wake County homes have federal flood insurance, so ask your insurer what yours includes.
Reading a Apex estimate
Ask for an estimate that names the water category, the square footage, every piece of drying equipment with its daily rate, the materials to be removed by room, labor rates with any after-hours charge, and whether repairs are included.
Before you approve the work
Three answers decide most of the price, so get them before work begins: the water category, the wet area in square feet and the equipment list with daily rates. In Apex, ask for those in writing on the estimate. When readings find water inside a wall that was not visible on the first day, the scope can grow, and that change should also be in writing before it is done. Keep the paperwork with your photos and the daily moisture readings. At the end, the bill should match the equipment days and the materials that actually came out. A sagging ceiling adds ceiling leak repair to the estimate after the leak above is fixed.
Cost questions in Apex
Why do water damage estimates in Apex vary so much?
Should I pick the lowest water damage estimate in Apex?
Does insurance pay the whole water damage bill in Apex?
Is there a charge just to come out and look at water damage in Apex?
Do I pay for drying equipment by the day in Apex?
More Apex guides
guide to insurance and water damage around Apex
Which kinds of water damage insurance usually pays for in Apex, and how to document a claim.
the Apex guide to the first hour after water damage
The first hour after a leak or flood in Apex: what to shut off, what to photograph and what to move.
guide to flood and storm water risk for Apex
Flood risk, flood insurance claims and storm water in Apex, from FEMA and NOAA figures.
guide to burst and frozen pipes for Apex
Why pipes burst in Apex homes, what freezing nights and older plumbing mean, and what to do first.
One call for water damage in Apex
Calls answered 24/7. The estimate is in writing before work begins.