Saint Lucia Resilience Rating
A single number, 1 to 5, for how a home is expected to stand up to the island's three hazards: hurricane wind, water (storm surge, flash flooding, driving rain) and ground movement. It is a description of the building, not of the owner, the agent or the price.
Draft standard v0.1, open for comment. Seven domains are scored: structure, roof, openings, siting/flood, fire/termite/moisture, utilities, evidence, and a home takes the lowest level it achieves (weakest-link rule): a Category-4 roof on a flood-plain slab is not a resilient home. Level 3 is the line where a home is both code-compliant and evidenced. Level 3 criteria are existing requirements of the OECS Building Code (2015) and the Saint Lucia Building Code (gazetted Nov 2024, in force Mar 2025); Levels 4 to 5 are proposed additions modelled on the IBHS FORTIFIED Home programme. The full standard with sources is in the methodology.
The ladder
- 1Level
Unverified or sub-standard
No DCA permit or occupancy certificate on file, or construction visibly outside code; or sited in mapped very-high flood hazard or inside the coastal setback.
- Unanchored roof, unreinforced block, or timber in ground contact
- No documentation available
- The default for any listing with no evidence
- 2Level
Permitted, not evidenced
A DCA permit exists, or the home predates the 2024 code but shows basic hurricane detailing: visible straps, ring beam, block walls.
- No engineer's certificate for wind or seismic design
- Openings unprotected, or protection unrated
- Evidence: permit number, photographs
- 3Level
Code-compliant, documented
Everything the OECS / Saint Lucia Building Code already requires, with the paperwork to prove it.
- Engineer-signed design to the code wind speed (155 mph × 1.13 climate factor) and seismic values (Z 0.56; Ss 1.227 g, S1 0.393 g)
- Reinforced frame or grouted block to SLBS standards, ring beam, ≥18-gauge galvanised straps at every bearing, continuous anchorage
- Engineer-certified windows and doors; outside the coastal setback; floor above the 1:20-year flood level
- Treated timber, damp-proof course, recorded termite soil treatment; electrical inspection passed
- Evidence: DCA permit and inspection record, engineer's certificate, occupancy certificate
- 4Level
Enhanced: FORTIFIED-Silver equivalent
Level 3 plus a design margin and a sealed, protected envelope. Proposed; not a code requirement.
- Design wind speed ≥175 mph ultimate shown on the drawings; Exposure D within 600 ft of the coast; continuous load path documented
- Hip or braced-gable roof, sealed roof deck or secondary water barrier, screw-fixed sheeting at high-wind centres
- All openings impact-rated (ASTM E1886/E1996 or Miami-Dade NOA) or fitted with permanently installed rated shutters
- Finished floor ≥0.5 m above the 1:50-year flood; slope-stability statement on steep sites; no building in gullies
- Non-combustible walls and roof; ≥3 days' potable water storage; solar-ready or installed PV with essential-circuit changeover
- 5Level
Resilient: FORTIFIED-Gold equivalent
Level 4 plus the code's critical-facility wind level applied to a home, independently checked, and 72 hours of post-storm habitability. Proposed.
- Engineer-certified to ≥190 mph ultimate with ductile seismic detailing; independent design check or third-party evaluator
- Concrete roof slab or roof system tested for the design uplift; all impact-rated glazing; safe room with independently anchored roof
- Outside the 1:50-year flood extent and ≥50 m from watercourses; engineered retaining and drainage on slopes
- Fully non-combustible structure, no structural timber, fire-rated separation to attached structures
- ≥7 days' water with rainwater harvesting; PV with battery or inverter-ready essential circuits; sewage above flood level
- Rating valid five years, then re-inspection
How a rating is assigned
A rating is assigned from documents first and site evidence second. The minimum evidence for each level is listed in the standard; where a document is missing the home is rated at the highest level that can be proven, not the level claimed. Ratings are published with the evidence list so anyone can check them.
What it maps to
| Item | In the code today | Where it sits on the ladder |
|---|---|---|
| 155 mph × 1.13 design wind speed for homes | Yes, OECS Code 2015 §1202.2 | Level 3 baseline |
| 18-gauge straps, continuous anchorage | Yes, §1802.14 | Level 3 baseline |
| Engineer-certified hurricane windows/doors | Yes, §503.7(e), §504 | Level 3; impact-rated products are Level 4+ |
| Treated timber, termite soil treatment | Yes, §1403 | Level 3 baseline |
| Seismic Z 0.56 / Ss 1.227, S1 0.393 | Yes, §1203.1 | Level 3; ductile detailing and independent check at Level 5 |
| Exposure D within 600 ft of coast | Guidance (PAHO 2019), not code | Level 4 |
| Sealed roof deck / secondary water barrier | Not in code | Level 4 (from FORTIFIED) |
| Finished floor above 1:50-yr flood | Not quantified | Level 4 to 5 |
| Water storage 3 / 7 days; solar-ready or PV | WASCO advice only; not required | Level 4 / Level 5 |
| Weakest-link scoring, 5-year validity, third-party evaluator | Not in code | Standard's own rules (after FORTIFIED) |
Insurers in the Eastern Caribbean apply percentage catastrophe deductibles (typically 2%) and some offer shutter discounts; no Saint Lucia premium schedule by construction class is published. Where IBHS FORTIFIED is recognised in the US, credits of 20 to 50% are cited, a comparable, not a promise.
What it is not
- Not a valuation, and not correlated with price by design.
- Not a guarantee. A Level 5 home can still be damaged.
- Not an endorsement of any builder. The index is neutral; builders, including the engineered-panel systems in the calculator, are rated against the same ladder.
The register
Every certificate issued under the standard is listed on the public Resilience Rating register: certificate number, property id, level, domain scores, issue and expiry dates, evaluator and status. A certificate not on the register is not valid. The register is empty until the first assessment; it is also published as rating-register.json.
Get a home rated
Evidence is recorded as present / absent / unverified with a source and date. The index never infers a level from photographs alone. To have a home assessed, email rating@saintluciahomes.com with the address and any drawings or approvals you hold.