Blog · October 14, 2026 · California
South San Francisco Flood Zone Map, California: a practical guide
Flood zones are set by FEMA, and checking one near Brisbane takes a few minutes.
Main page: San Mateo County, CA GIS & Parcel Viewer (official map link, county facts and neighboring maps).
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Looking at a lot near San Bruno? Checking the South San Francisco flood zone map reveals whether the lot falls inside a mapped floodplain, and the lookup is free. In this South San Francisco guide: finding the address on FEMA's map, decoding A, AE and X, and pairing it with the San Mateo County parcel viewer.
The South San Francisco flood zone map: start here
Start with FEMA's Flood Map Service Center: search an address around Colma, and pick the FIRMette or map view. A tract near Colma without an address is still easy to locate: zoom in from the nearest road and click inside the land.
Getting to the right map
Begin with the San Mateo County parcel viewer; it includes every tax parcel around Brisbane and Colma. When a rural tract has no street number, zoom in from Burlingame and select the outline. For a home near San Bruno, the parcel card typically gives the owner of record, acreage on the tax roll, the parcel number and often a sale date.
City limits and county records
South San Francisco lies within San Mateo County, California, and the county assessor maps its lots. For acreage around Millbrae, City or town hall handles things like zoning, permits and utilities for lots inside the boundary, while the county keeps the tax map. Land beyond the city limits near San Bruno often falls under county rules rather than the town's.
Using it on a phone
The parcel map usually runs in a mobile browser, useful out on a road near Burlingame, though signal can drop in rural spots. A screenshot of the parcel near Burlingame with its ID keeps working without signal.
Zones on the South San Francisco flood zone map
For a parcel near San Bruno, any A or V zone are Special Flood Hazard Areas, land with a 1-percent chance of flooding in any year. Out toward Brisbane, shaded Zone X is moderate risk, between the 1% and 0.2% annual chance floods; unshaded X means minimal mapped risk.
Matching the zone to the lot lines
FEMA doesn't draw property lines, so check the San Mateo County parcel viewer too to see exactly which lot near Colma you're looking at.
Next door to San Mateo County
San Mateo County meets Alameda County, San Francisco County, Santa Clara County, and Santa Cruz County, and each of those keeps its own parcel map. Acreage along the edge near San Bruno can be split across two assessors' files, so look at the neighboring map too. For land near Millbrae, the Platbookmapper state page links every neighboring county map for California.
Getting answers from the right desk
If the acreage or value on a parcel near Daly City looks off are handled by the County Assessor, since that office keeps the assessment data. Building or septic questions for a lot near Millbrae need the planning or permitting office, depending on whether the land is inside town limits.
Legal descriptions in California
California is laid out under the Public Land Survey System, so deeds around Burlingame reference sections and townships. A standard section is about one square mile, roughly 640 acres, with 36 sections to a township, though sections near Brisbane can be irregular. Copy the legal description from the record for the parcel near San Bruno before you request a deed or survey.
Before you lean on the lines
The acreage figure is an assessed number; just a licensed surveyor can set the real boundary on land around Burlingame. Out toward Daly City, records update in batches, so a deed recorded last month might lag behind.
Low spots and local drainage
Small streams around Colma may not have detailed mapping, so walk the land after rain. Wetlands near Burlingame can limit building even outside a flood zone; the National Wetlands Inventory mapper shows mapped wetlands.
Lenders and permits
Closer to Brisbane, ask for an Elevation Certificate: it compares the building to the BFE. Remodeling a house in a zone near Brisbane can trigger elevation rules; ask the local floodplain administrator early.
Questions to ask before you buy
Request about past flood claims on the property near Burlingame; getting a quote early avoids surprises.
South San Francisco: common questions
Does the county parcel map show flood zones near Colma?
For most people, some county viewers include a FEMA flood layer; confirm a lot near Daly City on FEMA's map either way.
How often are flood maps updated near Burlingame?
Good question; a new study can move a zone line near Burlingame, so look at the panel date.
Is flood insurance mandatory near Colma?
In most cases, for a building near Millbrae in an A or V zone with a federally backed or regulated mortgage, it's generally required; outside those zones it's your call.
Is AE a high-risk flood zone in South San Francisco?
Short answer: an AE zone has a 1% annual chance of flooding and a base flood elevation, so builders near Millbrae design to that elevation.
What's a legal description near Burlingame?
If the land is near Brisbane, deeds use lot and block, metes and bounds or survey descriptions; copy it for any survey or title request.
Open the official San Mateo County, CA parcel map See it in the Platbookmapper directory
Not a survey. County GIS and tax parcel maps are assessment and planning layers. They are not a substitute for a recorded plat, deed, or licensed survey, especially for fences, setbacks, or boundary disputes.