Broward County
Most of Lauderhill's housing went up in the 1970s and 1980s, and more than half of its homes are in buildings with five or more units. A single failed pipe can reach several households, and heavy rain has flooded streets and homes here more than once.
ZIP codes in the area
Some of these ZIP codes also include neighboring communities.
Lauderhill is a compact city of about 8.5 square miles in north-central Broward, bordered by Tamarac and Lauderdale Lakes to the north, Fort Lauderdale to the east, Plantation to the south and Sunrise to the west. Roughly 75,000 people live here, and a large share of them live in multi-unit buildings rather than detached houses. That mix changes how water damage usually plays out.
Fewer than a third of Lauderhill’s housing units are single-family detached homes. More than half sit in buildings with five or more units, and about 23 percent are in buildings with 50 or more. In buildings like these, bathrooms and kitchens are often stacked floor over floor, sharing drain lines and plumbing walls.
So a leak rarely stays put. A cracked supply line under a sink on the fourth floor can show up as a brown ring on a third-floor ceiling, a wet closet on the second, and swollen baseboards next door. The resident who first notices it is often not the one with the broken fitting.
Age adds to the problem. The median home was built in 1976, and only about 9 percent of units date from 1990 or later. Water heaters, valves and drain connections have often been replaced piecemeal over the decades, and the older parts left behind tend to be where trouble starts. A useful first step in any building is knowing where the unit shutoff is before something fails; the what to do after water damage guide covers the rest.
When several units are involved, drying has to follow the water, not the property lines between units. Moisture readings in each affected home show where water damage restoration work is actually needed.
On November 8, 2020, Tropical Storm Eta caused significant flooding across Lauderhill, and federal storm records note that water entered buildings in the city. Less than four years later, a flash flood was recorded in Lauderhill on June 12, 2024, a reminder that one summer storm can do real damage.
Outside water carries dirt and runoff from streets and parking lots. Ground-floor units and single-story homes that take in water that way generally need contaminated materials removed and surfaces cleaned before any drying starts. The flood cleanup page explains that process in more detail.
Lauderhill’s mail runs through several ZIP codes, and none of them belongs to the city alone. 33313 is the closest to a Lauderhill ZIP, though parts of it fall in Sunrise, Plantation and Lauderdale Lakes. About half of 33311 is in Fort Lauderdale, with pieces in Lauderdale Lakes, Oakland Park and Wilton Manors, while 33351 is mostly Sunrise. About a third of Lauderhill’s land uses 33319, which is shared with Tamarac. Addresses in any of these ZIP codes can call the same 24/7 line.
Census estimates put the median Lauderhill home in 1976, and nearly half of all housing units were built during the 1970s. Original shutoff valves, drain lines and supply connections in buildings that age are frequent sources of leaks.
About 53 percent of Lauderhill's homes are in buildings with five or more units, and close to 40 percent are in buildings with 20 or more. Water from one kitchen, bathroom or AC closet can travel into ceilings and walls of the homes around it.
National weather records for November 8, 2020 describe significant flooding in Lauderhill, with water entering buildings above ground level in Lauderhill and Fort Lauderdale.
NOAA storm records list a flash flood in Lauderhill on June 12, 2024. Short, intense storms can overwhelm local drainage well before anyone thinks of hurricane season.
Services
FAQ
Yes. 33319 is split almost evenly between Lauderhill and Tamarac, with a smaller piece in Lauderdale Lakes. It appears on the Tamarac page, but the same 24/7 line serves every Lauderhill address, whichever ZIP code it uses.
Both reach into Lauderhill. About half of 33311 is in Fort Lauderdale and most of 33351 is in Sunrise, but each includes part of Lauderhill too. Homes in the Fort Lauderdale and Sunrise portions are served by the same line.
Technicians usually start directly above the stain and work outward, checking the unit upstairs, shared plumbing walls and any AC closets. Moisture meters and thermal cameras show how far the water has spread, so drying can cover every affected unit and not only the one where the stain showed up.
Often, yes. Rainwater that crosses yards and streets is treated as contaminated, so drywall it soaked is usually cut out a short distance above the waterline. Carpet and pad that sat in it are normally discarded, and the slab and wall cavities are cleaned before drying starts.
Call now
Shut off the water if you can reach the valve safely, then call. Describe where it came from and which rooms are wet.
When you call, have ready