Gulfport and Biloxi Hurricane Isaias Temporary Housing: An RV in Your Own Yard

    By Michael Wojciak, founder, Agile RV Housing

    Updated October 7, 2026: Harrison County is inside the National Hurricane Center's Hurricane Watch, and NHC's 10:00 a.m. CDT advisory forecasts 3 to 5 feet of storm surge from the mouth of the Mississippi River to Ocean Springs, the stretch that includes the Gulfport and Biloxi shoreline (NHC Advisory 4).

    When storm damage makes a Gulfport, Biloxi, Long Beach, D'Iberville, or Pass Christian home unlivable, Agile RV Housing places a fully set up RV on the homeowner's own lot for the length of the repair. This is for homeowners with homeowners insurance. Loss of Use (Coverage D, or Additional Living Expense) often pays for it once the adjuster approves it, and we work with your adjuster.

    Delivery is about four days from approval to move-in. The main variable is scheduling the electrical contractor. Units cost $120 to $140 a night, tax included, and our rate has not changed for the storm. Delivery and setup are priced separately for each property. We serve all of Harrison County and all 48 contiguous states.

    Call (614) 655-4286

    Isaias and Harrison County. At the 10:00 a.m. CDT advisory on October 7, Tropical Storm Isaias had 45 mph winds. The National Hurricane Center forecasts a strong hurricane, with winds near 105 to 110 mph, approaching the northern Gulf Coast Friday afternoon, October 9. The Hurricane Watch starts at Bay St. Louis, just west of Harrison County, and runs east to Indian Pass, Florida, and the Storm Surge Watch covers the whole Mississippi coast. Rain totals of 3 to 6 inches, locally 10, are forecast Friday into the weekend. Coastwide updates are on our Hurricane Isaias temporary housing page.

    Can you live in a camper in Mississippi while your house is repaired?

    In Harrison County, written local rules allow temporary housing on your own lot while a storm-damaged house is repaired: the county's rule names a self-contained RV, and Biloxi's covers a temporary residence at a casualty-damaged home.

    In unincorporated Harrison County, a conditional use permit lets a self-contained RV serve as the owner's temporary home for up to 6 months during reconstruction. Biloxi issues a Temporary Use Permit once the city finds the home not habitable, for 12 months with up to three renewals. Gulfport, Long Beach, D'Iberville, and Pass Christian handle it under their own city rules. Agile RV Housing checks the rule for your exact address before any unit is delivered.

    Biloxi

    When a storm damages a Biloxi home, the city can let the people who lived there set up temporary housing on site. The tool is a Temporary Use Permit under the Land Development Ordinance, Sec. 23-4-5(F):

    • The city must find that the home is not habitable.
    • A building permit for the repair has to be obtained within 45 days.
    • The permit lasts 12 months and can be renewed for up to three more 12-month periods.

    Unincorporated Harrison County

    The Harrison County Unified Development Code, Sec. 816.02, Exception 2, says that with a conditional use permit, a self-contained RV may serve as a temporary home for up to 6 months to house the owner during construction or reconstruction of a home. The owner has to hold a construction permit, and the RV goes on the same property.

    The county has used emergency powers for this before. After Hurricane Katrina, on September 12, 2005, the Board of Supervisors gave the Zoning Officer power to issue temporary use permits of up to 6 months during the emergency.

    Gulfport, Long Beach, D'Iberville, and Pass Christian

    Inside these cities, city rules apply, and each one handles temporary housing its own way. A permit may be required, or the city may approve temporary housing on residents' lots by emergency order after a major storm.

    Emergency orders on this coast have come within a week. Diamondhead, just west in Hancock County, adopted a resolution authorizing campers for damaged homes six days after Hurricane Zeta in 2020. We track each city's current rule and confirm it for your address. Run our free zoning check to get started.

    Lots in a flood zone

    If your lot falls in a FEMA flood zone, an RV has to be on site fewer than 180 consecutive days or be fully licensed and highway ready (on wheels, with quick disconnect utilities). Otherwise manufactured home rules apply (44 CFR 60.3(c)(14)). We check your flood zone along with your local rules.

    Does MWUA or homeowners insurance cover temporary housing in Harrison County?

    A homeowners policy with wind coverage often pays Loss of Use when wind damage makes a Harrison County home unlivable, and your adjuster can approve an RV on your lot as that housing.

    Homes insured for wind through the Mississippi Windstorm Underwriting Association (MWUA) have their own route. The wind pool's own documents describe additional living expense coverage for a primary residence when a covered loss makes the property unlivable (MWUA FAQ). Check your declarations page to confirm that coverage on your own MWUA policy.

    The hurricane deductible follows a Mississippi rule. 19 Miss. Code R. 1-41.14 takes the hurricane deductible from "the total of the loss for all Section I Property Coverages," and Loss of Use is a Section I coverage. In practice, one deductible applies across the house, its contents, and your living expenses.

    When you talk to your adjuster, ask these three things:

    1. Which policy carries my wind coverage: my homeowners policy or MWUA?
    2. What is my living expense limit, in dollars and in months?
    3. How was the hurricane deductible applied to my claim?

    How much loss of use coverage do I have?

    Your declarations page shows your Loss of Use limit, usually listed as Coverage D, and your agent or adjuster can tell you whether your policy also sets a time limit. Under the ISO homeowners form, the coverage pays for the shortest time required to repair or replace the damage, so the limit has to last through the whole Harrison County repair.

    That is where the housing choice matters. A unit at the top of Agile RV Housing's $120 to $140 nightly range, tax included, sleeps a family of up to five. That same family needs two hotel rooms, and two rooms at typical ALE-approved rates cost more than $140 a night before meals, pet fees, and laundry. An RV on your lot draws substantially less against your ALE limit than an extended hotel stay. See RV housing costs.

    Does flood insurance cover additional living expenses in Gulfport and Biloxi?

    No. Flood policies written through the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) exclude "any additional living expenses" while the insured building is under repair or cannot be occupied, in Section V.A.5 of the federal flood policy (44 CFR Part 61, Appendix A(1)).

    For a Gulfport or Biloxi house hit by both surge and wind, the adjuster decides what each policy pays. The wind portion can still trigger Loss of Use through your homeowners policy, or living expense coverage through MWUA. FEMA cannot pay for needs that insurance covers (FEMA), so insured Harrison County homeowners arrange housing through their insurer. More in our flood insurance and temporary housing guide.

    Long-term RV rental in Gulfport and Biloxi, delivered to your lot

    Agile RV Housing's long-term RV rental in Gulfport and Biloxi is temporary housing for a homeowner whose house is being repaired, placed on that homeowner's own lot and usually paid by Loss of Use after the adjuster approves it. The nightly rate is $120 to $140, tax included. Delivery and setup are priced separately.

    The minimum stay is 60 days, followed by month to month with no maximum. Most families stay about five months, which fits inside Biloxi's 12-month Temporary Use Permit. If someone in the house works at Keesler, the drive to the base stays the same, the kids stay in their own school, the family pets stay with you, and you are home when contractors arrive.

    Temporary power pole for an RV in Harrison County

    A licensed electrical contractor installs the power for every Agile RV Housing unit in Harrison County, and we schedule that contractor. When storm damage or repair work cuts utility power to the house, your electric utility and the electrician coordinate a temporary power pole on the lot.

    The electrician's schedule is the main variable in delivery, which is about four days from approval to move-in. Our crew handles water and sewer. In unincorporated Harrison County, the conditional use permit calls for a self-contained RV and depends on your construction permit. In Biloxi, the repair building permit is due within 45 days, so we plan the permits and the power together. See our RV utility setup guide.

    How do you get temporary housing for an insurance claim near Gulfport or Biloxi?

    Call your adjuster and say you want an RV on your own property as your Loss of Use housing for the length of the repair, and ask for the approval in writing. An RV on your own lot is commonly approved as ALE housing even when it is not the first option an adjuster suggests, so ask directly.

    You choose who provides your temporary housing. Your insurer or its housing agency may suggest a provider, and the choice stays yours. If your insurer has assigned a temporary housing agency, ask the housing specialist for Agile RV Housing by name. We are a preferred vendor with the national temporary housing agencies, including ALE Solutions, Alacrity, Sedgwick, CRS, and National Corporate Housing, and we work with all of them. Families who already know they want an RV can call us first, and we handle the coordination with the adjuster or agency.

    How we have done this

    Over the last two years, Agile RV Housing has completed more than 100 long-term placements. Our founder, Michael Wojciak, has worked in RV rental and fleet operations for 10 years, and we are a preferred vendor with the national temporary housing agencies.

    For Harrison County families, that experience means we already know the questions Biloxi and the county will ask, and we work on the permit, the adjuster approval, and the electrician at the same time.

    Call (614) 655-4286. Call with your address and your claim number if you have one. We will check the Biloxi, Gulfport, or county rules for your lot and tell you what your adjuster needs from us. You can also start with the free zoning check.

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    Frequently asked questions

    Can I live in an RV on my Biloxi lot while my house is repaired?

    Biloxi's Land Development Ordinance, Sec. 23-4-5(F), provides a Temporary Use Permit for a temporary residence for the occupants of a casualty-damaged home. The city must find the home not habitable, and the repair building permit is due within 45 days. The permit lasts 12 months, with up to three 12-month renewals. Agile RV Housing checks with the city how the permit applies to an RV on your lot.

    What does unincorporated Harrison County require for an RV during reconstruction?

    Harrison County requires a conditional use permit under Unified Development Code Sec. 816.02, Exception 2. The owner must hold a construction permit, the RV must be self-contained and on the same property, and the permit runs up to 6 months.

    I'm in Gulfport. Can I get an RV on my property?

    Gulfport writes its own rules, separate from Biloxi's and Harrison County's. Some cities ask for a permit, and some allow temporary housing on your own lot through emergency orders after a major storm. Before any delivery, Agile RV Housing confirms what applies at your Gulfport address, through the free zoning check or at (614) 655-4286.

    Does MWUA cover living expenses after a hurricane?

    The Mississippi Windstorm Underwriting Association's own documents describe additional living expense coverage for a primary residence when a covered loss makes the property unlivable. Confirm the coverage on your declarations page, then ask your adjuster to approve an RV on your Harrison County lot as that housing.

    Is the Mississippi hurricane deductible charged separately on my housing costs?

    No. Mississippi regulation 19 Miss. Code R. 1-41.14 takes the hurricane deductible from the total of the loss for all Section I property coverages, and Loss of Use is one of those coverages, so one deductible applies across the whole Section I claim.

    How long can an RV stay on my lot in Gulfport or Biloxi?

    Agile RV Housing's minimum stay is 60 days, then month to month with no maximum. How long your permit runs depends on where you live: up to 12 months with renewals in Biloxi, and up to 6 months under the Harrison County conditional use permit. Gulfport and the other cities set their own terms.

    Sources

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