Host writes to NAND flash can result in some inefficiencies that lead to accelerated wear and early failure of the NAND flash. This is due in part to the way in which NAND flash is organized. The smallest organizational unit in NAND is the page. Pages can be read and programmed. Pages can only be programmed from an erased state. Once a page is programmed, it cannot be re-programmed or overwritten until it is erased. The NAND flash blocks consist of multiple pages. NAND flash can be erased only at the block level. When an erase command is issued, all pages within the targeted block are erased. Blocks can fail due to the endurance limit being reached, defects, or early failure. Spare blocks are maintained to extend the device life. All blocks are actively used throughout the device life-cycle. These extra blocks are important for performance and needed for future writes and wear leveling. The NAND flash blocks may also be implemented in multiple planes, boosting performance by allowing for concurrent activity.