For most of us, the biggest investment we have is in our home. Insurance on that is important both for the ability to obtain financing to purchase it or refinance any loans on it, but really to ensure that if something happens to the home, you have cash to rebuild, replace and recover the loss.
A standard Homeowners Insurance Policy should cover expenses that are the result of fire, smoke, theft, vandalism or weather damage from lightning, hail or winds. It could also include events such as a tree falling on the house.
The other area that your Homeowners Insurance protects you with is liability insurance in case someone is hurt inside the home or on your property. This does not replace your need for health insurance, and it does not cover people on your property for construction events.
For construction work being done on your property, we provide additional types of insurance to protect you should there be a construction-related accident.
The goal of insurance is to make sure that if your house had to be completely replaced, you would be able to build a new home like the one you have now and even furnish it with comparable contents. You may also want include special coverage for certain contents in your home such as electronics, jewelry, antiques, silverware, collectibles or china.
It is also important to remember that IF you still owe a mortgage on your home, those payments are still due each month even if the home is completely lost to a fire.
You will need enough cash to rebuild and rebuy your furnishings while you are still paying your mortgage. That means it is important that your insurance coverage needs to adjust for the cost of materials and furnishings. Most policies have a buffer of an extra 25% of the current estimated cost of replacement so that you will be sure to have the cash you need to replace everything at whatever the current costs are for the time you need to buy them.
The things that are often not included in a Standard Homeowners Policy are “acts of God,” floods, natural disasters and acts of war. Some policies do cover a roof repair or replacement if the roof is damaged by a weather event. Our professionals here at Professional Benefit Solutions will guide you through the coverages you need to make certain that you are made whole in the event of a disaster.