Home Owner’s Insurance Information

Homeowners insurance will keep you protected if disaster strikes.

Your home will probably be the biggest investment of your life, so you want to protect it. Insurance is something that you have to have, but hope you never have to use. Home owner’s insurance covers things like fire, lightning, wind storms, hail, freezing of plumbing system and theft. This could be one of the most important investments that you make. Many times you don’t have an option of whether to purchase it. Your lender will usually require it to secure your loan. If you don’t pay to keep your home insured, your lender may do it for you and then charge you.

Home owner’s policies typically cover the structure and its plumbing, electrical wiring and central air and heating systems. It will also cover other structures on your land. It can sometimes cover the possessions in your home or pay for your hotel room while your home is getting fixed. Home insurance will typically cost about $35 per month for every $100,000 of your home’s value. If you live in a high risk area for some natural disasters, you may have to pay more. Flood insurance is usually extra and costs around $400 a year. If you live in an earthquake prone area, you may want to also purchase a policy for that.

This insurance will protect you from loss.

Many people discover too late that they don’t have enough insurance to cover the loss after it happened. They buy their insurance based on the size of their structure and not necessarily what is in it. The better your coverage, the less you have to pay out of pocket if and when you need to use it. Take an inventory of your house, its contents and your personal property when determining how much insurance you need.

Home owner’s insurance also has other benefits besides just protecting what is in your home.

If someone gets injured while at your home and decides to file a lawsuit, you can be protected by purchasing additional liability coverage. It can pay for the injured party’s medical bills and damages to the property. The liability protection also covers the cost of hiring an attorney is someone decides to sue you.

You may want to add personal property insurance to your policy to protect what is inside your house. Most standard policies don’t cover that. Make sure you take a personal inventory of everything within your house to come up with its value. If you have more valuable works of art or high-end jewelry, there are policies to cover those.

When it comes time to purchase insurance, shop around.

Get quotes and compare prices. Check with your state insurance department, consumer publications and your public library to find out what different insurers charge. You also need to compare deductibles. This is the amount you have to pay out of pocket on each claim. Higher deductibles may be available at a reduced price. Always ask if there are any discounts available. You may be able to save money by insuring your house and car with the same company. You may also be able to get discounts on your insurance by installing deadbolts, alarm systems or fixing your roof. If you live in a high risk area for a disaster, make it more disaster resistant. Add some storm shutters or reinforce your roof. Older homes can be retrofitted to be able to withstand earthquakes.

When looking at an insurance company, don’t just look at their prices. Look at their record for claims service and make sure it is a financially sound company.