In my post about Adjusting Insurance Based on Home Price, I was called out by an anonymous commenter, who said I shouldn’t talk about things I didn’t know (which is probably good advice, but I’ve never called myself an expert), because I said you should reduce your insurance coverage because your home may be worth [...]
According to the Insurance Information Institute, or III, “the average cost of insuring noncoastal residences in 2008 is expected to be up just 2% to 4% in many areas and flat or even falling in others.” The reason is because the property and casualty insurance industry is experiencing the down-trend of their market cycle and [...]
There’s a great article in WSJ Online that discusses some new security systems that allow you to monitor from afar on the internet. This is something a lot of home brew security systems have offered, online access, but this is the first I’ve heard of a professional system offering that level of service.
The second part [...]
Tomorrow is Valentine’s Day and chances are you will be giving (or receiving) a piece of jewelry on the wonderous day that is February 14th. If you do, consider getting a jewelry rider to cover you in the event that piece is loss. In fact, and this is something to remember for next year, get [...]
Buying a home can be very stressful, so it’s not surprising that some people would confuse mortgage insurance with homeowners insurance. The two are very different.
Mortgage insurance is usually purchased by the borrower, on behalf of the lender, to protect the lender against the borrower defaulting on a mortgage. It is also known as private [...]
If you see yourself in a short term tight financial situation and you’re concerned that a catastrophe in the home could wipe you out, then you could consider lower your insurance deductible. By lowering your insurance deductible, your monthly payments will increase but your deductible will be lowered. That is, in the event of a [...]
So you have your homeowners insurance all set, you’re paying a good price on your premiums, and you pretty much have it all under control, what else can you do to make sure you don’t get screwed in case something happens? Keep your insurance information updated regularly. Keeping them informed of any changes ever six [...]
Damage to your house, or other covered structures like a shed or detached garage, by rodents or rabbits (or squirrels, mice, rats, etc.) is not covered by your homeowners insurance. If you’re like me and have an attic, you probably discovered a few enterprising squirrels decided to gnaw a hole in the side of your [...]
Let’s say you have a pair of earrings insured by your homeowners policy, in the event that you lose one of them, your homeowner’s policy (if that item is covered, in the case of jewelry you’ll have to get a separate rider) will generally pay to repair or replace any part required to restore the [...]
Here is a harrowing tale from a couple in Glendale, California about trimming trees. They were served notice from the fire department that the trees on their property had branches that were growing dangerously close to their home. So they hired a tree trimmer, paid him $3,000, and had him pare back some of the [...]