What does Home Owners Insurance covers that most people don’t know…
Homeowners Insurance is one of those things that everyone needs, most have, but few really fully understand. Besides your basic coverage which happens when something happens to the home, homeowners insurance covers a few other things that you may not know.
First, your homeowners insurance covers belongings in your car from theft. If someone breaks your window while you are parked anywhere, not just at your home, and steals valuables, your homeowners insurance covers that loss up to a certain amount. Now, how many people think to make a claim to their homeowners insurance when this happens?
Second, let’s say your kid is playing baseball at school, and while swinging, the bat flies out of his hands and hits another player in the head. Your homeowners insurance actually protects you from being sued for monetary damages to the injured player because of your liability coverage. Remember, this doesn’t have to happen in your back yard, or be on the property at all. You’re still covered.
Third, If you store your personal property off site and its lost due to a covered peril, you have protection!
Fourth, If you live on a golf course and are driving a golf cart and run over another player you have Liability protection!
Fifth, if it is not specifically excluded or restricted on the policy back, you generally have coverage any where in the world for these things!
Yes, these things are all great and amazing but I would be remiss to not discuss the things that homeowners insurance does not cover that some people may think or assume it does.
First, it does not cover earth movement. That means earthquakes, sink holes, or other acts of God that may harm your property. There are separate policies that can be taken out to cover these and, especially in the state of California, should be seriously considered.
Second, your homeowners insurance does not cover flooding. It doesn’t matter if the flooding is from a pipe bursting or three weeks of rain, if you do not have separate flood insurance on your home you, your belongings and your home will not be covered.
Third, always be aware the limitations on theft of cash, jewelry, fine arts, and guns. The $20,000 painting in the living room should have it’s own insurance policy, as well as the firearm in the closet and the crown jewels in your safe. Should any of these go missing, your homeowners policy would only cover up to the amount listed in the policy rather than the full amount of the valuables.
If you have any questions on this please feel free to contact me at ctrowbridge@farmersagent..com or 1-650-Farmers.
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What are my options with Home Owners Insurance and how do I figure out what I need?
Homeowners insurance is provided with a basic package that covers most things like dwelling, personal property, liability, loss of use, and separate structures already included. Variations of this basic package are available depending on how your home fits the criteria insurance companies look for, such as owner occupied, multi-unit, or owner occupied with renters. These same variations are available for the different types of ownership as well; that is homeowners, condo owner, or landlord.
Essentially, to begin to answer this question you first need to see what boxes your home and needs fit in. Do you live in your home but have roommates? Do you have multiple units? Are you a landlord? Then you need to see what the basic package of insurance offers you in terms of coverage and assess your own personal property and expenses and see if extra coverage will be needed to cover your needs. If so your insurance agent will know how to adjust your homeowners insurance to cover the extra.
How do you assess what is needed? Take a realistic look at what you are trying to protect. Find the local cost per square foot (This information can be found by calling some of your local builders and asking them if a house burnt to the ground what would it cost (per square foot) to rebuild it?) and take that and multiply it by the square feet of your home to get your appropriate dwelling coverage amount. You should also account for any Extended Replacement Coverage in that calculation. Add up all your personal property to make sure you have enough coverage to replace it.
Don’t worry– a good insurance agent can help you to figure all of this out as well, but having an idea of where you stand when you go to speak with them can help the process and make sure you have everything you need.
Also, with homeowners insurance you should consider flood and earthquake insurance as these do not come standard with homeowners insurance policies. Even when the risk of flood or earthquake may be rare, not having the appropriate insurance to cover these occurrences can be costly.
If you have any questions on this please feel free to contact me at ctrowbridge@farmersagent..com or 1-650-Farmers.
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Homeowners vs. Condo Insurance
The two different types of home ownership are reflected in the differences found between Single Family homeowner’s insurance policies and Condominium homeowners Insurance. Single Family homes are owned entirely by the Homeowner, including the dwelling structure as well as its contents. Condominium homeowners own their property from the Walls in, with the exterior Walls, and Roof, being owned by the Condominium Homeowners Association.
Single family Homeowners need protection for the whole dwelling in their policy, whereas condo owners generally need to only protect their personal property and any internal improvements that might not be covered by their Homeowners Association insurance policy. Condo Homeowners need to read the governing CC&R (Codes, Codicils and Restrictions) of their Homeowners Association to see for themselves just what is covered by the Associations policy and what is their responsibility. Hopefully the following will generally simplify this question: (X means applicable)
| Single Family | Homeowners Insurance |
Condominium Homeowners Insurance |
|---|---|---|
| Dwelling | X | - |
| Personal Property | X | X |
| Loss of Use | X | X |
| Separate Structures | X | - |
| Liability | X | X |
| Medical | X | X |
| Building Improvements | - | X |
Since many Condo Association policies cover only the exterior of the building, if the Condo Homeowner wants to have protection for the investment they may have made in interior upgrades, or improvements, they should make sure to add this coverage to their condo policy. But, because they don’t need the Dwelling or Separate Structure coverage’s found in Single Family policies, Condo policies tend to be a little less expensive that Single Family Homeowners.
All the other similar coverages (Persona Property, Loss of Use & Liability) require the same consideration in both the Singe Family and Condo Homowners policy. However, your Liability coverage, in a Condo policy, also has the possibility of your neighbors suffering a loss from a fire caused by your unit, more so than in a Single Family Home fire.
If you have any questions feel free to email them to me (ctrowbridge@farmersagent.com) or call me at 650-FARMERS!
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