The Common Pitfalls Regarding Home Owners Insurance

The Common Pitfalls Regarding Home Owners Insurance

Just when you think you live in a safe area where nothing can damage your home, something like an earthquake can come along and literally shake your foundations to the core. This is why you need to have a solid homeowners insurance policy. Check out some of these great insurance tips.

Paying your mortgage off is the best way to reduce your homeowners insurance costs. Insurance agencies make the assumption that people with high equity in their home will work to preserve that value. If you pay your mortgage fully, your insurance premiums will fall.

One advantage of installing or replacing the smoke alarms in your house is that doing so can help lower the cost of your homeowners insurance. If you have an older house, you could save up to 10 percent a year. You may also get a further discount by putting in additional alarms throughout your house.

Insuring a vacant house is very expensive, as a vacant property is a magnet for vandals. Vacant house insurance can cost more in a month than regular homeowners insurance costs for a year. If a family member cant stay at the house, consider renting the property out, or exchange free rent for house sitting services to avoid having a property sit idle.

You can save thousands of dollars and years of payments by making your mortgage payment on a bi-weekly basis, instead of monthly. Ask your mortgage holder about setting you up on this payment program. Since there are 52 weeks in a year, you will end up making an additional couple of payments without breaking the bank or your budget.

Insurance for your house is a must as long as you still owe a mortgage. This protects the bank on their investment. Once you own your home in full, you will still want your insurance in case of theft or other damage so that you are not left fully covering all the repairs and loss.

Flood insurance is an extra insurance type that can truly help those who live in high risk areas. It may add a bit more to your total premium costs, but it can save you from losing everything in case of a flood. High risk areas are flood insurance musts to help you protect your investments.

Create a comprehensive list of the valuables that are in your home, and provide a copy to your insurance agent. Take pictures of your items, and have them stored somewhere away from your home. Confirm with your agent that all of these items will be covered, and make sure to update your agent on new valuable purchases that should be covered.

To make sure youre covered for the full value of any item youre insuring, have the item endorsed. Seek out an appraisal for the item from a professional, and have the contents of that appraisal added into your insurance contract. Knowing the precise value of your item will expedite the claims process and make sure your insurance company pays you back what you deserve.

Make sure you keep documentation that provides for what you own and other necessary information in a safe place that you can retrieve in the event you need to make a homeowners insurance claim. Should a claim occur, your insurance carrier requests documentation and proof of contents. Keeping this type of inventory speeds the process and helps things get resolved easier. Be certain to keep your inventory safe, such as in a fire safe, or safety deposit box.

Finding money-saving tips is great if you want to save big on quality insurance. Tips like youve just read in the article above about how to still get quality insurance while saving money are invaluable to you as a homeowner. Always make sure your house is protected and be sure to get the best insurance you can.