When people look at homes, they tend to focus on factors such as property taxes, neighborhoods, school districts and available recreational and cultural opportunities but an often overlooked item is the insurance implications of a specific house. You will be paying for insurance for as long as you own it, so you should factor the cost of insurance into the home buying process. You don’t want to find out that your dream home is more expensive to insure than you thought after you own it.

When looking at prospective new homes, Stanberry Insurance suggests asking the following questions:

• How far is the home from the fire department? Houses that are near a fire station with professional firefighters usually cost less to insure.
• What is the condition of the plumbing and electrical systems? Poorly maintained, unsafe and/or outdated systems can cost more to insure.
• Is the home vulnerable to wind damage? Find out if private insurance is available, or a state-run insurance program. Is there a windstorm deductible, and how high is it? A home on or near the beach may be more costly to insure than one inland.
• Is the house at risk from flooding? Flood insurance is not covered under a standard homeowners insurance policy. However, it is available from the National Flood Insurance Program, which is serviced by private carriers, and from a few specialty insurers.
• What about earthquake risk? Earthquake insurance requires an endorsement or a separate policy.
• Is the house well built and well maintained? Homes built by reputable builders using disaster resistant materials and designed to meet current building codes are likely to better withstand natural disasters.

A knowledgeable home inspector and your insurance agent can be helpful in answering these questions. Keep in mind, that the size, location, construction and overall condition of the house can affect the cost, choice and availability of home insurance. Also, you should note any renovations or upgrades you make to the home.

Stanberry Insurance contributed $500.00 to the relief fund that ultimately was a donation to the American Red Cross in the amount of $234,782.00!

“We’re grateful for the generosity of community partners like Erie Insurance,” said Pam Masi, executive director of the Erie Chapter of the American Red Cross.  “With your help we’re making an immediate difference in Haiti.”

As recently as October of 2009, WNC felt the tremors of a 2.5 magnitude earthquake just 20 miles south of Asheville. Though that quake was not classified as severe, our history does show how surprising and costly earlier quakes have been. In February of 1916, a 5.2 earthquake caused Waynesville residents to flee into the streets, as chimneys toppled and windows cracked. The intensity of the largest earthquake in North Carolina history was felt throughout the south east region to include residents of Alabama, South Carolina, Kentucky and West Virginia. Move forward to 1928. Many seniors in Asheville recall the earthquake that struck that November. It is recorded that there was panic in the theaters, homes damaged by falling items, chimneys leveled, the cracking of home foundations and broken water lines. Other notable earthquakes were reported in 1935, 1957, 1969, 1970 and 2007.

Growing urban development and buildings that have been built prior to current building codes increase the potential costs of recovery each year. Going forward, we must understand that to prepare for the recovery of one of the above listed losses, we need to take a hard look at our insurance coverage. A standard homeowners or business property insurance policy does not contain coverage for earthquakes. The good news is that you do not need a separate policy to protect yourself and your most valuable possessions from devastating loss. Earthquake coverage can be added to existing policies to cover against damage to the structure of a covered building, your personal property contents and ‘loss of use’ coverage that will pay for a place to live while the repairs are being completed to your damaged home.

Adding this coverage today might increase your premium in the short term, but not adding could be financially devastating in the future.

Links

• http://neic.usgs.gov/neis/last_event_states/states_north_carolina.html
• http://insurancenewsnet.com/article.aspx?id=153461
• http://www.heritagewnc.org/WNC_natural_disasters/earthquakes.htm
• http://www.geology.enr.state.nc.us/Geologic_hazards_earthquakes/earthquakes.htm
• http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/states/index.php?regionID=33