Alexandra SpadaPersonal Finance

Home Insurance

Why is car insurance so expensive?

  1. Risk
  2. Your sex, your age, your marital status, and what neighborhood you live in all contribute to an insurer's prediction of whether you'll file a claim.
  3. All insurers don't price the same risks identically

Know how much insurance to buy

  1. Determine the cost of rebuilding your home
  2. Insure your home for its replacement cost
  3. The amount it would cost to rebuild it if it were totally destroyed
  4. Best resource is a builder

Getting the proper coverage

  1. Different Policies
  2. HO-3 policy:insures all major perils, except flood, earthquake, war, and nuclear accident
  3. Deep coverage: includes 100% of your home's replacement cost
  4. Insurers generally cover a home's contents up to between 50% and 75% of the home's value
  5. Pick a deductible
  6. The amount you pay yourself before the insurance kicks in
  7. Buy the guarantees
  8. Traditional guaranteed replacement cost
  9. Pays whatever it takes to rebuild your home, even if it costs more than the original limits you purchased
  10. Inflation guard
  11. Annually increases your premium at the rate of local building-cost inflation
  12. Ordinance-and-law coverage
  13. Covers the costs of bringing your home into compliance with current building codes
  14. Limit your liabilities
  15. Your homeowners policy protects against lawsuits for accidents that happen on your property or if your dog bites someone
  16. Consider umbrella liability coverage
  17. Consider other options
  18. Displacements
  19. Floods
  20. Home Business Coverage
  21. Riders for Valuables

Pick an Insurer

  1. Check what’s out there
  2. Get quotes from at least 4 carriers
  3. Look at services
  4. Find out as much as you can about a company's service before you sign on
  5. Focus on financials
  6. Look at the financial ratings of your home insurer

Maximize your savings

  1. Take advantage of discounts:
  2. Driving less than the average number of miles per year
  3. Quit smoking
  4. Senior citizen
  5. Combine coverage
  6. Boost credit score

Claims

  1. Know when to hire help
  2. More information you can provide on your claim, the more likely you'll get your due
  3. Hire a public adjuster
  4. Keep good records
  5. Record your version of the event
  6. Take photos, if possible.
  7. Get the police report.
  8. Call your insurer as soon as you're able
  9. Keep notes of all related conversations