Owning a house is a massive responsibility. Not only do you have to deal with the monthly mortgage loan installment and other fees such as water and electricity, but you also have to be prepared in case of an unexpected emergency, a robbery or other disaster! Just think about if you had to lose all the belongings in the house or if the entire home is destroyed through a natural disaster… how will you ever be able to live through such an event?
The solution comes by way of homeowners insurance!
Homeowners insurance can generally be split up into home content insurance which provides coverage for the actual content inside your house and house structure insurance or building insurance which provides coverage for the structure of the property. Most financial institutions will not even consider funding your house if the structure of your house is not insured.
It is important to compile an exact household inventory. You will have to supply an insurance supplier with a detailed summary before your insurance policy and premiums can be determined. Make certain you complete this inventory as thorough and scrupulous as you possibly can. There is genuinely no other way to establish the actual value of lost or damaged property and you might end up being underinsured if you try to take shortcuts with your insurance cover. It’s better yet if you can keep the slips and invoices of new items you buy – this will guarantee complete accuracy. Better yet, photograph all the rooms in the house, ensuring that the most precious objects are clearly visible and also send this through to your insurance provider so that they can keep it on record.
Don’t assume all homeowners insurance plans will offer the same type of cover. In a few instances you will need extra policies to cover your house against events such as hailstorms and bomb explosions while other damage such as storm damage, fire damage and leaky plumbing might be included in the policy. Naturally the more extensive the cover required, the more expensive the actual insurance plan.
It is important to realize that nobody is untouchable. Just because your home is in a secure neighbourhood with 24hour security and a vicious guard dog, does not necessarily mean that you will never need homeowners insurance. As mentioned above, you also need to insure your home against factors such as fire, theft and storm and no amount of security measures will be able to shield you from these kinds of catastrophes!
As with all types of insurance you are only harming yourself if you lie on your homeowners insurance application. If you don’t have an alarm system installed or stay in a complex with a security guard at the gate, don’t pretend that you do so that you can try and save on your premiums! If it’s time to claim and an assessor is sent to your property, your little white lie can mean that the insurer will reject your claim!
In conclusion: No homeowner is untouchable! Be sure that you have contents insurance and building insurance in place – then you can sleep sound at night!
