The
largest single investment most consumers make is in their home. Homeowners
insurance is a package policy consisting of different types of coverage for the
house, its contents, additional living expenses, personal liability claims
against the policyholder and other members of the household and medical
payments to others. The policy holder pays a single premium each year.
It
is important to plan ahead and one should decide what type and how much
insurance you need. It is also important to know that if financing is a
contingency of in a purchase contract, the buyer may be able to legally get out
of the contract as long as the financing contingency remains and insurance is
unavailable, since the lender will require insurance.
A
typical homeowners coverage insures the dwelling,
other structures built with permit and contents, against - fire or lighting,
smoke, explosion, windstorm or hail, theft, vandalism, breakage of glass, riot
or civil commotion, vehicles and aircraft.
A homeowner can, and in some cases, must take additional coverage
against flood or earthquake damage to the property. It is always a good idea to
prepare a complete household inventory, write down any valuable items, use a household inventory form to help you
with this process.
A
homeowner should take an insurance policy which will cover the amount to
replace the property in case of loss (this value should be the approximate cost
of materials and labor involved in rebuilding the property and not the purchase
or assessed value of the home).
If
you have a replacement cost policy, the chances that you may be able to
completely rebuild your home are better, than other types of policies. One should also take into consideration that
the policy covers " Building code upgrade
coverage", and unless your policy has this coverage, your insurance
company may not pay for changes you may need to make to rebuild the property to
current building codes (this is more important for older homes).
Homeowners Insurance Premium Comparisons
The California Department of Insurance (CDI) surveys the largest insurers
admitted to transact insurance in California
and asks them to provide premium comparisons for various lines of personal
insurance. The results of these surveys are designed to assist consumers with
comparing the premiums they might be charged for insurance from one company
versus another for homeowners, condominium, renters and earthquake.
Flood Insurance
If
you want your belongings covered against damages caused by a flood, you should
have flood insurance. Basic home insurance policies never cover damage from
flooding because it's second only to fire as the most widespread of natural
disasters.
Because
flood damage happens so frequently, most insurance companies will not even
consider writing flood coverage. The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP)
underwrites the overwhelming majority of flood policies in the United States.
While most people should at least think about getting flood insurance, it is
true that some people need it more than others.
The
fact that a property is located in a federally-designated flood zone must be
disclosed by the seller and/or the seller's agent. If the property lies in a
flood zone, it is also possible that the lender would require you to get flood
insurance. Most lenders require the
homeowner to have flood insurance if the property is located wholly or
partially within Zone "A" or "V". Flood insurance is available for properties
in Zone "B", "C", "X" or "D" but is
usually not required by the lender.
Zone A, AO, AE, AH, A1-A30: Are areas of "100
year" flooding (A one % or greater chance of yearly flooding due to
excessive rainfall)
Zone V, V1-V30: Are areas of "100 year"
flooding in coastal areas
Zone B: Are areas of moderate
flood risk due to excessive rainfall
Zone X: Are areas of moderate or
minimal flood risk
Zone C, D: Are areas of minimal or
undetermined flood risk
National
Flood Insurance Program
NFIP a government organization that provides consumers with
comprehensive information on flood insurance, including costs and comparisons,
facts on flood insurance, online hazard maps etc.
Earthquake Insurance
Your options for earthquake insurance in California
will depend on where you live, your claims history, and the condition your
house is in. The California Earthquake Authority (CEA) will sell bare bones
coverage to anyone whose home doesn't have pre-existing earthquake damage
.(Check
premium comparison).
There are also others who offer earthquake coverage's independent of the CEA.
Such as:
GeoVera
GeoVera has developed earthquake products which offer California residents alternatives to the
limited earthquake coverage most insurance companies offer. GeoVera
products were created to provide the type of broad protection you need in order
to protect your greatest investment at a price that is surprisingly affordable.
Web Sites Of Companies Providing Insurance Services Online
InsWeb
InsWeb is a free service that helps you compare quotes
Insure.com
Insure.com provides consumers researched reporting on the
latest news in the insurance industry. They host current collection of
insurance information on the Internet.
Mobile-Home-Insurance.com
Mobile-home-insurance.com provides insurance for
manufactured home.
Net Quote
NetQuote provides consumers with a way to shop for home insurance quotes. Fill
out a form, once submitted, the computer then locates
the home insurance companies with the best home insurance rates based on your
profile. Specializing in all types of home insurance
coverage, including mortgage protection, fire insurance, renter's insurance and
hazard insurance.
Online Rating
OnlineRating.com
is a free online interactive Insurance rating service. You can use this web
site to calculate your Insurance rate online. Their rate calculator is easy to
use and it calculates your rate immediately.
Web Sites Of Companies Providing Homeowners Insurance
