Home Insurance Checklist
If you're looking for a home, it's important to keep insurance considerations in the back of your mind as you shop. Here is a checklist to guide you through the home insurance process.
House Hunting
As you're shopping for homes, keep in mind that the features of the house can have a profound impact on your home insurance rates. Here is what you should do before and during the house-hunting process:
- Check your credit. If your credit report contains derogatory or erroneous items, try to get them improved or corrected as soon as you can.
- Get a CLUE report. Your CLUE (Comprehensive Loss Underwriting Exchange Report) will give you your home insurance claims history for the last five years. If you have no claims on your report, you will be able to get lower home insurance rates.
- Look at the house's age & condition. Older homes sometimes have characteristics, such as wooden floors or plaster walls, that make them more costly to repair or replace. If you are looking at a fixer-upper home, remember that your home insurance rates may be higher until adequate improvements are made.
- Check out the home's construction. If you plan to live in an area prone to hurricanes, you should consider a brick home because it will be more wind-resistant. For earthquake zones, look for newer homes bolted to the foundation.
- Safety devices. Homes with burglar, smoke, and fire alarms that notify an outside service might get you a significant discount on your home insurance rates.
- Location is everything. Coastal homes will be more prone to water damage, hurricanes, and wind damage, and thus will cost more to insure. Also consider the risk of floods or earthquakes, as you will need separate policies for these events.
Buying Your Home & Insurance
So you're finally ready to buy. Follow theses steps when purchasing your new home and home insurance policy:
- Get the home inspected and look up its claims history. Claims made on the home by previous owners will affect your home insurance rates, so you want a house with a clean record.
- Set your deductibles as high as you can. The higher your home insurance deductibles, the lower your premiums will be.
- Buy enough insurance. You want enough coverage to completely rebuild your home, replace all of the home's contents, and cover your liability if someone is injured on your property and you are sued.
- Ask about discounts. When you are choosing an insurance provider, be sure to ask about any discounts you may be eligible for.
