What Exactly Does Homeowners Insurance Cover? – DeeDee’s Blog
You may be looking to save money when you are buying a house and wonder if a homeowner’s insurance is actually worth it. Well, the truth is, not only do you want to have it but you actually need to if you are getting a mortgage. Any lender will require it because if something were to happen to the house and you aren’t covered, you’re likely to default on the mortgage.
In any case, it is worth it to have because it will cover you in case anything happens to you and your house you’re protected. You may be moving into your dream home, but there is always the possibility of trouble lurking when you least expect it.
In this article, I will go over exactly what most homeowner’s insurance will cover you for.
Structure of the home
There are a number of ways that the structural integrity of your home can be compromised. Fire is the most likely culprit as it can happen in any zone in the country and isn’t dependent on a storm or some kind of act of God. Even a small fire can do a lot of damage and your homeowner’s insurance will be helpful in this case.
If your house is uninhabitable because of the fire then the insurance may even cover the expense of staying in a temporary home while it is fixed.
Before you buy the home, you will surely have a thorough home inspection done by professionals. During the inspection they will highlight areas of concern. Notably the roof and foundation as those are serious problems to have later if there is an issue when you buy the home.
However, these types of issues fall under wear and tear and are not likely to be covered by insurance if you were to have structural problems later on.
Personal belongings
If you have a fire or some other event that does damage to the home, you are also covered for your personal belongings.
Furniture, clothes, computers, and other items of value will be considered when you make a claim for damage, say, from a fire. Some items can be covered even if they aren’t in the home if they are damaged or stolen.
This is helpful if you have fur stored somewhere that gets stolen or damaged by the storage facility. Jewelry is another common item that is covered by your homeowner’s insurance.
Liability protection
Accidents happen even when you have tried to prepare your home to prevent them. The problem is that sometimes things happen and a visitor to your home can trip and fall or have some other kind of injury happen which is a liability.
If your driveway is icy and somebody slips, or there is a low clearance spot and somebody bangs their head then they can sue you for their medical costs and even more. When you have homeowner’s insurance many times these injuries will be covered. The minimum coverage generally pays out up to $100,000 but you may want that to be higher so you aren’t out of pocket if the claim is greater than that.
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