Perils and Policies
Now we may be in a difficult economy currently but the last thing you should cut cost on is your homeowners insurance. Homeowners Insurance can protect you through the worst case scenarios including earthquake, fire, hurricane or burglary.
How Much Insurance is Adequate for Me?
Normally your deductible on homeowners Insurance is anywhere form $100 to $250 deductible. Now if your house is worth 250,000 dollars and you only have a 150,000 dollar policy then that will not be enough. Also the land or lot is usually left out of the insurance appraisal so keep this in mind as well that you always want maximum coverage if not more than what your house is worth. The higher amount of deductible you pay the more that deductible covers. Sure it is nice to only pay a $100 however if you are insuring a larger property always consider paying a bit more since you are covering more items within that property.
Personal Liability Coverage
Now with Homeowners Insurance your personal belongings can be replaceable as long as you have the right policy. Make sure that when you buy your policy look over everything it covers including your most smallest yet important items. Nearly everything sold today has some sort of insurance to cover it, just male sure when purchasing said property that it is properly covered and if it is not covered see if your own home owners insurance will cover the item if non replaceable.
Insuring Your Personal Property
With more expensive items such as jewelry you can get jewelry insurance through your local jewelry or you can get added coverage through homeowners insurance. Now with cars large appliances and electronics such as computers coverage can be applied if not already covered with Homeowners Insurance. Just make sure as you look over your policy. Like stated earlier it is better to be safe than sorry.
Flood and Earthquake Coverage
If your in a flood zone or area with high likeliness or even a earthquake zone of hurricane zone then you may not be protected by a basic home owners insurance. That same company can provide more coverage usually at a higher price. They will normally not tell you upfront what is not covered so it is up to you to ask what is covered and what kind of circumstances are covered under your home owners insurance policy.
Other Insurance for Homeowners
When you combine auto and home owners insurance your savings are about 10 percent less than if you pay separate bills. In addition if you have a security system on your house this will not only save you on your belongings but as well save you money on your homeowners insurance. Including when you decide to sell your property you will get more if you have a proper working security system for your home.
Shopping for Insurance
Shop at least three different insurance companies to get the best quote for you and your family when shopping for your insurance company. Look and review every policy offered and look at what the price includes. Does it include a higher or lower deductible. Is flood coverage covered if you live in a flood zone? Are you already covered properly on your auto insurance in case of a flood?
Picking a Company
If you care about reputation then go with someone you know and is more recognized if your concerned with price look locally but also makes sure the company is reputable. You pay for what you get in most cases when you pay less. Also even when shopping make sure the insurance companies make sure they are financially reputable. Some of your smaller local companies may lack the same type of funding to help pay for their costs. You should never be the one flipping the bill if you are properly covered.
Conclusion
Here is an example, two families same flood. Family one has a average homeowners insurance pays $100 dollar deductible but after said flood they did not have the appropriate flood coverage. Family two pays a higher deductible and they even have a special clause for jewelry and irreplaceable items in which they receive full payment and replacement. So when thinking of home owners insurance try not to be family one or you will be stuck with the bill.
Reference
http://www.homeownerswiz.com/homeownersinsurance/faqs.htm#personal