Affordable Homeowners Insurance Policies
Your house is likely the largest purchase you will ever make in your lifetime. Make sure it is fully insured from any possible disaster with the help of Forsythe Insurance Services. We'll work to find the right policy to protect you, your family and, your belongings.
Let our agents help you choose a policy that will fit your individual needs. Protecting your assets is always our goal. A well-chosen homeowners' insurance policy can lessen the impact of some of life’s common, yet unforeseeable, perils.
Insuring Your House's Structure
Your homeowners' insurance policy should cover the cost of potentially rebuilding your house at current construction costs. You may be required to buy insurance to cover the amount of your mortgage as well. The best way to estimate your insurance amount is to multiply the total square footage of your house by the local building costs per square foot.
Standard homeowners' policies cover disasters such as fire, lightning, hail, explosions, and theft. They do not generally cover floods, earthquakes, or damages caused by lack of maintenance.
Some Factors to Consider for Rebuilding
- Any home improvement that has added value to your house
- Exterior wall construction materials - frame, masonry (brick or stone), or veneer
- Fireplaces, exterior trim, and other special features
- If anything was custom built
- Local construction costs
- Other structures on the premises such as garages or sheds
- Style of the house (i.e. ranch or colonial)
- The square footage of the structure
- The total number of rooms
- The type of roof and materials used
Extended Policies Available
In this part of Florida, we're no strangers to hurricane damages. Following a massive storm, construction teams and contractors are in high demand, which can push up your rebuilding costs. To protect yourself from exceeding what you can afford, extended and guaranteed replacement cost policies are available.
Stay Up to Date with Building Codes
Local building codes are updated from time to time and may have changed since your house was built. Following damages, your home may need to be rebuilt to meet the current building codes. Most homeowners' policies don't pay for extra expenses involving rebuilding up to code. However, many insurance providers offer an ordinance or law endorsement that pays out a certain amount to help with such costs.
Protect Yourself from Inflation
An inflation guard clause in your policy automatically adjusts the limits in your policy when it is renewed so that it reflects the current local construction costs.
Policies for Insuring Older Homes
If you own an older home, it may not be possible for you to buy a replacement cost policy. A modified replacement cost policy might be your best bet. It pays for current rebuilding materials rather than recreating your older ones. Keep in mind that insurance companies differ in how they cover older homes. Our agent will be happy to compare and contrast different policies for homeowners.
Personal Possessions
Most homeowners policies' cover your personal belongings within your home from somewhere between 50 and 70 percent of the amount of insurance you have on the structure of the house itself. It is recommended that you conduct a home inventory of everything you own in the chance they are damaged or stolen.
Replacement Cost or Actual Cash Value Insurance
You have the option of insuring your belongings for their actual cash value or for their replacement cost. The actual cash value policy pays to replace your home or possessions minus a deduction for depreciation up to the policy's limit. Replacement cost means you are paid the actual cost of replacing your home or possessions with no deduction for depreciation up to the limit of the policy.
The price of the replacement cost coverage is roughly 10 percent more than the actual cash value policy.
Insurance on Expensive Items
There may be a limit to how much coverage you can get for expensive belongings such as jewelry or heirlooms. If the limits are too low, you may consider a special personal property floater or endorsement. These allow you to insure each item individually or as a collection. There is no deductible on these policies.
Liability Coverage
This part of your policy will cover you against any lawsuits for bodily harm or property damage caused by you or your family members. It also covers any injuries or property damage caused by pets. It pays for the cost of a court defense as well as any damages the court rules you must pay out.
Most home insurance policies provide at least $100,000 in liability insurance but higher amounts are available.