Your Home Value and Property Insurance

While it may seem like a viable option to lower your property insurance coverage to save some money, this may end up costing you big in the long run. If your policy limits are too low, the cost to fix your home may exceed your limits, even if your home’s value has lessened recently. 

Property Insurance Considerations
Though housing prices are declining, home repair costs are escalating. According to the Los Angeles Times, it may cost as much as 30 percent more to rebuild parts of a home as compared to completely building a new one from scratch. Rebuilding is often more expensive because demolition and removal of damaged property are pricey. Workers must also work around your existing landscape, power lines and other structures. This can make rebuilding difficult and limiting. 

Limits on your homeowners insurance are established to protect your family in the event that something would go wrong, e.g., fire, destruction to your property due to weather. In an effort to remain protected and save money, consider the following savings tips:

• Increase your credit score by paying your bills on time, avoiding writing bad checks, for example. Insurance companies believe that having a poor credit score means that you are not responsible and are consequently a greater risk to insure.
• Avoid filing nuisance claims. Use your coverage to protect against losses that you cannot recover by yourself and take care of minor incidents on your own. 
• Increase your deductible to lower your monthly premium. According to the Insurance Information Institute (III), increasing your deductible from $250 to $500 can cut costs by 12 percent. If you increase to a $1,000 deductible, you could save as much as 25 percent or 30 percent if you increase up to a $2,500 deductible. 
• Consider buying multiple lines of coverage from the same carrier to incur discounts, such as your homeowners, automobile and life insurance.
• You can count on us for all your home matters, including homeowners and renters insurance. Contact us for more information on our affordable coverage options. 

Members can save up to 10 percent on homeowner’s and automobile insurance brokered by Warren G. Bender Co. The availability of a variety of carriers offer members the widest coverage based on your individual needs. To learn more about our home owner’s policies, contact Bender today at http://wgbender.com or (916) 380-5300.