homeowners insurance

Hail Damage Still Causing Issues for Sellers in San Antonio

July 11, 2016 by khproperties Leave a Comment

Did your home suffer hail damage during the storms earlier this year? Many people don’t even know that their homes were affected by the hail storms and since they’ve experienced no leaks or obvious things like broken windows, they think they have escaped the major brunt of the storms and all is well. Many homeowners don’t know anything happened at all…until they go to sell their homes and the buyer comes along for the home inspection. If your home was in the path of one of the storms that brought with it extensive hail damage, chances are the inspector will find evidence of it and notate it in their report. Once it’s on that report, you’re going to have to deal with it one way or another.

Inspectors know what neighborhoods experienced hail damage and which didn’t, so they are on the lookout for the telltale signs of damage on rooftops. It is important to construct roofs as suggested by BA Roofing so as to protect them from hail and snow damage. On composition shingle roofs, the hail typically leaves a mark upon impact, which removes some of the granules from the shingle roofing and there is often a bit of a skid mark where they hit the roof and begin to slide down. Although these pockmarks can be small and seem insignificant in the grand scheme of things, they are an indication of long term wear and tear and while they may not be causing a leak now, they can cause issues in the future. Roofer Charlotte NC provides a best roofing services in North Carolina and with strong metal roofing hailstorms will not bother you anymore.Inspectors are there to report their findings to the buyer and because of the heightened awareness of hail in the area, they are looking at roofs more closely. Remember, the inspector has to protect their liability too – so when things like this become common place in an area, they are more likely to report these kinds of issues. They have to cover their liability and make everyone aware of the potential disclosure of items that could cause trouble for the owner – now or after the sale.

Once an inspector notates evidence of hail damage in their report, you’re stuck with it. As a seller, you now have a few basic choices:

- Do nothing. Most buyers are going to back out if you do nothing and if they did their inspections during the option period, there’s little recourse for you as a homeowner. This choice has an additional downside in that you now have to disclose that inspection report to future buyers on your Seller’s Disclosure Notice, so chances are just about every buyer is going to ask you to rectify the situation. It’s not just a matter of the buyer getting a new roof either – most insurance companies won’t insure the property for a new buyer because of the known damage. It truly is a case of being stuck between a rock and a hard place.
- Fix the roof and pay for it yourself. Depending on what the damage is, it may be a simple fix or it may be time to tear the whole roof off and replace it. Coming out of pocket for a new roof is not something most owners enjoy, so the next option is usually the better one.
- Call your insurance company and have them come out and inspect the roof. This can take time, so typically the seller and buyer will agree to extend the option period to allow time for an insurance adjuster to come out and present their findings. The insurance company will give you an estimate of what they think the damage is and how much it will cost to fix the roof or get a new roofing installation with the help of a recommended roofer. Remember, the insurance company will take into account any depreciation of the value of the roof as well as your deductible, so while they may declare it a total loss in need of replacement, they won’t necessarily pay for the whole thing. Once you have your numbers, you can arrange to have the roof fixed. You may have to work with the buyer to change closing dates as most lenders will not close on the home until they can verify the work is complete.
- You can perform the steps above, but instead of arranging to have the roof work done and paying for it with your insurance claim, you can assign the insurance proceeds over to the buyer at closing. You will still be responsible for your deductible, but this puts the work into the hands of the new owner after the sale. There’s a catch however. Most lenders and insurance companies won’t allow you to do this. There are some that allow it, but in most of the cases we’ve seen this year, either the lender requires the work to be complete before they will close and fund the loan or the insurance company doesn’t allow for assignment of proceeds. The banks are protecting their asset and the insurance company is making sure that the work gets done and no one is just pocketing the money only to make a claim later for the same item. Also, the buyer’s insurance company may not insure the property because of their knowledge of the claim and may also insist the work is done before they will insure the home. Without insurance on the home, the lender will not close on the loan.

Whichever route you choose, you’re going to want to keep the buyers updated and informed and you will need to get them to come to an agreement with you on how to proceed. As always, you’ll want to get everything in writing and your agent will draw up and amendment to the contract to reflect the decisions made on how everything will be handled.

Do You Have Hail Damage?

Most homeowners don’t go up on their roofs very often to inspect them, so you may not even know you have hail damage. If the storms passed through your neighborhood, chances are you do, even if it is only slight damage. Telltale signs you may need to think about your roof? If you’re seeing roofers all throughout your neighborhood, signs in the yards for roofing companies, pallets of shingles stacked in driveways…you’re going to want to get your roof checked. Buyers and their agents will be looking for those signs as well as having the home inspected and chances are, some evidence of hail damage will be found.

If you’re thinking about selling and live in an area that did experience hail storms, you can call your insurance company beforehand and have them come out to inspect the roof. It will save a lot of time and hassle while the home is under contract and you can have the work started sooner rather than later. You’ll probably have to come out of pocket for some of it (at least your deductible), but doing it now can save you the hassle and headache later during the sale. If you decide to have the whole roof replaced by commercial roofing contractors, it can add value to your home as well, so you may wind up with better, stronger offers for more money, especially since many buyers are aware of the length of time it can take to get these problems resolved while the home is under contract and they may not be prepared to take on the challenge of those types of delays. A little preparation goes a long way.

image courtesy of cafuego

Homeowner’s insurance: to claim or not to claim?

August 27, 2014 by khproperties 4 Comments

Should I Claim it on My Homeowner’s Insurance?

Like the attorney Marco D. Flores says, every good thing comes with risk. Homeowner’s insurance is a risk assessment business and definitely something that you’ll want to have if anything goes wrong with your house. According to ERISA claims lawyers, if you get a loan for your home, your lender will require it, so that they can protect their investment as much as you do and with cash purchases, it is not required, but highly recommended. But not everything that goes wrong with your house should be filed with the insurance carrier.

The most common homeowner’s insurance claims are for theft, residential or commercial roof replacement (hail damage in Texas), and water damage from busted plumbing. However, there are a multitude of potential claims that people make on a regular basis. While every insurance coverage is different, and every policy unique, here are some fast and easy pointers to remember:

Insurance costs are based on risk. The age, condition, and features of your home can make a difference in what you pay as a premium. Which is more likely to need replacement, a twenty five year old roof or a two year old one? Brand new plumbing or plumbing that is fifty years old?
Don’t forget about your deductible. The deductible is the amount you have to come out of pocket with before the insurance company starts chipping in their portion for the damage. If you have a $10,000 claim and a $4,000 deductible, the insurance company will only cut you a check for $6,000 to replace that $10,000 repair. Raise your deductible and your rate could go down. Lower your deductible and your rate could go up.
Every claim called in direct to the insurance carrier, whether money is paid out or not, gets reported on your insurance file and could have implications for renewal rates or for new buyers when you go to sell. If your window gets busted by a runaway baseball, and you have a $2,000 deductible, chances are it’s not worth the call to insurance over a $250 window. But if the roof blows off your house and requires a $10,000 fix, that $2,000 deductible seems like it could be worth it.
You could actually save up to 30% on homeowner’s insurance rates by bundling them with an auto policy by the same provider.
Credit scores can impact insurance rates, particularly on auto, but also potentially on homeowner’s insurance too.
Let your insurance company know about security features that could lower your rates or when major changes or updates are done to the home (plumbing, electrical, etc.). Other features to note are security system, fire hydrant location nearby, etc.
If you have a special collection; art, guns, jewelry, fine furs, etc.; make sure to let your insurance carrier know so they can get the right kind and amount of coverage for those valuables.
One of the best things you can do is find an insurance agent you trust to help walk you through all of these items. They’re a great resource and also a good point of contact on those “should I claim or not” moments before your account gets flagged.image courtesy of Dan Diemer

Using an Escrow Account for Insurance and Property Taxes

December 18, 2013 by khproperties Leave a Comment

12818 Falcon Ledge - San Antonio 78259

Should I use an escrow account?

My lender insisted that I put money into an escrow account as part of the mortgage agreement. Can he do that?

Yes – if you financed your home with a government loan (ie, USDA, FHA, or VA), then an escrow account is required. No – if you purchased your home with 20% or more down using a conventional loan, in that case, it’s your decision. Additionally, if you refinanced your home loan and have 20% or more equity in your home then it’s an option and not a requirement.

Why would the lender still try and persuade me to have an escrow account if I put 20% down using a conventional loan? It’s my money to pay my property taxes and my homeowners insurance.

While this is true, mortgage lenders want to manage and mitigate their risk. Knowing that your home is insured and that it can’t be seized for back taxes gives them more confidence in using it as collateral for the mortgage loan. Specifically, city, county, and state taxing officials can usurp the first lien holder for unpaid taxes. Consequently, also as mentioned by accidental death & dismemberment claim, many mortgage lenders don’t want to leave it up to you to pay your property taxes and hazard insurance. Thus, mortgage companies will generally establish escrow accounts that have a two to three month surplus to pay insurance and taxes on an annual basis.

So how do they establish a cushion for my homeowners insurance and property taxes in my escrow account?

At closing you will normally pay the first full year of your homeowners insurance. Subsequently, you will add three months or 1/4 of the next year’s insurance payments to your escrow account. Why? In order to compensate for the lag time between closing and when your first mortgage payment is due. For example if you closed on June 15th your first payment is generally not due until the 15th of August. Consequently, your business insurance in Gresham, OR company will bill your mortgage company for the next full year payment the following May. If you did not add the three month cushion you would only have around ten months of premiums in your escrow account when your second year payment became due.

So what about property taxes?

The seller will pay taxes from January 1st through the day you close (in the scenario above it would be through the closing date of June 15th). Thus, he’s paying about four and half months of property taxes for the time he lived in the home. As mentioned before, your first payment is not due until August 15th. Therefore, you are paying about four and a half months to fund the account, for a total of about nine months of property tax payments. However, you will have to pay the entire tax bill come December. Therefore, your lender will calculate a portion of money to be put into your escrow account to compensate. It’s not an exact science – it’s a subjective assessment. His calculations will also take into account potential tax increase or decrease adjustments. Escrow accounts are usually analyzed yearly between January and March, sometimes you get money back and sometimes you have to pay a little more.

Are there any drawbacks to using an escrow account?

Once money goes into an escrow account, it generally stops working for you as most accounts don’t earn interest. In some states, escrow accounts only earn interest if the borrower requests it and meets various legal conditions. If you can keep your payments minimal, you can put more of your money into interest-bearing investments.

As with anything the responsibility is on you to monitor your escrow account. Your lender has to provide you with an annual statement showing how the money in the escrow account has been spent. It’s always recommended that you read this and confirm that your account is the right size and that your lender has calculated the payments properly. You should also check with your lender every year to make sure the payments have actually been made; there have been cases where the lender failed and the homeowners only found out when they were notified their home would be sold for back taxes.

“Anticipate the difficult by managing the easy. – Lao Tzu“

Hail Damage and Insurance Claims

April 2, 2013 by khproperties Leave a Comment

On Sunday, March 31st a wicked thunderstorm ripped through parts of San Antonio. The fast moving storm included the usual lightning, rain, and thunder, but in some areas of the city, it also dropped some pretty large hail. Hail stones can be pretty vicious and as you can see in the photo, we got quite a bit.

After a hail storm, it is a good idea to go out and check your home and any other property that was exposed. Oftentimes, a hailstorm leaves damages on the roof, siding and windows. Hence, homeowners affected by the hailstorm will need professional roofing repair services from trusted residential roofing contractors while others will work on DIY repairs. However, DIY repairs can save you a lot of money, but if you don’t really know what you’re doing you may end up causing more damage, so it is recommended to hire a professional roofing service. Many insurance companies will allow you to claim the hail damage to your roof or your car, so mark down the time of the storm, the damage done (photo documentation is always a good idea), and call your insurance company to see if you’re covered. If not, you can ask for help from insurance adjusters like lmrpublicadjusters.com. Many San Antonio residents use a good hail storm as a chance to replace their roof when damage occurs.

image courtesy of Molly Cox, a San Antonio resident who is just plain awesome

Homeowners Insurance – Great Tips For Homeowners

February 6, 2013 by khproperties 15 Comments

Homeowners insurance is one of those thing you never think about…until the rainy day comes when you need it. Insurance can be confusing at times – how much do I need, what do I need, am I covered – all valid questions that you should ask of your insurance agent especially if its a highly recommended home insurance agency. As a homeowner, experts from Utility Saving Expert say that you need to be proactive with your homeowners insurance and stay on top of it. Your insurance agent shouldn’t just be someone you call when there is an issue, but someone you work with to find the best solutions for your needs. And after the purchase, you should review your homeowners insurance regularly to be sure you’re getting maximum coverage at minimum prices. Make sure you’re not caught on a rainy day without an umbrella.

A Few Tips About Homeowners Insurance

Check your premiums annually. Don’t just stick with one insurer because it’s convenient. By shopping around at comparison sites like moneyexpert.com, you can often save yourself hundreds of dollars and get better coverage.
If you belong to any trade organizations, see if there are any discounts through insurance carriers for being a member. You may be surprised at what you may find.
If you own any jewelry like gold link charm bracelets, make sure you speak with the insurer about getting it covered. My wife and I were burglarized one summer and we lost a lot of valuable jewelry. We received nothing for it, because we had never thought about making sure it was insured. No amount of begging and pleading (or receipts) will convince your insurer that they should reimburse the value of these items.
Get to know your insurance agent. Most of us never think of them until we need them. By maintaining a relationship with them you will probably be top of mind with them when they hear about new insurance products or ways to save you money. Insurance agents are much like real estate agents – we love repeat business.
As your home appreciates in value over time or you add new items to the house, make sure you review your insurance needs. If you bought a house and insured it for $200,000 and many years later it is worth $250,000 and suddenly it is destroyed in a fire, you don’t want to realize that the insurance payout won’t even begin to cover the cost to buy a new home in your neighborhood because of the appreciation in home values that has occurred.

image courtesy of aubergene