Homeowners Insurance and Property Protection Insights
The following articles provide practical information for homeowners seeking to understand insurance, protect their property, and make informed decisions about coverage and risk. You’ll find guidance on common claims, coverage options, maintenance considerations, and tips to help safeguard your home and your investment.
How to Improve Home Security and Safety
Recent reports from the FBI and the Council on Criminal Justice (CCJ) indicate that home burglary rates have dropped in the United States. The FBI Crime Data Explorer shows a…
Understanding Other Structures Coverage in Homeowners Insurance: What’s Really Protected
What is considered Other Structures on homeowner’s insurance? You’d expect homeowner’s insurance to cover your home from damage, theft and liability. And it does. Your homeowner’s insurance can also offer…
14 Situations When You Need to Contact Your Insurance Partner
When should you contact your insurance agent/broker or insurance company? Of course, you need to contact them to file a claim or when an event may lead to a claim…
Do Insurance Needs Change When the Mortgage Is Paid Off?
Paid off your mortgage? Congratulations! Your monthly mortgage payment probably included extra funds for property taxes and insurance. Of course, you’ll still have to pay taxes. But now that you…
The Difference Between Contents and Structures Insurance Coverage
If you’ve ever purchased—or simply researched—property insurance, you’ve likely encountered the terms “contents” and “structures” coverage. In a nutshell, “structures” refers to the insured building and other structures, and “contents”…
How to Identify and Address Gaps in Your Homeowners Insurance
You may not have considered homeowner’s insurance policy gaps. You own a home. You buy homeowners insurance. Simple, right? Not always. There are a number of situations a standard homeowner’s…
12 Tips to Avoid Kitchen Fires (and What to Do if One Occurs)
It isn’t just sharp knives and overindulgence in cooking wine that makes kitchens dangerous places. According to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), cooking fires are the leading cause of…
Home Replacement Cost vs. Market Value: What’s the Difference?
Homeowners often wonder why their home's replacement cost differs from its market value and how those two numbers should affect homeowners insurance decisions. Your home’s replacement cost reflects what it…
Keep Your Basement Dry with These Tips
Nothing strikes terror into a homeowner’s heart like coming home to water flooding the basement. Unfortunately, climate change has made basement floods increasingly common. It’s not only a pain to…
Does Your Family Have a Home Safety Checklist?
Not unlike home inventories, many people don’t think about creating and maintaining a home safety checklist. Fortunately, most of us feel safe in our homes, and we don’t spend much…