Protecting Your Home
Like millions of other Americans, there is a very high chance that your home is your most valuable asset. Like anything else in life, your property and everything in it is always at risk from damages beyond your control. Even though you can never completely eliminate these risks of unforeseeable damages to your home, you can eliminate the financial burden that these may cause. Whether you are satisfying a mortgage lender requirement or are simply looking to protect your home, getting the right property coverage will bring you peace of mind since you will be able to recoup from incurred financial losses. A typical homeowners policy usually covers 3 Basic Areas.
Structure
Structure is your physical house including your garage, systems, and other free standing building in your property. An insurance policy covers against natural disasters such as fire, hail, wind damage, falling objects, burst pipes, etc. Note that your insurance will only protect sudden or unforseen events and it also does not cover against floods, earthquakes, mold, and acts of war. Damages caused by pests or termites are also excluded from coverage.
Belongings
Insurance will cover your belongings against loss of insured events or theft. It is important to create an inventory of all of the things in your house in order to know how much you should be covered for. For certain high value items like jewelry and other electronics.
Liability
Liability coverage protects you if you, or any relative living in your house is personally liable for bodily injury or property damage. This will also cover any medical expenses incurred because of damages or injuries hat a homeowner or a relative are responsible for.
When considering how much coverage you actually need for your homeowners insurance policy remember to "insure to rebuild". Most people make the mistake of insuring their homes up to the market value but although housing prices vary, building cost are regularly on the rise, so make sure you insure up to the replacement cost of your home. Make sure that your policy also includes Additional Living Expenses coverage. This covers the costs associated from living away from your home if it is damaged by an insured disaster and you can't live in it.