It is illegal in California for a bank to demand a certain amount of insurance coverage to cover the loan. Insurance is designed to make you whole, not pay off your loan. An insurance policy will repair/replace your home if you experience a loss. The policy will fix your home, not pay off your loan.
With that being said, many banks still try to make demands on how much insurance you can have. They only time they have a valid point is when your insurance limit isn't high enough to make you whole. They need the home to be insured at an amount that will rebuild the home should it burn down to the ground. They don't want home owners to walk away from a loan because there is not enough insurance to rebuild the home and now the bank is left trying to sell a pile of ashes on a lot.
Lastly an HO-6 policy doesn't insure the building. Your insurance is for the everything inside the walls(sometimes that includes the actual wall on the inside) . How much coverage you need depends on the condo association's master policy and what they cover. Call the association and ask them what the master policy doesn't cover and then you will know where to start. A good agent is always a good source for insurance information. Find an agent that you trust and knows how the insurance policy works.... more
Shopping around is always the best way to get the lowest rate on insurance. Don't forget all your discounts to help get that rate as low as possible. You can get discounts for buying your auto, home, life, and business insurance from the same company.... more
It also varies according to the price of the home. Most companies will ask you aboput specific features to see if discounts can be taken. Another factor is if you are taking it as replacement cost or home value.
Christopher Pagli
Licensed Associate Broker
Accredited Buyer Representative
William Raveis Legends Realty Group
914.406.9023... more
You should find out how much coverage you need first. The reason I say that is because on a condo your building is usually covered by a master policy the you pay into with your association dues. The policy will cover the outside of the building and you will have to insure the inside. Call the association and ask them what the master policy doesn't cover and then you buy insurance to cover "the gaps". Most condo policies are anywhere between $150-$400 depending on where the condo is located, the amount of coverage you need, and yourself. The owner of the condo is always part of the consideration when it comes to the price of the insurance. Someone who keeps leaving the fire on the stove and burning dinners will be more than someone who never had a claim. I would love to give you an accurate quote if you are looking to renew your policy at a lower rate.... more
Our company would love to give you a quote and it's free. You should always try several places and compare rates and coverage. Price isn't everything or we would all be driving the Nissan Versa.... more
Most banks that write FHA loans will require that you buy homeowners insurance from an A rated insurance company. They want you insured with a company that can afford to pay a claim should the need arise.... more
You may be thinking of insurance that is paid as part of your mortgage payment. Mortgage companies may set up an escrow account that you pay as part of your mortgage payment and they forward the insurance money to the insurance company. It is still your insurance policy even though the mortgage company sends the check.
Sometimes when homeowners let thier policies lapse the mortgage company will get a policy that is called "forced place insurance". Those polices are obtained by the mortgage company to protect thier interest in the house but you still pay for it. They will increase your mortgage payments to offset the cost. Remember, forced place insurance only protects the banks interest even if you are the one paying for it. It is always better and almost always less expensive to shop around and purchase your own policy. You get way better coverage for a lot less.
Donald Stevens... more
A four family home can be written as a personal insurance policy or a commercial insurance policy. It really depends on the insurance company, the agent, and you. Availability is a factor as well as the type of coverages you want for your home.
The one snag you might have is the owner in one of the units. This makes it confusing for insurance companies because of the language they use to write the actual policy. The person residing in the property plays a large role in the types of coverages you can have and how much they are going to charge you to get that coverage. You have a building that is occupied by the owner and tenants which are two different risks when it comes to insurance. It gets even more interesting if one or more units are vacant because that becomes a third type of risk in the same building.
There are companies that specialize in your type of property. You should look for a Florida agent that specializes in landlord policies.
Donald Stevens... more
I answered a similiar question earlier so I thought I would repost for you.
You should look for a homeowners insurance company that has an A rating or better. The rating is a reflection of the companies solvency or ability to pay claims. Your neighbors are also usually a good place to start if you are new to the area. They have probably already been through the struggle of finding an agent and since most agents are always looking for new clients it shouldn't be hard for your neighbor to give you a referral. You can also check with your states enforcement actions to see if your potential new agent has had any problems in the past.
Donald Stevens
http://www.mylandlordinsurance.com... more
Assuming you called them? Call them again and mention that if you can't get either the papers or an explanation for the delay that your next call is to the GA real Estate Commssion and GA Bar.... more
The association's will have a master policy that will usually cover the actual building. You are usually responsible for the everything from the walls to everything else inside of the building. That could be cabinets, carpet, sinks, etc. How much coverage you need really depends on what the master policy covers. I always tell my clients to call the association and ask them what the master policy doesn't cover and how much of the deductible are you responsible for if your building burns down to the ground. This information will really help you get an idea of how much coverage you need. Many master policies are similar but they are not identical so the board will know or they will refer you to the agent who should know the answer.
Issue 2. You are going to have a tenant in your condo. Most condo insurance policies will only write an owner occupied condo. If you have a tenant, you may have to do a little work to find an agent who can help you. Many insurance companies want to insure your primary home to insure a condo rented to others so your best bet is to start with the agent that insures your home.
Issue 3. Are you furnishing the condo? The personal property coverage on your insurance policy should be for the appliances and furniture that you provide the tenant. You can't insure the tenant’s property, they have to buy a renters insurance policy to cover that. Also, always have your tenants buy renters insurance. It reduces your exposure especially if there is a fire or a bodily injury lawsuit because your insurance company can subrogate the claim.... more
If you purchased the home, the previous owner no longer has an insurable interest in the home. If they burn down your home and you don't have insurance and they do, you will not get paid because it is not your insurance policy and they will not get paid because they cant insure a home that they do not own. That would be like me selling you my car and keeping the insurance on it and you get in an accident and then they send me a check and you end up with a totaled vehicle and maybe a lawsuit. You should get a landlord policy until you are able to take possession of the home, that's my advice.... more
Replacement cost are based on many factors. Age of home, architecture style, upgrades inside and out, roof type, how many floors, type of counters, types of sinks, etc. Two homes right next to each other with the same square footage and built by the same builder will still have different replacement costs. We write a lot of insurance policies and we have to use special software to calculate replacement costs.
The generic number by the way is $150. That is never accurate but gives you a VERY rough idea at what you would be looking at for replacement cost. Don't forget, attached garages will increase your replacement cost because they are considered part of the home since it is attached.... more
Only the person who owned the policy before it was grandfathered gets to have a grandfathered policy. If the current owner has a policy that was grandfathered and you are buying the property, you have to purchase a new flood policy and it will not be grandfathered.
Flood policies are not based on mortgage amounts. Most people think they are because it is usually the mortgage company that wants the owner to have a flood policy. A flood policy should be based on the cost of rebuilding your home or what we call replacement cost. If your policy is not written for replacement cost, you could be penalized and in the event of a flood the insurance will not pay for the full amount of the damage. You may have to pay a percent of the claim out of pocket. A simple example is if you are insuring your home for 50% and the damage is estimated to be $60,000, the flood program will only pay $30,000 minus your deductible. That means you pay your deductible and $30,000 to cover your 50%. A lot of insurance agents aren't even aware that is how it works.... more
A Homeowners policy is based on the current condition of the home and the owner of the home. If the new owner has a history of claims, that can follow you to your next home. The fact that a bank owned the home will not effect your new insurance policy when you buy the home but the current condition of the home may effect which company will insure the property, the coverages they will offer, and how much they will charge. Homes with repair issues like an old roof, missing or damaged siding, and water damage inside the home are some issues you can encounter with a ban kowned property. They are properties that are sold as is. The damage could be from the previous owner who obviously was not financially able to maintain the home or the bank may not maintain the home since they are in the business of home lending and not property management.
Depending on the condition of the home you may have to get insured with a speciality homeowners insurance company until you can repair the home at which point you can pursue a more traditional policy which will usually have a lower rate with better coverages.
Donald Stevens
http://www.mylandlordinsurance.com... more
There is no average price for wind. There are to many factors to take into consideration, age of home, location, wind mtigtion credits, etc. I would be happy to do a quote for you. All Ineed is the address of the property.
Give me a call and I will happily help you
Chris Lyon
We Insure Florida
Venice Fl
941-412-1511... more