What You Need to Know About Homeowner's Insurance in South Florida

Homeowner's Insurance in South Florida

It's a picture-perfect scenario— you and your significant other relaxing in the shade, sipping cool drinks while gazing at your sparkling pool. Even if you can't see the ocean from your backyard, you know that the glittering coastline is just a short distance away. You have everything you want— a lovely home with plenty of space, beautiful landscaping, in one of the most lush and tempting areas of the United States. Of course, as with any dream, reality is waiting right around the corner to give you an uncomfortable wake-up call. For you, that wake-up call may be the cost of Homeowner's Insurance in South Florida. If you dive into the housing market unaware of what to expect, you may panic when you learn about the requirements in your chosen region of the Sunshine State. Take a deep breath and relax, because we're here to lay out the requirements, clarify the issues, and help you feel prepared and comfortable for your real estate purchase so that you can thoroughly enjoy your South Florida home.

Why Homeowner's Insurance?

Simply put, homeowner's insurance protects your home from disasters and from bad people. Things like fires, burglaries, lightning or sinkholes can happen anywhere, and they can rip a hole in your dream overnight. It's good to have insurance to help you rebuild after a traumatic event like that.In South Florida, however, you're not just facing the possibility of a burglary or a fire. You've got other natural disasters to think about. The very environment and climate that makes your South Florida home so desirable is also the reason that you need additional coverage. We're talking about lightning, hurricanes, and floods. That's why in Miami, Fort Lauderdale, and the surrounding areas homeowners need extra coverage and protection.

Discovering Types of Coverage

There are many different types of homeowner's insurance coverage. When you talk to your provider, you will probably encounter some categories such as the following:

• Dwelling coverage, for destruction of or damage to your home and the structures that are attached to it
• Coverage for outbuildings and other structures like a deck, shed, swimming pool, or detached garage
• Personal property coverage, for everything inside your home
• Loss of use coverage, which helps with your living expenses if you need to stay elsewhere while your house is repaired or rebuilt
• Liability and medical payment coverage, which protects you if you're found legally responsible for someone else being hurt on your property

Getting the Basics

How much homeowner's insurance do you really need? If you're trying to save money, you may want to estimate as low as possible. However, you really need enough coverage to rebuild your home from the ground up at current market costs if an event wipes your house off the map. Your insurance company should calculate this for you. Then it's up to you to decide how much personal property coverage you want and what else you need to add to your policy.

Understanding an Insurance Rider

A rider is an extra bit of coverage that you can add on to your baseline homeowner's insurance policy. Insurance companies offer different levels of coverage, and then they let you add on the items that you think you need, much as you would add toppings to a pizza. The categories listed earlier (dwelling, liability, personal property, etc.) would be the crust, sauce, and cheese for your homeowner's insurance "pizza." Then you must include other elements of coverage depending on your location in the Miami or Fort Lauderdale areas of Southeast Florida.

Finding Flood Insurance

Depending on the elevation of the property you plan to purchase, you may be required to have flood insurance. Unfortunately, many insurance companies don't include coverage for floods in their dwelling coverage, so you need to supplement your policy with an additional rider or get a separate flood insurance policy from a different provider.  Even if it's not required, consider adding the flood insurance anyway, especially if your personal research shows that your area of South Florida has endured some kind of flooding in the past.

Protecting Your Home from Hurricanes and Windstorms

Under the standard dwelling coverage, your insurance policy should include coverage for hurricane damage and windstorms, but there may be a limit on how much the company will pay out to you for this type of damage, since you live in a hurricane-prone area. Make sure that you read your policy carefully and talk to the insurance agent about any limits that are in place. If you're afraid that your policy might not offer enough coverage, ask about a rider or find some supplemental insurance to give you the protection that you need for your investment.

Dealing with Water Damage

Florida is a moisture-rich locale, so make sure that you apply for plenty of water damage coverage. This is separate from the flood-related insurance. Water damage insurance protects you from events like a tree falling on the house and causing a roof leak, or a pipe breaking and ruining part of your interior. Make sure that the coverage limit is sufficiently high to take care of any problems so that you don't have to drain your bank account.

Defending Against Lightning Damage

As anyone who has lived in Fort Lauderdale, Miami, or any other part of Florida knows, the state's climate makes it prone to severe thunderstorms with high winds and lots of dramatic lightning. Take a look at the policy you currently have or the one that you're planning to get. You may have enough flood, windstorm, or water damage coverage, but most lightning strikes yield issues that are considered to be fire damage by insurance companies. Is your fire damage limit high enough to account for those potential damages?

Saving Your Home and Saving Money

If the number of potential disasters makes you nervous, take a moment to think about the protection that your homeowner's insurance offers. At some point, you will probably need to make a claim, and when you do, you can trust that your expenses are taken care of, if you have done your research and carefully chosen a policy that fits your needs as a South Florida resident.Did you know that insurers have to offer you a discount if you upgrade your home with specific defenses against wind damage, hurricanes, or theft? It's all there in the Florida Statutes. You may be able to make a few small but meaningful improvements to your home that will reduce your insurance premiums. You can get more information from your insurance provider and discover which alterations offer your home more protection and save you money at the same time!