Home Insurance

Home insurance is required by your mortgage company.  If you don’t have a mortgage, then chances are no one is forcing you to carry home insurance.  Whether you have a mortgage or not, it is a good idea to carry home insurance. The Midwest is prone to wind and hail storms.  At our agency, we’re happy to work with you to make sure you have the best coverage at a price you’re comfortable paying.  Home insurance is broken out into various coverages.

Dwelling Coverage:  This is also sometimes referred to as ‘coverage A’.  Dwelling coverage is the amount of money the insurance company estimates it would cost to reconstruct your house.  Sometimes there may be additional coverage, called ‘extended replacement cost’ or ‘guaranteed replacement cost’.  At our Agency, we are able to provide you with Guaranteed Replacement Cost in most situations.

Personal Property: Think about what would happen if you could flip your house upside down.  The things that would fall out would compromise your personal property.  When it comes to insuring your personal property you want to make sure you have replacement cost coverage, not Actual Cash Value coverage.  Insurance companies will normally have built in limits on certain personal property that is prone to theft, such as jewelry, cash, firearms, and other items.  Be sure to ask about a personal floater to ensure these items are covered.

Liability: Liability on a home or renters policy is also called ‘personal liability’.  This would pay out bodily injury associated with a negligent act you performed outside of driving a car or your course of business.

Deductible: This is the amount that you will have to pay before the insurance company pays out for a property claim.  We generally recommend you carry as high of a deductible as you can reasonably afford since the higher the deductible the less your premiums will be.