Hurricanes And Homeownership – What You Need to Know

⋅ Hurricanes And Homeownership: The Facts on Florida Living ⋅
We are right at the height of the hurricane season. Erika just blew by and Fred is forming off the coast of Africa. Living in Florida, we track hurricanes like investors track the stock market.
In Jacksonville, it’s very rare to get a direct hit. Usually the hurricane gets bounced back out to sea or to the north or south. The last time Jacksonville received a direct hit was 1964 by hurricane Dora.
For over 50 years, Northeast Florida has escaped the direct impact of a hurricane. A director of FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Association) retired to the Jacksonville area. When asked why he picked Jacksonville, he said that he felt it was the safest place to live on the East Coast.
Even without a direct hit, Jacksonville and the Beaches get a lot of wind and rain. The worst of these storms is usually picking up the palm fronds and pine cones from your yard afterward. Sometimes there is an occasional power outage that can last anywhere from a few hours to a couple of days.
Being prepared with bottled water, candles and even a generator is always a good idea. Most people do any cooking on a gas or charcoal grill if the power goes out. Some families even look forward to having quality time together without the TV or computers. Cards and board games often come out to pass the time and a storm becomes an excuse for a party or family get together.
In addition to being prepared with food and water; it’s also a good time to review your home owner’s insurance policy and flood insurance. Most homeowners insurance policies have a deductible of 2% to 5% of the home’s insured value for hurricane damage. If the home has water damage, it is only covered if the water comes through the roof or windows. If there is rising water, that is only covered by flood insurance.
Once a tropical storm or hurricane nears the coast of Florida, insurance policy writing is suspended until the storm passes. That means if you are buying or selling a home and the insurance policy has not been paid for, your real estate closing could be held up because there’s no homeowners insurance in place.
If you have further questions about homeowners insurance, give me a call. I have some great insurance professionals that can answer your questions.





