AS you may know if you are financing or not an older home in Florida, your insurance will most likely request that you get a Four point Inspection plus a Wind Mitigation.
I don’t blame Insurance companies to require these inspections in order to provide a coverage of your home, specially after the post Charley insurance meltdown. In the last years we have seen many large and smaller insurance companies coming back to Florida ( with a raise in your premium though, specially if you are located in a flood zone ) and we do nevertheless welcome their return to the Sunshine State but I do hope that they will tweak these requirements.
First of all, These requirements make the general Inspection moot. It is true that after you had your home inspection report you may ask that same company to provide you with a Four Points Inspections. Usually for free. It is a just a very short version of the wind inspection on the home but only on one page so that Insurers don’t have to read the original version. Fair enough. This information is important for Cape Coral Buyers for example
I noticed however that the law does not require a Wind Mitigation to describe the state of the structure of the roof and often the Insurance companies do not ask for it.
At the last home I sold in Cape Coral, which, true enough was a good deal on the canal with gulf access for $185,000 and is an older home in very good shape. I had the chance to have a better company sending me, besides the Wind Mitigation, a separate picture and data report on the state of the Trusses and overall structure of the roof. Lo and behold a few rafters were cut, which is not an expensive deal to fix, but I would think that the original inspectors should have picked that. Knowing that insurances companies will require these mitigations, perhaps makes it so that lazy inspectors do not feel the need ( I don’t mean every one!) to go up there in the addict and take a real close look at each rafter and trusses.
is it a rip off or should we have a full wind mitigation and four points dome automatically with the general Inspection?
After all some companies charge from $100 to $190 for a wind mitigation, and Inspections are already expensive enough.
It does not make any sense. What good is a General Inspection if you want or have to insure your home? Not much.
On the bright side all this process is in its infancy and I do believe they will change some of the rules.
Lloyd Nichols
Right Choice Realty LLC
239-810-2980
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