Florida Homeowners are Going Naked (no insurance)

With Florida Homeowners Insurance Premiums soaring since Hurricane Katrina in 2005, an increasing number of Florida Homeowners, many of them Senior Citizens, have made the painful and potential risky decision to drop their homeowners insurance policies, "Going Naked" and bearing the risks of facing hurricanes on their own.

In the face of insurance rates that have often tripled since the Hurricane Seasons of 2004-2005, a large number of Florida Homeowners divested themselves of their mortgaged homes, moved into their investment properties that had no mortgage, and dropped their costly insurance policies.  With rising deductibles for wind and flood insurance, and increasing "exclusions" to their policies, homeowners realized that they were often facing $20,000 out of pocket before their policies would begin to pay out on insurance claims.

Seniors in particular are facing this difficult choice of whether to stay insured or go naked, since they are on fixed incomes and prices for gas, medication, groceries, and other costs of living continue to increase.  For some seniors, this decision is not a choice, it is a necessity.

As "named storms" move toward a designated areas, Governors petition to have the areas designated as "Federal Disaster Areas" as a precaution, which qualify them for federal aid.  

Many homeowners learned that during the "No Name Storm" in 1993, those homeowners with insurance experienced more delays and red tape than those applying for Federal Disaster Assistance through FEMA.  

FEMA encourages Florida Homeowners in Flood Prone area to procure Flood Insurance,  rather than relying on Disaster Assistance, which requires a Presidential Declaration before it can take effect.  The National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) is administered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), which works closely with nearly 90 private insurance companies to offer flood insurance to property owners and renters. In order to qualify for flood insurance, a community must join the NFIP and agree to enforce sound floodplain management standards.  They do not need to be in a high risk flood area to qualify.

Renters are often the forgotten victims in the event of a disaster, as private landlord policies do not include protection for the tenants' contents, and tenants are not advised to purchse contents insurance.  To obtain information on Flood insurance, contact your local insurance agent.

For more information on Building versus Contents Insurance, check out the official site of the NFIP.

 

Jeanne M. Gavish, SRES, CIPS, SFR, GRI
Keller Williams Realty Elite Partners
* 352-650-1029 *
Serving Florida’s Nature Coast * Hernando, Pasco & Citrus Counties

 

Jeanne M. Gavish , Keller Williams Realty Elite Partners - Jeanne’s Blog