September is National Preparedness Month – Here is How It Relates to Your Insurance

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September is National Preparedness Month - How it Relates to Your Insurance in Seattle, WAFEMA, Ready.gov and Listo.gov are big voices in reminding Americans that September is National Preparedness Month. Ready.gov is a great resource for teaching you how to prepare for a natural disaster.

What do they consider a disaster? Wildfires, flooding, thunderstorms & lightning, hurricanes, earthquakes, tornadoes, landslides, severe weather, droughts and more. No matter where you live in the United States, you can be vulnerable to one or many natural disasters.

Ready.gov breaks down National Preparedness Month in four steps below.

Step 1 – Make a Plan

Step 2 – Build a Kit

Step 3 – Low-Cost, No Cost-Preparedness

Step 4 – Teach Youth about Preparedness

Every step is important in the event of a natural disaster and we encourage you to use this month to read through their information. You can read more here. Knowing information such as a shelter plan, evacuation route, communication plan or even having an emergency kit can be life-saving.

Proper Insurance & Natural Disasters

Having the right insurance coverage is essential if a natural disaster strikes. Many people assume that by purchasing home insurance, you are covered for anything and everything. This isn’t the case. By not having proper insurance coverage, countless people have been financially ruined.

First step with insurance, talk to your agent

Not only should you use this time with your agent to understand your current coverage, but talk about your risks. Should you purchase flood or earthquake insurance? If you were to experience an insurance claim, do you know how you will be compensated to repair or replace what has been damaged?

After talking with your agent, work on Step 2.

Step two includes creating your home inventory list, safely storing important documents and knowing exactly what to do if you experience a claim.

  1. Do you currently have a home inventory list? This is a list of your most important belongings. A home inventory list can be as simple as taking photos of every room in your house. Some individuals have an itemized list on a spreadsheet too. In the event you have an insurance claim, you can quickly reference your items in the event they need to be repaired or replaced.
  2. If you have an insurance claim, be sure to take pictures and videos of your damage. You will work with a claims adjuster so be sure to be timely with your response and save all receipts from purchases you have made regarding your claim. Examples – hotel receipts, meal receipts or other important items.
  3. Are your records safe? Records such as insurance documents, birth certificates, social security cards, marriage or divorce license, passport, pet ID tags, immunization records, medication lists, lease or rental agreement or mortgage or real estate deeds of trusts should all be safely stored in a water or fire proof box.

If you have questions about your current insurance coverage and would like to talk to a professional insurance agent, call us! We are experts in the insurance industry and can do a comprehensive review of your current coverage.

Does My College Student Need Life Insurance?

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It may not be on your radar, but there are important factors to consider when determining if your college student needs life insurance.

College student writing paper

While students of all ages are currently making their way to the digital and physical seats in college classrooms, higher education – particularly undergraduate college – is defined by younger attendees. Fresh out of high school with decades of learning and living ahead of them, life insurance isn’t typically even a blip on a college student’s radar – but should it be?

Determining if your College Student Needs Life Insurance

Indeed, the life situations and needs of a 19 or 20-year-old are often significantly different than someone 40 or older, but that doesn’t mean there are not important overlaps to consider, such as:

  • Lingering debts from housing or vehicle loans
  • Open grants or student loans that require repayment
  • Cohabitation costs

Debts Linger On – Even for Students

Large debts have a stubborn way of sticking around, even if the original debt holder isn’t able to pay them. That means that a new, reliable vehicle financed to help ferry a college student to and from campus ends up as an expensive liability in the event a student can no longer pay their car note.

While college students may be living out of the dorms or renting a partial or full apartment in the short term, a car or truck can end up being a financially painful burden in an uncertain time. If the student carried an appropriate amount of life insurance, the remaining debt could be paid off and a liability transforms into a resource that may help in a trying time.

Grants and Loans Need Repayment

Unexpected situations, by definition, won’t wait for a convenient moment to strike. If a life insurance policy is needed mid-term, all the school debts associated with that semester (or even that year, depending on a college’s billing practices) may come due from an estate. That means considerations like tuition, room and board, books, equipment or lab rental, and more all need to be paid, regardless of how much they’ll go unused in the future.

If a college student is relying on a conditional grant or an on-campus work-study program to pay their debts as they go along, this is an especially important consideration. A college student’s life insurance policy takes the stress of the unknown out of settling a semester’s financial obligations.

Cohabitation Concerns

It’s not unusual for groups of college students to rent a home or apartment together for school, or for college student couples to do the same as they start their lives together. With so much time and energy devoted to studies, the types of jobs that college students typically have are generally more of a hand-to-mouth variety than positions with generous pay.

The loss of even partial income can be devastating if it occurs without warning, which is why a life insurance policy for college students can be a genuine lifesaver for those they care about. Partners, friends and family can be financially provided for in nearly every life scenario – plausible and improbable alike with a bit of forethought.

If you’re looking to lock in financial security for yourself as you attend higher education, or to secure that stability for a student in your family, consider buying a term life policy for college students. It’s one less worry at one of the most stressful periods in an academic lifetime, after all.

Four Tips For Current and Future Landlords

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Four tips for landlords in Seattle, WAWhether you are looking to buy an investment property or are looking change your existing home into a rental property, there are some things you should know about becoming a landlord. Most people choose to become a landlord for the financial investment. By following these tips below, you can make being a landlord easier and more enjoyable for you all while improving your tenant’s happiness and rental contract longevity.

Provide a well maintained property

If you are looking to purchase a home as a rental property, you must consider the cost of improvements you will need to make to the property in order to make it rentable. While someone may rent the property in its existing condition, a home that is in good repair will help you maximize the rent you are able to collect along with ensuring the home itself does not develop additional issues from lack of maintenance.

Things to look for & questions to ask yourself:

  • Is the caulking around windows, doors and siding maintained?
  • Are your gutters cleaned and free from debris?
  • Who is maintaining the yard?
  • If you have a fence, is it in good condition?

When you are shopping for a rental property, ask yourself these questions:

  • Will the home need an updated exterior paint job?
  • What is the current condition of the roof?
  • What is the condition of the crawlspace?
  • How old are the appliances?
  • Does the home have updated electrical?
  • What could I update to make the home look its best?
    1. Typically a fresh coat of paint in the interior can make a home look more up-to-date.
    2. Add backsplash, tile or Beadboard wall paneling.
    3. Add crown modeling in the living room, kitchen or bedrooms.
    4. Add more lighting in the home.
    5. If the kitchen or bathroom is really dated, consider updating it with new appliances, vanity, cabinets or tile. You can also consider replacing the shower or bathtub.

The best part of buying an investment property is you don’t have to necessarily “flip” it to get it on the renting market. A few upgrades mentioned above can make a home nice without breaking the bank.

Eliminate Safety hazards

Want to avoid headaches, lawsuits or home insurance claims? Be sure to focus on eliminating any safety hazard from your property. From a liability standpoint, you will want to be sure that the property is void of any safety hazards such as loose railings, uneven walkways, cracked decking or faulty stairs. A well-maintained property will help you maximize your property’s profitability and keep your tenants safe.

Quickly address issues

When problems arise, and they will, it is important to quickly address them with your tenant. Some landlords choose to have rental management companies intervene, while others either do the repairs themselves, or ask the tenant to get it repaired and take it off the next month’s rent. If the issues is a safety concern, do not ignore it. If you are made aware of a safety issue and ignore it, you may be liable if something happens. Whatever your agreement is with your tenant, be sure to address repairs quickly. This may help mitigate additional damage from occurring.

Be available to your tenants

Being available to your tenants can help you develop longstanding renters who stay at your property for years. Since one of the largest risks of being a landlord is having a vacant property, the longer your renters stay, the more revenue your property can generate. By being a good landlord and available to them easily they will know you care about them and the property they are renting.

Being a landlord comes with risks, but also huge financial rewards. Following the suggestions above you can create long-standing renters who not only take care of your property, but help you build financial wealth along the way.

If you have questions about landlord insurance, call our agency. We can discuss all of your insurance coverage options when it comes to being a landlord. Call or email us for a free quote.