Vacant homes pose a potential risk for insurance companies. Homeowners should make sure their vacant home is covered by adding an endorsement or purchasing a new policy.

Due to today’s faltering real estate marketing, many houses are left vacant for months before they are sold. Oftentimes, sellers move out of the house into a new property and leave their property vacant. Not being able to sell one’s home before moving into another can be a financial burden, as it is often difficult to pay two mortgages at once.

Homeowners insurance may not automatically cover damage that occurs to a vacant property, so it’s important to check one’s policy specifically for this information. In fact, an insurance company may even choose to drop the policyholder’s coverage once the property becomes vacant. An insurance company might choose to do so because vacant properties pose a significant risk since they tend to attract vagrants and vandals. As such, vacant homes are actually more of a risk than a home that is occupied.

If an individual owns a vacant home, one option is to add an endorsement to his or her current homeowner’s insurance policy that will cover the vacant home. This endorsement would, of course, come at an additional premium, but there may be discounts available depending on the property and the insurance carrier.

Another option for insuring a vacant home is to purchase a separate homeowner’s insurance policy. This option is not best for everyone though, as the cost of a separate policy would be significantly higher than adding an endorsement. However, this might be necessary if the insurance company will not add the vacant home to the policy as an endorsement.

A seller should always notify his or her insurance company of a vacant home. Under no circumstances, should the seller assume that his or her existing policy will cover the vacant property. Assuming such will put the property and the seller’s financial future at great risk. The insurance company may not cover damages to the vacant property if they are not aware that it’s vacant, as many homeowners’ policies contain neglect or abandonment clauses.
rance Group. To learn more or to get auto and home insurance quotes, visit FloridaInsurance.com.

To learn more call 1.888.525.2210 visit http://www.floridainsurance.com