As a responsible homeowner, you likely carry adequate insurance to cover yourself in the event of a disaster. It’s important to educate yourself upon potential catastrophes before they occur, in order to effectively mitigate repair costs.
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Sinkholes
When the ground suddenly opens up and swallows the surrounding area, you know you’ve got a real problem. Even if your home isn’t in the direct path of a sinkhole, being in the near vicinity of this phenomenon can terribly damage your foundation. This damage often takes the form of cracked and destroyed walls, broken windows, and damaged interiors. For most homes, this translates into a big loss of value, even if the sinkhole damage is minimal. Homeowners can’t do much to prevent sinkholes, especially in areas where they are a common occurrence, but you can carry insurance coverage to help insure against loss.
Falling Trees
The wind is roaring outside like an angry dragon, and the rain is torrential enough to make you consider building an ark. You hear a crash that sounds like the heavens just opened up inside of your house, but realize that a tree just crashed through your roof. This is a disaster with obvious negative consequences for your home’s value. Extensive structural damage is expensive to repair, and you’ll likely suffer initial water damage immediately following the accident. If you’re not covered for tree damage under your insurance policy, this could end up being a very expensive situation to rectify.
Septic Tank Complications
Smelly, unsanitary and just plain gross, septic tank complications can destroy the value of your home. Whether the system is badly damaged or has caused a sewage backup to enter your home, septic problems present a health and safety risk. It’s important to have your septic system maintained regularly to avoid costly and sometimes irreversible property damage. It is your responsibility to maintain your home’s septic system, and damage caused by neglect is not generally covered by most insurance policies.
Water Leaks
Water damage can sometimes be a catastrophe that is played out drop by drop, over a matter of years. Without a proper home maintenance schedule, you may not even realize that your plumbing is faulty or that you have a leak in your ceiling. Over time, water damage can cause rot, dangerous mold growth and foundation issues. These issues can take years to resolve and most buyers aren’t willing to put the time in to fix them. As a result, your home’s value may take a significant hit in the event of a leak. Unless the leak is the result of an incident covered by your insurance, you’ll likely receive no reimbursement for water damage. This is why it’s important to have your plumbing checked regularly—catching a leak before it becomes a catastrophe can save your home’s value.
Properly maintaining your home helps to protect you from a catastrophic loss of value. Educating yourself about local hazards in conjunction with your insurance policy can protect the value of your house.
Informational Credit to Kamloops Septic Service
