Renovation Insurance
Hello brownstoners, we are about to embark on a rather extensive renovation & restoration but are having difficulty obtaining reasonable home owner’s insurance. We will be using an insured and licensed contractor but the major insurance companies either won’t insure the place at all during renovations or insist on a special policy that totals ~$10000…
Hello brownstoners, we are about to embark on a rather extensive renovation & restoration but are having difficulty obtaining reasonable home owner’s insurance. We will be using an insured and licensed contractor but the major insurance companies either won’t insure the place at all during renovations or insist on a special policy that totals ~$10000 per year!Is this the common practice during renovations? Seems outrageous given that the builder has there own insurance. Has any of you good folks gone thru such a thing? Any and all advice will be appreciated.
OP here, just wanted to thank everyone for the very helpful comments and recommendations. Brownstoner is a fantastic website!
Slopefarm we hope we can get a deal like yours. Thanks again Jim Hill…will be calling the Chernicks tomorrow first thing in the AM and will update you guys.
First I want to SWEAR this is NOT a schill!!!
I’m sure everyone here has a preferred insurer but as a commercial lender who has dealt with a million firms and agents this guy is by far THE BEST ever. Best Service, Best Prices, Best Connections. He tells you exactly what you need and doesn’t try to complicate things
If you need a cheap, reliable broker here is the #1 guy in the NYC area. Of course, he can get you coverage wherever you are.
Keith Bader – Founder/President
Strategic Insurance Agency, Inc.
http://www.siapc.com/
P. (973) 422-9333 ext 103
F. (973) 422-9339
E. kbader@siapc.com
568 South Livingston Ave.
Livingston, NJ 07039
Prorated for the length of time the renovations will take (1 month? two? four?), and the reports of workers setting fires to buildings (bridges, etc), I’d say it will be money well spent. Definitely try to negotiate it down…Slopefarm’s $6K seems “reasonable” under the circumstances.
Some but not all HO policies do cover renovation but they’ll endorse your policy and make you pay extra – Chubb did for us. We had to take a higher deductible and a hefty surcharge in order to continue coverage both while the house was empty and when we moved in but some work continued. Other HO carriers will not cover you at all during reno.
I thought your homeowners policy covered it.
When people work for you in construction make sure they are licensed with department of consumer affairs.
Make sure they have a workers compensation policy.
Don’t forget a minimum of one million dollar liability insurance.
Builder’s risk is expensive. We ended up with a homeowner’s policy from Fireman’s Fund that had a builder’s risk component that cost about $6k/yr until completion, then dropped down to a regular homeowner’s policy. Call Dorothy Cohen at HUB (broker), 212-338-2100.
Try calling Chuck Chernick:
Charles M. Chernick, J.D.
Arthur Chernick Co., Inc.
370 Lexington Ave. #1400
New York NY 10017
T:212-697-2147
They’ve been in the business for generations and they specialize in home and townhome insurance. I’m an architect and I’ve recommended him to my clients before, for insurance specifically geared towards homes during the construction process.
Chuck’s excellent at what he does, and is very creative thinker. He’ll get you insured the right way specifically for you.