7 Home Insurance Tips for First Time Buyers

Congrats on your new home! Buying your first-time home is such an exciting time. There are so many firsts that you’ll get to experience. From getting the keys to your new home, to buying furniture, and inviting your friends and family over for a house warming party, there is so much to look forward to.

While there are probably other things on your mind during this time, you can’t forget about home insurance. It’s not the most exciting topic, but insurance is absolutely necessary when buying a new home.

It’s recommended that you speak with a home insurance provider once you have a firm closing date. After all, your lender will not release your mortgage funds until you have given them confirmation of home insurance.

Purchasing home insurance for first time buyers is pretty straightforward, here are some tips that can make the process easier and educate you at the same time:

Tip #1: Treat Home Insurance as a Priority

Sure, there is a lot on your mind when purchasing your first-time home. You have gone through the process of finding your dream home, getting pre-approved for a mortgage, and getting a home inspection done. Often, purchasing home insurance gets overlooked, leaving homeowners struggling to find coverage at the last minute.

There are a variety of reasons why you want to avoid this situation. Leaving it to the last minute severely limits your options. You will be under pressure and stress to make a decision quickly. This means you will most likely not care about the coverage you end up purchasing, when instead, you should be putting lots of thought into this decision.

It’s important to make the right decisions at the get-go to save you money on your premiums and save you a great deal of stress in the long run.

Tip #2: Use an Insurance Broker

Another tip when it comes to home insurance for first time buyers is to use a broker. An insurance broker will take lots of information from you and work to get you the best deal possible. They will look for various discounts they can grant you, whereas a bank usually uses averages, meaning you miss out on discounts unique to you.

Tip #3: Bundle Your Insurance Policies

A great tip is to bundle your insurance policies to save money. By putting your home insurance policy on the same policy as your car insurance, for example, your insurer will grant you a discount.

This is a simple yet effective way to save money on your home insurance. Not only will you save money on your home insurance, but you’ll save money on your car insurance too!

Tip #4: Get Renters Insurance Early On

If you find yourself renting an apartment or condo while saving up to buy your first home, it’s always a good idea to purchase renter’s insurance. There’s of course the main reason to purchase renter’s insurance which is to protect you from things like fire or theft. But having an established relationship with an insurance company can also mean other benefits.

If you have renter’s insurance and you are claims free, your insurance company could offer you a discount for choosing to have your home insurance with them.

It’s always a good idea to explore these relationships and see if there is an opportunity to save money there.

Tip #5: Understand Your Coverage Limits

Remember that your new home insurance policy can be tailored to your needs. That means that once you understand your policy, including your coverage limits, you can work with your insurance agent to increase or decrease your coverage limits. Tailoring your insurance policy to your unique needs means getting what you need out of your policy, whether that be saving money or to having added coverage so you can rest easier.

Tip #6: Store Your Important Documents Somewhere Safe

Once you have all of your important documents like your title certificate and home insurance policy, make sure you are storing them somewhere safe. One way to do this is to buy a small safe to house important documents and other things in. This will ensure that your documents don’t fall into the wrong hands or get lost.

If you would feel safer with these documents being out of your home, consider getting a safety deposit box at your bank.

Tip #7: Consider Installing a Home Security System

Not only are there many security benefits to having a home security system, but there are financial benefits as well when it comes to your home insurance policy. If you have a home security system installed, you can expect to see savings of about 15% to 20% on your home insurance policy. This is simply because your home is now secure and less likely to suffer things like break-ins. Even more reason to get that security system you were thinking about!

Now that you have these tips in mind, we hope it makes your journey to buying home insurance a little easier.