Michael Martinez

Insurance rate increase – IF YOUR INSURANCE CARRIER IS NATIONWIDE, ALLSTATE, USAA, LIBERTY MUTUAL, OR STATE FARM, YOU SHOULD READ THIS AND CONTACT US TODAY!
Unfortunately, you will soon be experiencing a substantial rate increase if your insurance is placed with Nationwide, Allstate, USAA, Liberty Mutual, or State Farm, expect an insurance rate increase.

Nationwide is increasing their rates 6.2%, with an effective date of April 1, 2018! Seriously, whose side is Nationwide really on?

Allstate is increasing their rates by 6.9%, with an effective date of March 15, 2018! Are you really in good hands?

USAA increased their rates by 6.9%, with an effective date of January 15, 2018! Is that truly serving members?

Liberty Mutual Group increased their rates by 6.0%, with an effective date of March 24, 2017! Hiking rates. That’s their policy. We’re now seeing them in a whole new light.

State Farm’s rates are expected to increase by 6.7%! We think it’s time for a NEW neighbor.

Despite not filing claims and remaining a low risk customer, you may still have noticed an increase in your insurance rates…and again, if you haven’t, you will.

Insurance Rate Increase, WHY?

Insurance companies pay out billions of dollars in claims yearly. Sometimes, they have to pay out more in claims than they make in premiums. To compensate for their lost profits, costly claims, declining investment revenues, and dwindling cash reserves, they have to increase their rates.

Why feel forced to pay more? Allow us the opportunity to complete a thorough analysis on all your options and take advantage of all the available discounts. You make sure you have adequate coverage while taking the path that offers the greatest savings.

Although you can call around dozens of insurance companies, we’ve done the work for you. We can save you time and of course get you into the best coverage at the best price. To find out how much you can save, contact us.

Source: California Department of Insurance – Approved Rate Filings

Glendora Home Remodeling Insurance – Have you been thinking of remodeling or renovating your home?

As spring approaches, homeowners often plan projects. Some want new floors. Others wish to update their kitchens or bathrooms. Similarly, some plan on doing the work themselves (with the help of Pinterest). Others plan on hiring contractors. If you are thinking about remodeling, whatever path you take, you must make sure you have adequate coverage. You should confirm your policy will cover your project, home, and content. Furthermore, you must make sure the remodeling doesn’t void your policy.

Glendora Home Remodeling Insurance Agent Must Be Notified

If you are planning on remodeling, here are three reasons to notify your Glendora Home Remodeling Insurance Agent:

1. Generally speaking, when one remodels their home the value of their property may increase. Or at the very least, the replacement cost of the structure and content can rise. Accordingly, if you don’t notify your agent about the updates, your existing coverage may not be adequate. Your policy may not cover the replacement value of your home or possessions (i.e. new furniture, appliances, or electronics).
2. What happens if your Pinterest ideas turn into Pinterest fails? It happens. With every remodeling project, there is a chance your property may be damaged/destroyed in the process. To protect yourself from repair/rebuilding costs, don’t wait to contact your insurance agent until the project is complete. Rather, contact them before the project starts.
3. Who is going to do the work? Are you planning on hiring contractors? If so, before hiring a general contractor, ask to see a copy of their insurance. Look at their workers’ compensation policy, general liability insurance, and their builder’s risk coverage. If they don’t have workers compensation or their coverage is inadequate, they can end up suing you if they are injured on the job. Additionally, if they don’t have general liability, what coverage will cover consequent damages or injuries from negligence or omissions? And what about builder’s risk coverage? This covers damage to your home and the required supplies. To make sure you are protected, contact your agent. Or better yet, contact OAK’s Glendora Home Remodeling Insurance to confirm or increase your liability coverage.

There you have it, the basics of home remodeling insurance. Moreover, to uncover the basics of homeowners insurance, click here.

To learn more about how you can save by increasing your coverage, contact OAK Insurance Solutions.
CALL) 626.775.7850
TEXT) 626.818.8987
EMAIL ME HERE

Glendora Homeowners Insurance – Theft, vandalism, fire, smoke, sudden cracking, etc…you never know when problems will strike, but when they do, homeowners insurance can protect you and safeguard your investment.

This is one reason the majority of lenders require homeowners insurance. However, regardless to whether you have a mortgage or not on your property, protection is strongly recommended.

Glendora Homeowners Insurance – What Is & Isn’t Covered

Generally speaking, there are a variety of Glendora homeowners insurance policies, but the two most common types of are HO-2 and HO-3. A breakdown of the policies are stated below:

HO-1 – Basic Homeowners Insurance Policy

Under a HO-1 policy, generally 11 perils are covered. These include the structure of the home, the property within it, and the structures on the land damaged by:

1. Fire or Lightening
2. Smoke
3. Theft
4. Vandalism
5. Damage from vehicles
6. Damage from aircraft
7. Windstorms and hail
8. Riots and civil commotion
9. Volcanic eruptions
10. Explosions
11. Glass Damage

HO-2 – Broad Perils

Under an HO-2 Glendora Homeowners Insurance policy, the above items are covered, plus:

1. Fallings objects
2. Weight of ice, snow or sleet
3. Accidental discharge or overflow of water or stream from within plumbing or related systems (does not include discharge or overflow of water from a sump)
4. Sudden and accidental rupture of a heating, air conditioning, fire protective sprinkler, or hot water heating system
5. Freezing of plumbing or related systems
6. Sudden and accidental damage from artificially generated electrical current

HO-3 – Special Form

Broader than a HO-2 policy, a HO-3 covers all the perils under a HO-2 policy and all risks not excluded by the insurer. Typically, a Glendora homeowners insurance HO-3 policy insures your home and attached structures (i.e. a garage or deck), as well as your belongings and personal liability if you accidentally injure someone or damage their property.

In addition to the above, other homeowners insurance policies include:

HO-4 – Tenant’s Farm

HO-4 coverage is specifically for renters, covering belongings and personal liability as opposed to the building itself (as that’s usually covered by the landlord’s policy).

HO-5 – Comprehensive Form

Coverage, here,  is broader than a HO-3 policy.

HO-6 – Condo Form

HO-6 coverage is generally the same as a typical homeowners insurance, but it specifically is for condo owners and generally protects belongings, personal liability, walls, floors, and the ceiling. The remaining portions of the condo structure is usually covered by a policy covered by the owner’s homeowners association.

HO-7 – Mobile Home Form

A HO-7 Glendora homeowners insurance policy is generally the same as a typical homeowners insurance, but it specifically is for mobile or manufactured homes.

HO-8 – Older Home Form

HO-8 coverage is designed to address specific concerns that arise with older homes, usually seen with older and historic homes.

That said, there are problems that are typically not covered under traditional homeowners insurance. These include:

• Flooding
• Earthquakes
• Landslides
• Mold
• Infestations
• Wear and tear
• Nuclear hazard
• Government action

However, you can purchase separate policies to cover the above and provide added benefit.

Taking these factors into consideration, a natural question one may ask, is…how much coverage does one need? To answer this, allow me to explain the basic parts of a Glendora homeowners insurance policy. Standard coverage includes:

• Dwelling Protection: Covers damage to the home and attached structures.
• Stand-Alone Structure Protection: These cover such structures as a fence, carport, or toolshed.
• Loss of Use: This provides additional living expense coverage, such as helping pay for temporary relocation and basic living expenses if you are forced to vacate your home.
• Personal Property Coverage: This covers one’s belongings (i.e. furniture and dishes), helping pay to repair or replace stolen or damaged belongings.
• Liability Coverage: This coverage protects you financially if you are responsible for another’s injuries arising on your property.
• Medical Payments Coverage: This covers injury treatment costs for those injured on the property.

When it comes to home coverage, many fall under the misconception that they must purchase coverage equivalent to the purchase price or market value of their home. However, that’s not the case. Instead, you should obtain coverage equivalent to your home’s rebuilding cost. This is based on what it would cost local construction to rebuild your home/property if damaged. A Glendora homeowners insurance agent, such as OAK Insurance Solutions, can give provide you with an accurate quote on your home’s replacement cost. However, you can estimate the cost by multiplying your property’s square footage with local construction costs per square foot. The problem for many is that they simply obtain coverage equivalent to their home’s real estate market value. But, this risks under coverage and not having enough funds to repair your home if disaster strikes.

In terms of personal property coverage, you generally want coverage for at least 50% of your dwelling coverage amount. That said, you can decrease or increase your limit if you wish. Hence, it is usually suggested to take inventory of your home and speak with your agent for the best recommended coverage. An insurance agent can also help you determine whether to obtain coverage equivalent to your property’s replacement coverage (which does not factor in depreciation) and the actual cash value (which usually is cheaper but bases claims payments on your belongings’ depreciated value).

Cost of homeowners insurance

Again, to determine the cost of your homeowners insurance, you should speak with your insurance agent. Typically though, the following are considered:

• The cost to rebuild your home
• Your coverage limits and deductibles
• Your home’s age
• Your claims history as well as the history of claims in your neighborhood
• Where you live

If working with an experienced and cost-saving focused agent, as Glendora Homeowners Insurance – OAK Insurance Solutions, there are factors to take into consideration to reduce your costs. These can include:

• Obtaining coverage based on your home’s rebuilding cost and not your purchase price. A home’s purchase price includes the land under your house, which isn’t at risk. Therefore, if it’s based on the higher valued purchase price, it can mean you have to pay higher premiums.
• Some companies that sell homeowners, auto, and liability coverages will take 5 to 10% off your premium if you buy two or more policies from them. And as you may have seen on OAK Insurance Solutions’ testimonials, clients are saving at least 15% by bundling their policies.
• Increase your home’s safety features. For instance, by having a stronger roof, modern heating/plumbing/electrical systems, smoke detectors, sophisticated sprinkler systems, smoke detectors, burglar alarms, dead bolt locks, or etc…you can see substantially more discounts.
• Although many fall into credit problems, by working to improve and maintain good credit, you can see additional discounts to your policy.
• Annually review your homeowners insurance policy and update your coverage. For instance, if you have floater or extra insurance covering a high-end computer which you no longer own, then you may want to cancel that coverage and reduce your rates.
• For added discounts contact OAK Insurance Solutions.

There you have it, the basics of homeowners insurance. To learn more about how you can save by increasing your coverage, contact OAK Insurance Solutions.

CALL) 626.775.7850
TEXT) 626.818.8987
EMAIL ME HERE

It can be both exciting and stressful for newlyweds to merge their lives together. Once married, you tend to move in together, share finances, share debts, change last names, and transition from single life to a partnership. However, one of the most important actions newlyweds must take is updating their insurance policies. Besides health, once you’re married, you should review your auto, homeowners, and life insurance policies to ensure it’s taking into consideration your new marriage and providing adequate coverage. For instance…

Car Insurance

Did you know once you’re married your car insurance rates can drop? In fact, one study by InsuranceQuotes.com concludes that a married 20 year old may pay 21% less than a single 20 year old. While this difference can be due to a number of factors, the general reason is that married drivers are considered less risky compared to their single counterparts, therefore allowing for cheaper rates. Additionally, as a married couple, you may receive multicar discounts. For a full list of available discounts and how to maximize your coverage while minimizing your car insurance costs as newlyweds, contact OAK Insurance Solutions.

Homeowners and Renters Insurance

If you’ve been living separately, then most likely you and your spouse have been paying for separate home or renters insurance. However, now that you are living together under one roof, one of you will need to cancel your coverage. While the policy you keep should cover both of you, you must still notify your insurer about the marriage so they can list your spouse on the policy. Additionally, you may select to increase your coverage limits because you are combining your belongings once married (i.e. furniture and electronics) and adding high-value items (i.e. wedding rings). To review your current policies and decipher what’s the best coverage for you and your spouse, again…contact OAK Insurance Solutions.

Life Insurance

Once you’re married, you’re officially sharing your life with someone else. Although you may not have thought about life insurance while single, life insurance as a married couple is a must. If you or your spouse die, life insurance can help replace the lost income, pay off debts and expenses (i.e. funeral and burial costs), provide an inheritance, add financial security, and maintain a particular lifestyle. According to one study, “91% of widows lose everything in the first twelve months after their husband’s death…Houses, cars, education for kids, their entire lifestyle is forced to change.” However, this doesn’t have to be the case. Life insurance can prevent such loss and provide peace of mind that although one is gone, they can continue to help take care of their loved ones. To learn more about why Life Insurance is a must, visit “5 Reasons You Need Life Insurance from OAK Insurance Solutions.”

To sum it up, when you get married, you begin sharing a life with your loved one. Your money may be their money and their money may be yours. Similarly, since we live in California, a community property state, your debt may be their debt and their debt may be yours. In other words, if one dies, you can potentially be struck with a mountain of debt and less income to cover it. For that alone, life insurance is a must. Additionally, your need for protective coverage may increase. You may need to protect two drivers, two vehicles, additional belongings, a bigger home, etc… Therefore, you must maximize your coverage as a couple while minimizing your costs. Here at OAK Insurance Solutions we can help you with that. We can review your current insurance policies, identify your coverage needs and any consequent gaps since getting married, as well as maximize policy discounts to keep costs low. For an insurance quote, contact us today.

CALL) 626.775.7850
TEXT) 626.818.8987
EMAIL ME HERE