Life Happens 365 - Are You Managing the Risk?

By Diane Tait If you’ve ever bought or sold a home, you’re familiar with a home inspector.   He or she is the person who climbed onto your roof, into your attic, through your home’s crawlspaces and even perhaps under your home before the sale was complete and the mortgage lender was satisfied with the property.   In short, a home inspector is there to check out your home from top to bottom.   While some homeowners fear the inspector will shoot down a sale or cost them money to repair or replace items that would otherwise have been the responsibility of the new owners, what many fail to realize is that a home inspector can sometimes save them time & money.

By Diane Tait Florida tornado damage image courtesy USAF Even if you don’t live in Kansas, tornadoes occur with frightening regularity.   Believe it or not, Kansas isn’t the state with the most twisters per annum.   Texas leads the nation, with Kansas in the number two slot followed by the Sunshine State of Florida, which is where I live.   That’s right, Dorothy, Florida on average gets more tornadoes than Oklahoma, Nebraska and Colorado, even though it’s nowhere near Tornado Alley.   That’s simply because when the sun isn’t shining in the Sunshine State, we get lots and lots of thunderstorms and hurricanes which can spawn tornadoes.   But that’s hardly unique.   Unless you live in Alaska, there’s always the possibility of a tornado visiting your state.   Should a twister come roaring down your street, the chance for catastrophic damage to your property is extreme.   The question is whether your homeowner’s policy will cover all the dama...

By Diane Tait Image courtesy flickr With the onset of winter come cooler temperatures.   While we in Florida fare far better than those who live farther north, even we see nights where the temperature falls below freezing.   To us this means dealing with higher electric and gas bills when our heater fires up more frequently.   One of the conveniences of modern society is no longer having to brave the elements or even stoke the fireplace to stay warm when its cold out.   Our forefathers and mothers would have been green with envy.   Of course, it isn’t only our ancestors who would be jealous about the ease with which modern society stay warm and comfy.   There are still those less fortunate that envy our warm, snug homes.   I’m not speaking of the homeless.   I’m talking about roof rodents.