Taking out a mortgage loan is many people’s first exposure to homeowner’s insurance. You’ll sign a policy for the coverage required by the mortgage lender at the time and then forget about it. But as months and years go by, your house may evolve and experience some growing pains. You may update and remodel to fix old bones and make it feel more like home. These updates change the value of your house, which changes the overall value of your home insurance. 

Many home improvement projects can affect your insurance policy.

Roofing

Putting a new roof on your home can lower your insurance premiums. A new roof is less likely to fail during inclement weather, making it less of a liability. 

Additions & Upgrades

Building additions, adding a swimming pool or upgrading a room can boost your insurance premium to cover the new or upgraded space.

Essentially, anything that affects your home’s value also affects your insurance. If you don’t update your insurance policy to reflect these changes, you could be underinsured. And updating your insurance policy may cause a difference in your premium. Still, that difference is slight compared to what you could be paying out of pocket for damages to an underinsured home.

Review Your Home Insurance Policy with an Insurance Agent

Most people don’t fully understand their home insurance policies when they sign them, let alone when they need updating. Have your insurance agent fully explain your policy and your unique coverages. Policy reviews should happen at the time of purchase and throughout the years as you renovate your home.

Agents can also help evaluate valuable belongings you’ve acquired over time, such as sports equipment, firearms, jewelry and collectibles. All of which can affect your homeowner’s insurance policy. (For tips on how to take a home inventory, see here.)

If you’re thinking about renovating your home or have already renovated and need a policy review, speak to a AAA Insurance agent today to maximize your savings.

Updated 4/22/22.