Shutters and HOI discount (Miami, Boynton Beach: short sale, home owners insurance, mortgage)

[nmp]

Hello,

First time home buyer here. I've made an offer on a short sale that has been sent to the bank and I am doing my research while I wait (and wait and wait). The house is in PSL north of Prima Vista and just west of the river. It is a 1970's CBS house that needs a new roof and I will have an asphalt shingle roof put on as soon as I close. I'm also looking at installing (myself) aluminum or steel corrugated shutters. I know that I will get a discount on my home owners insurance by having a wind inspection done but I couldn't get an answer on what the discounts are for steel vs aluminum of different thickness or miami dade code vs florida building code. Anyone been through this recently and have any idea. The cost of Miami Dade approved aluminum will be about $1500 for me to install. I can afford it but if I can get steel (which I can lift) and pay significantly less plus get the same insurance discount or get cheaper Florida Building Code shutters instead of Miami Dade approved shutters and get a good discount I want to calculate the shutter price versus the discount. I can find the shutter prices but not the discounts.

My mortgage is through family and not a bank so my HOI will be paid direct, not through escrow.

Also before anyone asks, I live in Boynton Beach and have a job there I will be keeping. There are several employees who live in PSL and commute to BB in company trucks and I will be carpooling most days with one of them so I'll have limited gas cost.

Thanks.

Nick

[tommy-105]

Originally Posted by nmp

Hello,

First time home buyer here. I've made an offer on a short sale that has been sent to the bank and I am doing my research while I wait (and wait and wait). The house is in PSL north of Prima Vista and just west of the river. It is a 1970's CBS house that needs a new roof and I will have an asphalt shingle roof put on as soon as I close. I'm also looking at installing (myself) aluminum or steel corrugated shutters. I know that I will get a discount on my home owners insurance by having a wind inspection done but I couldn't get an answer on what the discounts are for steel vs aluminum of different thickness or miami dade code vs florida building code. Anyone been through this recently and have any idea. The cost of Miami Dade approved aluminum will be about $1500 for me to install. I can afford it but if I can get steel (which I can lift) and pay significantly less plus get the same insurance discount or get cheaper Florida Building Code shutters instead of Miami Dade approved shutters and get a good discount I want to calculate the shutter price versus the discount. I can find the shutter prices but not the discounts.

My mortgage is through family and not a bank so my HOI will be paid direct, not through escrow.

Also before anyone asks, I live in Boynton Beach and have a job there I will be keeping. There are several employees who live in PSL and commute to BB in company trucks and I will be carpooling most days with one of them so I'll have limited gas cost.

Thanks.

Nick

After a few uses the galvanized steel panels start to get scratched and bent up (dog eared) and rust starts. Don't forget you are in a salt air environment. Also as you get older the panels start to get heaver.

Aluminum panels may oxidize and loose their sheen but otherwise still look brand new. This can be a good selling point down the road. Even with my limited budget, I never even considered steel.

[stevep111]

Before you close you will have to have the home inspected. Make sure your inspector is someone you chose and not the agent or seller. Specifically ask if they are certified to do wind storm inspections. I think it was $100 and all of the reputable ones do it. You can ask the inspector exactly what you need to get in order to pass the inspection. It can be a big task doing it yourself but there are companies around that will make everything for you as long as you provide the measurements.

Once you get the shutters installed and inspected then give it to your insurance agent. The savings depends on the amount of coverage you have on your home so it could be big or small but what ever it is it is worth it if you are going to live in the home very long. The discount will eventually pay for the shutters and will be a good resale point (especially if it is an older home) when you go to sell.

[nmp]

Well this is my first home and I'm thirty so I don't plan on retiring there but I also don't think house prices or the job market will turn around to a point for me to sell it and move up for at least 5 years. The house I made the offer on will be getting a new roof, new 16seer (High Efficiency) A/C, new kitchen appliances, paint, hurricane shutters and maybe a solar water heater system. I have the cash up front to spend to reduce my operating costs over the next 5 years or more I just want to make sure that I'm not paying for something that won't start paying back in that time frame. Unfortunately insurance discounts seem to be something that I can't calculate.

Oh, and any house I buy will be getting an alarm and monitoring... I hate thieves.

[dbay]

More good advise, Steve...Thanks for taking the time to answer these important questions..

[Insguy]

nmp, Congrats on getting a home. Concerning getting shutters and the discounts - iare you sure the steel shutters your looking at do not meet Miami/Dade code? The material is not the question its the impact rating that the shutter meets is what qualifies a shutter for Miami/Dade. A thicker gage of steel could meet the Miami/Dade standards. Don’t forget that to meet code your garage door will have to be upgraded, the people that provide you with the shutter can help you with this. All opens need to be protected.

Are far as premium discounts, we could work up a premium based on both shutters types but we would need all of the house info. Sorry I can’t be more help with that.

[nmp]

Originally Posted by Insguy

nmp, Congrats on getting a home. Concerning getting shutters and the discounts - iare you sure the steel shutters your looking at do not meet Miami/Dade code? The material is not the question its the impact rating that the shutter meets is what qualifies a shutter for Miami/Dade. A thicker gage of steel could meet the Miami/Dade standards. Don’t forget that to meet code your garage door will have to be upgraded, the people that provide you with the shutter can help you with this. All opens need to be protected.

Are far as premium discounts, we could work up a premium based on both shutters types but we would need all of the house info. Sorry I can’t be more help with that.

Just in my limited looking and pricing online I've only found Aluminum shutters (.050 and .063 thickness) that are Miami Dade approved. I haven't really looked for steel yet so I'm not sure. I'm going to look at the house again Monday so I'll look at the garage door, I remember it is in good shape without an opener but I didn't note if it was reinforced.

I did some reading at floridadisaster.org which had some good information and a Cost-Benefit calculator based on insurance filings approved through June 2008. It seems like from this site anyway that the type of window protection doesn't change the discount very much as long as it is at a minimum FBC approved. The roof structure seems to make the big difference. I already knew the roof was going to get done right away but this gave me information on why I should tear down to the deck and inspect the nail size and coverage and re-nail if necessary versus just going over the existing shingles with new shingles.

I think my HOI is going to be pretty affordable for me so I don't want to go overboard on upgrades that won't pay back in discounts for 5 or even 10 years but I'm willing to make the investment now on things that will pay back in less than 5 years.

Thanks,

Nick