What Real Estate Professionals Need to Know About Fire Lines
Imagine finally finding that dream home for your client with beautiful views, a perfect tree-lined street and welcoming curb-appeal. You write the offer; it gets accepted and you’re off to escrow! YAY!
The time comes to get insurance and you learn it is in a high-risk wildfire zone and it is nearly impossible to get fire insurance coverage. What does this mean for your escrow and your client’s dream home?
DON’T LET FIRE LINE ISSUES KILL YOUR DEAL
&
YOUR CLIENT’S PURCHASE OF THEIR DREAM HOME
When it comes to getting Fire insurance (a.k.a Hazard Insurance) for homes in California there are four things you need to know:
1. You can call Smart Insurance Agency. Many of our real estate partners have come to rely on us as a resource when it comes to checking fire line ratings on properties their clients are considering.
2. Insurance in High Fire-line areas can sometimes become cost prohibitive or concerning for a client.
3. If the financial perimeters are tight for the lender, the cost of insurance becomes disheartening.
4. California Fair Plan property insurance should be the last resort, as the coverage is so limited. In many cases a DIC (Difference In Conditions) policy is the solution for the limited coverage, if nothing else is available.
One last important thing to remember is that Fire Line codes are used by insurance companies to determine the wildfire risk factors of fuel, slope and access. These factors are assessed into an overall hazard score surrounding a specific property. The scores can range from 1-30 and most well-known carriers will not consider a score greater than 2.
To read more about the Fire Line codes and default zones, please click on the link below:
PLEASE REMEMBER THAT WE ARE A RESOURCE FOR YOU AND YOUR CLIENT.
To confirm what the Fire Line score is for a subject property your client is considering click on the button below and provide the address. Someone on our staff will respond and provide you the score.