Your home is likely your most valuable asset. According to World Population Review, housing accounts for 35% of the average American’s monthly income, which means you’re investing tens of thousands of dollars in just a few years. Understandably, you want to protect this investment. As it turns out, home insurance isn’t enough — you also need a comprehensive home warranty. Today, we explain a little more about why you should consider a home warranty.

What Exactly is a Home Warranty?

You’re probably familiar with homeowners insurance, which covers several critical situations:

  • Accommodation costs
  • Home repairs
  • Attached structure repairs
  • General liability
  • Personal belongings
  • Medical bills for injured guests

However, these policies only apply if your home sustains damage from fire, natural disaster, theft or vandalism. Repairs for regular wear and tear fall squarely on your shoulders. Additionally, these policies don’t cover major appliances, such as refrigerators.

A home warranty fills these expensive gaps. It even covers home systems, like:

  • HVAC
  • Electrical wiring
  • Water heater
  • Plumbing
  • Ceiling fans

There are different plans available to meet your needs, too. You’ll find that prices and coverage varies depending on your needs, and you should only invest in what’s relevant to your situation.

Why Homeowners Need One

Home warranties offer a variety of benefits, not the least of which is massive savings. Without coverage, you may spend thousands of dollars replacing vital appliances, potentially going into debt. A warranty ensures that, for an affordable annual fee, you get high-quality appliances without busting your budget.

Additionally, home warranty companies usually have a network of contractors available for replacements and repairs. That means you don’t have to spend valuable time looking for a reliable professional, which also means faster repairs.

Buying a home warranty can also be an excellent option for landlords. Repairs and replacements eat into rental profits, but the law requires landlords to maintain their properties. The right warranty can minimize expenditure while keeping your rentals high-quality.

How to Choose the Best Home Warranty Company

Getting quotes from several companies is an excellent way to ensure you get a reasonable price. However, you should also look at customer reviews for home warranty companies in to determine if the business provides high-quality customer service. Home repairs can be stressful, and an empathetic agent with good communication skills can make all the difference.

Researching the company will also help you identify any red flags. For example, you should steer clear if you find complaints on the Better Business Bureau website. A handful of poor reviews is unavoidable when a business has hundreds of customers, but the positive ratings should outnumber the bad.

How to Keep Your Documents Organized

Organizing your home warranty documents is essential, as it makes the claims process much easier, especially as you deal with the inconvenience of repairs. One option is to save these documents as PDFs, allowing you to keep them in several places:

  • On your computer
  • On your phone
  • In the cloud
  • On a USB drive

If you’re wondering how you can separate out the pages, the best solution is a PDF splitter tool which allows you save pages as separate files. Doing so allows you to work around email file size limits when sharing documents.

Of course, some people prefer paper over digital. If you choose physical copies, organize the documents into clearly labeled folders and keep them in a safe place. It’s a good idea to let a few trusted people know the location in case you can’t access it yourself.

Protect Your Investment

When you invest so much in your house, you want to protect it. Getting a home warranty, in addition to homeowners insurance, ensures all aspects of your home have the necessary coverage. Even if the worst happens, you can recover with minimal stress. So look into available policies and find the one that best fits your needs. If something goes wrong, you’ll be glad you did!

Are you looking to buy or lease a commercial property? Set up an appointment with Cindy Hopkins Commercial Real Estate to learn more about available properties.