According to the NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration), there are twelve to seventeen anticipated named storms during the 2023 Hurricane Season, which runs from June 1st through November 30th. Five to nine of those are expected to be hurricanes, with one to four being major hurricanes (Category 3 or higher). Once a storm is named, insurance companies can and will suspend binding coverage as the storm approaches and will continue to suspend coverage following a storm hitting land.

The suspension of coverage can affect home buyers who don’t get coverage early. Without adequate home insurance, closing dates can be pushed back until companies end the suspension. Use these tips throughout storm season to prevent delays for you and your home buyers:

1. Encourage buyers to purchase their coverage early. There is no reason to not start the insurance process as soon as possible. This is important any time of year with the current state of property insurance in Florida but especially during hurricane season.
2. Connect the mortgage company and insurance agent early in the process. Most buyers rely heavily on whatever their mortgage company requires and what their insurance advisor recommends so making the connection between those two parts of the transaction early on is sure to help things run smoothly.
3. If a storm is approaching and insurance is not in place, encourage your buyer to call an insurance advisor as soon as possible. The policy must be bound with an effective date to avoid being held up by the binding suspension. Just because they’ve received a quote, does not mean it can’t be suspended.

We can’t stress enough, more so than ever before with the state of our insurance and reinsurance markets, to start the process early. Please share this information with your clients and let us know if we can help in any way. Let’s all hope for an uneventful season but were here if you need us.

Up until just a few years ago, traveling meant making plans well in advance, booking through travel agents, and lots of planning ahead for hotels or other accommodations to explore desired locations. But with the internet at our fingertips and services like Airbnb, VRBO, etc now¦ it’s easier than ever to find a place to crash. Some, especially in the real estate industry, may even explore purchasing a property as an Airbnb as a long-term investment or for supplemental income. There are a few important things to consider though.

Regular home insurance policies are intended to protect you and your family from everyday risks, not from commercial renting. If a renter occupies your home for even a short amount of time, you and your family will be exposed to significantly different risks that weren’t considered when your policy was initially obtained. As a result, most homeowners and renters policies wont cover property damage that’s caused by Airbnb guests.

There are also issues that come with rentals being vacant from time to time, in which insurance carriers are not comfortable taking on. For example: If you have a property that doesn’t get rented for two weeks and a toilet overflows, no one is aware before the damage is much worse and couldve been prevented or mitigated sooner.

There are also liability concerns with different short-term renters coming in and out.

If you’re considering renting through Airbnb, your first step should be to contact your insurance advisor to review your current homeowners or renters insurance policy. While that policy may allow you to rent your property to a guest, it’s important to keep in mind that each insurer has its own restrictions and requirements. Some insurers may require advanced notice of any short-term rental, whereas others might insist that you purchase an endorsement to expand your coverage appropriately.

If you plan to rent your property out on a regular basis, many insurance companies will consider this commercial use. In many cases, regular Airbnb hosts will need to obtain a commercial insurance policy in order to be adequately insured. However, a growing number of insurance companies are now offering home-sharing liability insurance policies that can be purchased on a month-to-month basis, so this is also something to consider.

Lastly, there are Host Guarantee and Host Protection policies offered by Airbnb in particular but we would advise you to beware of coverage gaps and exclusions with these options. You can look into the details of these offerings on their website here. As always, we are happy to help navigate through this process anytime you or your clients are considering it.

As if there isn’t enough going on with Florida home insurance these days, we are now upon hurricane season. NOAA forecasters have estimated there to be a 65% chance that this year will have above average activity, which would make it the seventh consecutive year of unwanted overachievements.

For the 2022 hurricane season, they have forecasted a range of 14 to 21 named storms (winds of 39 mph or higher), of which 6 to 10 could become full blown hurricanes (winds of 74 mph or higher). This includes 3 to 6 major hurricanes (category 3, 4 or 5; with winds of 111 mph or higher).

So what can you do? How can you best prepare and if in the process of a real estate transaction, avoid closing delays or lost deals? We can’t stress enough the importance of starting the insurance process early. This is helpful even outside of hurricane season because underwriting guidelines have tightened up and things can take time like inspections, appraisals, remedying any issues, etc. But the idea of starting early is more important than ever when it’s stormy season. If there is a named storm headed our way or posing as a threat to our area, insurance carriers will begin binding suspensions. This means that any policies in the quoting status cannot be bound regardless of closing requirements.

Here are a few other quick tips to help you prepare:

• Trim trees and pick up any lawn debris
• Double check the Other Structures coverage on your homeowners policy
• Be sure you understand your hurricane deductible, it’s oftentimes different
• Purchase household items, food, and water for an emergency backup kit
• Be prepared to document and mitigate any damage

We are hopeful for an uneventful storm season so we can focus on the positive change we’re seeing with property insurance reform but if you need anything or have questions, we’re here in all kinds of weather.

• Reinsurance assistance for insurance carriers that results in reduced premiums for consumers
• Policies cannot be refused or non-renewed solely because the home’s roof is less than 15 years old, contingent on an inspection confirming that there are at least 5 years of life left on the roof
• Limitations on attorney fees and fee multipliers
• New roof deductible options
• More Office of Insurance Regulation guidelines to help prevent Florida-based carriers from financial instability or liquidation
• Roofs with less than 25% damage can be repaired, rather than requiring full replacement
• Steps to curb fraudulent roof claims and roofing contractor solicitation
• Grants and tax exemptions for wind mitigation efforts

This bill received its final stamp of approval from Governor DeSantis, who stated that this package is the most significant reforms to Florida’s homeowners insurance market in a generation.

We remain hopeful and excited for positive change. We are in this together and ultimately, want to keep homeownership as great of an experience as possible for all Floridians.