Roof Exclusions: What to knowIf you own a home you

Roof Exclusions: What to know
If you own a home you may assume that everything is covered by your homeowners insurance. However, you may be surprised to find out that you are wrong. In many cases people find that certain exclusions in their homeowner's insurance policy that prevent their entire homes from being covered. Roof exclusions are one type of exclusion that may prevent the roof of your home from being covered by homeowner's insurance. If you are buying a house for the first time and investing in a homeowner's insurance policy, make sure to go over any roof exclusions with your insurance agent. If you currently have a homeowner's insurance policy, read it carefully to find out its policies on roofing. You may be surprised with what you find out.

Consider what would become of your beautiful home if you did not have a roof. If you think about it, roofs are one of the most important parts of homes. Without a properly functioning roof to provide shelter from the outdoors, your home is basically useless. In most cases homeowner's insurance policies do not exclude roofs completely. Usually, homeowner's insurance contains roof exclusions for certain things.

Common roof exclusions include service to perform routine maintenance to your roof. Roof repair is usually covered for the repair of leaks but does not cover replacing the entire roof. Since replacing your roof can be considerably expensive and is often eventually necessary when you own a home for a long period of time, it is good to be aware that replacing your roof is not covered by your homeowner's insurance. If you are not aware of this fact and you plan to replace your roof, you will be in for an expensive surprise when you realize that it is you that is footing the bill. Any repairs for defects such as leaks that are covered in your insurance policy are likely to only be covered if the repairs are completed with parts and materials that are equal in value to those of your current roof. Any upgrades or work that is done with materials better than and more expensive than your current roof materials will not be covered in your homeowner's insurance policy.

Another factor to take into consideration when looking into roof exclusions is to carefully read through your homeowner's insurance policy to see if it discriminates against roofs made of certain materials. Some insurance companies offer homeowner's insurance policies that only provide for roofs made of certain materials. For example, there are insurance companies that will not cover cedar shake and slate roofs in their homeowner's insurance policy. If you want your roof repairs and maintenance to be covered through your homeowner's insurance, it is a good idea to look into what types of roofs may be excluded by your insurance company, particularly if your roof is made out of a rare or hard to find material.

In addition, the age and layering of the roof may play a role in whether of not your roof is covered or excluded. Oftentimes older roofs over anywhere from ten to twenty years of age are not covered by insurance. When roofs age they are often replaced, however it can be extremely expensive to completely remove and re-shingle a roof. This is why a second layer of roofing shingles are often added to the first if a roof only contains one layer of shingles and must be redone. This can provide a cheaper alternative to strip the entire roof. However, this can be a problem when it comes to roof exclusions. Often, insurance companies exclude roofs that have more than one layer of roofing shingles, but in some cases insurance companies will increase the limit to two layers and cover roofs with two layers of roofing shingles or less.

A final point to keep in mind when considering the insurance of the roof of your home is the amount of coverage offered for your roof. Usually the amount of coverage is per square, which may put a limit on how much money can be spent and covered by your insurance when it comes to your roof. Good rates will allow you to keep your roof maintained and looking great.

Scam is a Four-Letter Word in the Mortgage Category6 Common

Scam is a Four-Letter Word in the Mortgage Category
6 Common Mortgage Scams

Scams are abundant in the world today and seem to be seeping into every facet of business, and mortgage loans are no exception. Most scams in the mortgage field tend to prey home buyers and owners who aren't overly educated in the area. So here we will have a look at how some of these mortgage scams work and their outcomes so you know to be aware of them and do not fall into their trap.

Internet and Phone Scams:

These scams are usually by advertising low interest mortgage loan rates in the news paper or on the internet and even sometimes under a trusted company names. The way this works is by having people who are seeking a mortgage loan replying to an ad, either by phone or by internet forms. They then ask for your personal information like your account numbers and your social security number. These loans are instantly approved and the borrower usually goes on to faxing documents and sending wire transfer payments without ever meeting the lender in person. Usually the result of these scams is that you lose your money, have no loan and your personal information is either sold or your identity is then stolen.

Refinancing Loans Scams:

There are quite a few refinancing loan scams out there, many times these are focused toward the borrower who is in need of money. Usually you are left in greater debt and even have the possibility of losing your home. Some of these types of scams are:

Equity Stripping Scams

These scams usually arise when your mortgage lender approaches you and tries talking you into taking out a loan, because you need the money. They usually know that you can not afford the repayments but will encourage you to do so anyway, even if it means dodging up some of the loans forms so it will get approved. The reason they do this 'encouraging' while knowing you can not afford it, is to foreclose on your house as soon as you miss a payment.

Loan Flipping Scams

These scams are usually done after you have been paying your mortgage off for a while and the loan lender approaches you to refinance your loan, telling you that you can have a little bit of extra cash in your pocket. Once you have accepted, a few months later the lender will approach you again, this time offering another refinancing deal so you can get even more cash. This may sound good at first, but in the end you are paying more for your loan, are getting charged extra fees, points and even a prepayment penalty as well as a higher interest rate. Usually the more times you are talked into refinancing, the more you're getting in over your head in the payments and the closer the possibility will be of losing your home.

Balloon Payment Scam

This scam is usually done when you no longer can keep up with the payments on your mortgage and you are approached by the lender with the offer of refinancing. They will tell you, if you refinance, you will pay less on your monthly repayments. Most times the reason for the lower repayments is that you are only paying the interest on the loan and after the term is up you have to pay the whole loan in one lump sum or balloon payment. This usually leads to you being unable to pay the whole loan on the due date and this leads to foreclosure and the loss of your home.

Mortgage Elimination Scams:

These scams are usually pin pointed at home owners who are having a hard time repaying their mortgage. Ads are often used in this type of scam, enticing home owners to hire this particular mortgage company and be rid of all mortgage payments. Usually what happens is that you pay out a fee to get the ball rolling on your mortgage elimination, then process a heap of fraud forms against the lender and file phony loan applications. Usually the only outcome is that you are making matters worse and even committing criminal acts, without even knowing it, as well as many other factors that come into it.

There are numerous other scams out there in the mortgage field, always be aware of who you are loaning through and your loan agreements.

The best way to prevent being a victim of a mortgage scam is by using your common sense. Apply in person at a company you know you can trust. Don't take on more than you can chew. If you need to refinance your loan make sure that you know exactly what and how much you will be paying and how much your loan will be after all new charges have been added. Never believe in anything that seems too good to be true, because most times it probably is.