Thank You Louisiana (1 Viewer)

Goats

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The wife and I decided that buying a gutted home and fixing it up would be a good investment we shouldnt pass up, so in April we bought a home that had 4" of water, in Metairie.

Before I purchased the home I checked with various insurance companies and found that the only options were State Farm and LA Fair PLan. Obviously I decided on State Farm. Everything went smooth, they gave me a quote, but couldnt insure me until the renovations were complete. In the meantime, I had a builders risk policy and a interest only loan.

So, now it comes time to get a full out mortgage and homeowners. Step one goes great, the house appraises for 70k more than what we put into it. Step two is good as well, mortgage rates are still fairly low and my great credit gets me an awesome rate. Step 3.....someone hand me a gun.....

Im sorry Mr Goats, but because you live with in 1 mile of Lake Pontchartrain (.8 to be exact) we cant write you a policy. My only option now is to sell or go with the La Fair Plan for over $500 a month.

Our only option is to sell, the sad part is, I put my own sweat into this house for over 8 months and we decided that the house and property were big enough that we would probably stay in it for a long time. Now I am forced to sell the home that I pretty much built/remodeled to our exact taste.

I could sit here and blame the insurance companies, but a large part of the blame needs to fall on our leaders who arent doing a damb thing to help us out.

Im on the verge of moving out of this ***backwards state.

/rantover
 
just curious but why didnt state farm catch the distance from the lake on the first quote?

if its a written quote are they at all obligated to honor it?

its a shame that happened, i saw a clip on wwltv that stated a survey done by UNO of people living in New Orleans and jefferson parish, that 1/3 are considering leaving the area within 2 yrs due to crime, levees, infrustructure and housing - basically some of what you went through
 
The wife and I decided that buying a gutted home and fixing it up would be a good investment we shouldnt pass up, so in April we bought a home that had 4" of water, in Metairie.

Before I purchased the home I checked with various insurance companies and found that the only options were State Farm and LA Fair PLan. Obviously I decided on State Farm. Everything went smooth, they gave me a quote, but couldnt insure me until the renovations were complete. In the meantime, I had a builders risk policy and a interest only loan.

So, now it comes time to get a full out mortgage and homeowners. Step one goes great, the house appraises for 70k more than what we put into it. Step two is good as well, mortgage rates are still fairly low and my great credit gets me an awesome rate. Step 3.....someone hand me a gun.....

Im sorry Mr Goats, but because you live with in 1 mile of Lake Pontchartrain (.8 to be exact) we cant write you a policy. My only option now is to sell or go with the La Fair Plan for over $500 a month.

Our only option is to sell, the sad part is, I put my own sweat into this house for over 8 months and we decided that the house and property were big enough that we would probably stay in it for a long time. Now I am forced to sell the home that I pretty much built/remodeled to our exact taste.

I could sit here and blame the insurance companies, but a large part of the blame needs to fall on our leaders who arent doing a damb thing to help us out.

Im on the verge of moving out of this ***backwards state.

/rantover

Well, i don't know if this will make you feel better or ease your pain but we pay about $500 a month for property and school taxes up here in B-Low and we don't get anything in return but shotty garbage pick-up,dim lit street lighting and pot hole filled roads.

Atleast that 500 hundo that you might be shelling out a month will provide you with a safety net, piece of mind and some security?

our 5 bills a month just goes out the window!
 
here is a tip...get your Homeowners policy EXCLUDING wind and hail and then get the WIND/HAIL portion through LA Fair Plan. Will Save you some $$$$$....call you agent to explore that option. good luck
 
here is a tip...get your Homeowners policy EXCLUDING wind and hail and then get the WIND/HAIL portion through LA Fair Plan.


Thats what we tried. State Farm for homeowners, Fair Plan for Wind & Hail.

The changes were made by State Farm as of Sept 1. The quote had a paragraph explaining that it was not binding and subject to change.

Its still a stupid policy. Homeowners would not pay a penny if my home flooded, so why does it matter if it is within a mile of any body of water?

I just got off the phone with AAA, the girl sort of chuckled and said they arent writing policies for new home owners.

My quote from State Farm was for 3200 (1200 of that was fairplan). My quote from fairplan is for 5400:(
 
This kind of thing is why we're destined to fail right now. Something has to give. When hardworking people of modest means can't make it work, there's something terribly wrong.
 
Brennan, there is more bad news coming ( on the insurance front ) In case you missed it, Tuesday Judge Duval of the Eastern District Court ruled against Allstate and several other homeowner companies stating that thier respective "water damage exclusions" were ambiguous and hold no merit. What that means? That, if upheld by the 5th circuit appelate, these homeowner companies could be responsible for any home that flooded due to levee/wall failure. Regardless if you carried flood insurance or not.

Oh and State Farm and Hartford policies motions to dismiss were granted, due to they had "specific" language that made thier respective exclusions unambiguous.


Goats, the only other option, if you plan to just rent it, is a basic dwelling policy and liability. Thats the only other thing I can think of.
 
Goats, are you in Bucktown? What is the corps doing along the lake? If they add fill anywhere along the waterfront, does that now make you further from the lake? :D I would seriously get into those details with any out-of-town insurance rep. What stupidity on their part - those levees fail and the effects are felt further than .8 miles!
 
OUCH Kev. And here I gripe about 500/year in property taxes.
 
Brennan, there is more bad news coming ( on the insurance front ) In case you missed it, Tuesday Judge Duval of the Eastern District Court ruled against Allstate and several other homeowner companies stating that thier respective "water damage exclusions" were ambiguous and hold no merit. What that means? That, if upheld by the 5th circuit appelate, these homeowner companies could be responsible for any home that flooded due to levee/wall failure. Regardless if you carried flood insurance or not.

Oh and State Farm and Hartford policies motions to dismiss were granted, due to they had "specific" language that made thier respective exclusions unambiguous.


Goats, the only other option, if you plan to just rent it, is a basic dwelling policy and liability. Thats the only other thing I can think of.

Great, I wonder how long before Allstate pulls out altogether and my rates triple.

And you got it right, Goats with your comment, "I could sit here and blame the insurance companies, but a large part of the blame needs to fall on our leaders who arent doing a damb thing to help us out."

Moreover while "charities" build isolated, symbolic houses for the indigent in the middle of completely destroyed areas, little is done pragmatic to help the working middle class who are needed to drive any sort of recovery. "Donate so a middle class family can pay their homeowners insurance", doesn't have the photo op effect of a poor family given a brand new home. However, the squeeze on people trying to do all the right things is getting ridiculous and few solutions seem on the horizon. Right now, I'm pretty fortunate with my decision to move to Mandeville post Katrina, but I really feel sorry for people who stayed and are trying to rebuild on the Southshore. I hope the LRA makes me a decent offer for my old house in Lakeview. It seems like the value of its land will only go down once people realize the reality of the immediate future and what life might be like elsewhere.
 
OUCH Kev. And here I gripe about 500/year in property taxes.

as you know,i live near Prior Aviation..where the private jets come and go.My entire block of neighbors don't have enough fingers and toes to count on the amount of times that the state private jets bring in politicians like Hillary Clinton for a ribbon cutting for a opening at a new Hospice Center or maybe her husband coming in for a "speech" at the University Of Buffalo campus( which is mostly state funded)..but yet, he (Bill) will collect a 100k-150k check from the state just to announce his thoughts on not losing focus on the "american dream" and how we need to direct our thoughts about obtaining other avenues of producing power while not harming the "ozone layer".

Heck,my mother died 18 years ago yesterday..we,as a family know what Hospice is all about..and we give donations to the services that they willingly supply to every spectrum of society..rich,middle class,poor..it doesn't matter. Money is no object in the way they serve the ill.

heck,my wife and i would be better suited to go cut a ribbon at a opening.
Been there..done it.

Bottom line,BD...to many politicians up here!

God Bless the Southland!
 
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