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The Shay Agency

1147 Hwy 315 Blvd
Wilkes-Barre, PA 18702

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Insurance Blog

How Much Home Insurance Do You Need?

As a homeowner, it’s important that you purchase the correct amount of home insurance to replace your house and belongings after an unexpected event like a natural disaster. The Shay Agency, which serves Wilkes-Barre, PA and surrounding areas, is happy to consult with you and discuss precisely how much home insurance you’ll need for your individual situation. You’ll need to have enough home insurance to cover the following: 

Your Home
You’ll need to have enough insurance to cover repairs to your home or potentially rebuilding it entirely. You’ll first need to have a full assessment of your property performed so that you have documentation of how much your home is worth and how much it would cost to replace its various elements. If your home is damaged in a natural disaster, a fire, or another adverse event, your insurance policy can help you replace what you’ve lost. 

Special Features
As you note details about your house and property with an insurance adjuster, be sure to call out any special features that will cost additional money to replace. Do you have an attractive stained glass window, custom hardwood flooring, or specialty woodwork in your home? These will all make your property more valuable and should be noted on your insurance policy. 

Your Possessions 
You’ll also need enough home insurance to cover the majority of your possessions. Spend some time taking an inventory of the items in your home that will be expensive to replace. Consider taking photos of your items, or taking a video tour of your home and noting all of your belongings, as well as the date and time. 

As you determine how much home insurance you need to carry on your house and property, speak with a skilled insurance professional with The Shay Agency. They’ll be happy to help you determine the exact amount you need to protect yourself against damage to your Wilkes-Barre, PA home. 

What is included with a Pennsylvania home insurance policy?

When you live in the Wilkes-Barre, PA area, there are a lot of opportunities to enjoy appreciation if you own your own property. Due to this, owning a home in this area can be a great long-term financial decision as it also gives you a stable place to live. If you are going to purchase a home in this town, it is important that you properly insure it with a home insurance policy. There are several forms of coverage that are included with your home insurance. 

Property Protection

One type of coverage that is included with your home insurance policy is property protection. When you own your own home, you are going to have a major asset that will require a lot of personal investments. Further, under the roof of your home will be all of your personal assets. When you get an insurance policy for your property, you will receive coverage for all of these assets.

Liability Protection

Another advantage of getting a home insurance policy here is that it can provide you with liability protection. Anyone that owns a property in this state is going to take on risk. If you have guests over, you could be held liable for damages if they are injured. When you get a home insurance policy, you are going to receive some personal liability coverage.

Whenever you are ready to start looking for a home insurance policy in the Wilkes-Barre, PA area, you should contact The Shay Agency. At The Shay Agency, you can be treated very well by a team of insurance professionals that will keep your best interests in mind. This team of professionals can assess your situation to figure out what form of coverage is right for you and properly covers you and your property. 

Home Insurance in Pennsylvania

In order to make an informed decision about home insurance, the first step is to get educated about home insurance.  A licensed and registered insurance agency such as The Shay Agency serving Wilkes-Barre, PA can not only educate you about home insurance but also guide you with the best policy that fits your needs and preferences. Usually, the biggest mistake people make is to not understand what their policy covers and what it doesn’t cover. Also, most people have no idea what sort of maximums should they get in order to sufficiently protest.

The insurance agents need to go into details with their customers on what the policy entails. The customer needs to have a basic understanding so they are able to actively listen and understand the differences in each policy. Going for higher deductibles can save money in the premium payments but that also means in a situation where insurance is needed, the amount of the deductible has to be met before the insurance kicks in.

It is also important to understand that your home insurance doesn’t protect against anything that happens to the home. For example, typically home insurance doesn’t cover for flood damage. Even though your home was damaged in a flood, home insurance will not cover that. You will need to get separate flood insurance coverage to provide protection. It’s not all about policy, the customer service of an insurance agency is as important as the policy itself. Make sure you go with an agency that has a track record of good customer service. One such company is The Shay Agency. In order to get in touch with The Shay Agency serving Wilkes-Barre, PA, use the contact information provided on the website. The staff at the agency will be glad to assist you.

First Time Homeowners: Insurance Planning For Your Home Purchase

Selecting your first home can be an enjoyable process as you prepare to be a new real estate owner.  Through the process, you should be able to choose an insurance agency to align home insurance for your new purchase.  First time homeowners enjoy having the steps simplified through the process of placing a purchase contract and closing on their home.  The insurance planning can be easier with a friendly staff that has experience working with first time buyers.  Your home purchase is important and experience with the process can be helpful.  The Shay Agency is proud to work with these new buyers during the process.  Serving the Wilkes-Barre, PA area, the agency has a trained staff ready to answer your questions.

Plans for moving into your new home can be simplified with online resources that offer tips and techniques for preparing to relocate all of your belongings.  This can be enjoyable with some helpful ways to pack.  There are also ways to prepare your storage containers for easier unloading of everything when arriving at your new home.  A really nice tip is to plan your first meal in the new home and celebrate your incredible real estate purchase.

You can call the agency when deciding to begin the process of finding a home or you can contact them anytime throughout the process.  The availability of more affordable homes in the Wilkes-Barre, PA area makes it nicer for homebuyers, including those making their first real estate purchase.  Planning can be easier with online resources to walk you through this process.  The Shay Agency enjoys working with first-time homeowners and can help simplify insurance planning for your home purchase.  You can contact the staff or visit the agency’s office for more information. 

What happens if I don’t have home insurance?

Owning a home is a great long-term investment, when you do own a property, it is very important that you have home insurance. While most people are aware of the necessity to have home insurance, not everyone gets it. If you do not have home insurance in place, a number of different things could happen.

Inability to Make Repairs

The main benefit of having home insurance is that you will receive coverage if your home is damaged or destroyed by a fire, storm, flood, or other casualties. If you do not have home insurance in place, you will not have this coverage. Unless you have a lot of money saved, you might not be able to repair your property.

No Liability Protection

If a guest or visitor of your home is injured when they are at your property, you could face a lawsuit. If you have home insurance, you will receive liability coverage against these risks. If you do not have this insurance coverage, you could end up being sued and having to make restitution out of pocket.

Violation of Agreements

If you have taken out a loan to buy your home, you will have to maintain home insurance until the loan is paid off. If you do not have insurance, you will be in default under the loan agreement. The lender could then take whatever action they see fit, including forcing you to pay off the loan.

Since it is very important that you have home insurance, The Shay Agency in Wilkes-Barre, PA can help and provide the assistance that you need. When you contact The Shay Agency in Wilkes-Barre, PA, the insurance team will help you to find a policy that provides you with the right level of coverage for your situation.

My oven broke. Can I use my home insurance policy?

What better time for your oven to give way to the pressures of being old than the day before your grand dinner party? You have dozens of guests who are counting on a hot meal to come from your kitchen, and your oven has decided that it no longer desires to fire up. You have to find another way to make your dinner party a success, which means that you will not have the funds to buy a new oven.

Will your homeowner’s insurance policy cover the event? Read on to find out! Contact an agent from The Shay Agency in Wilkes-Barre, PA to learn more about what is and is not covered by your homeowner’s insurance policy.

Does a homeowner’s insurance policy cover appliances?

The average homeowner’s indemnity plan will only pay for damaged or broken appliances that fall prey to severe storms or other things that damage the overall structure of your home. The roof caving in on your oven would make it eligible for replacement under your homeowner’s insurance plan. 

Unfortunately, normal wear and tear are not typically counted as events covered by your standard homeowner’s insurance policy. There are, however, instances where you can purchase an add-on that pays for an old oven so long as the appliance came with the home. Of course, your residence may not qualify for such added coverage if it was sold to you as a fixer-upper. There is also the option of purchasing umbrella insurance that covers everything from worn appliances to broken laptops. 

Call The Shay Agency for Your Insurance Needs!

The agents at The Shay Agency in Wilkes-Barre, PA have been in the business of finding the right homeowner’s insurance policies for its customers for many years. Contact us today to get a quote and have your questions answered!

Three Questions to Ask When Buying Home Insurance

Here at The Shay Agency in Wilkes-Barre, PA, we want to help all potential customers get the right insurance for their situation. Asking the right questions helps to ensure that the policy you buy fully covers your needs.

Here are three important questions to ask when you are looking to buy a new home insurance policy. 

How Much Coverage Do I Need

When you are looking to purchase a new home insurance policy, always ask an agent how much coverage you need. One of the biggest mistakes you can make is thinking you need to purchase a policy based on the value of your home. This may or may not be enough coverage. An insurance agent can sit down with you and determine how much coverage you need. 

What is Covered By the Insurance Policy?

Another key question to ask is what is covered by the insurance policy. Different policies offer different coverage. Always ask what is covered by the policy to help to ensure that everything within your home is covered in the event of various incidents. 

What Supplemental Policies Do You Recommend I Buy?

Lastly, be sure to ask an insurance agent what supplemental insurance policies they recommend you purchase when buying home insurance. Supplemental policies may include policies such as flood insurance. Flooding is not covered under a home insurance policy, so a supplemental policy is a must to ensure you are properly protected. An agent can help you determine what supplemental policies you need. 

If you are looking to purchase a new home insurance policy, The Shay Agency in Wilkes-Barre, PA would love to assist you. Contact us today to get a free estimate or try our online rating tool for a quote.

Home Insurance for Unpredictable Weather

At The Shay Agency, finding the right insurance product is only the beginning of what we offer our clients every day.  

Insurance offered to Wilkes-Barre, PA homeowners provides both peace-of-mind and financial security. Insurance, sophisticated financial/managerial tools, spreads risk and costs from one to the many. A litany of issues impacts how insurance underwriters and insurance actuaries determine the type and the price of products offered at the consumer level.

Climate change has had a dramatic impact on the insurance industry during the past century. Unexpected shifts in the scale or location of severe weather events are among the most pertinent issues affecting the delicate balance of the current insurance system. Curiously though, some insurers expressed concern about climate change more than three decades ago.

What can a homeowner do to protect themselves and their property against weather disaster?

Homeowners must reach out to the experts to determine which supplemental policies might be needed to increase coverage, for example, home insurance. Those homeowners who already have supplemental policies should consider modifying the coverage amounts. With random weather events occurring, such as unpredictable earthquakes, tornadoes, and hurricanes, it is important to make sure you have the coverage that will sufficiently provide replacement protection for your home and belongings.

The insurance agents at The Shay Agency serving the Wilkes-Barre, PA area are ready to discuss solutions to meet coverage options in the face of weather disaster. At The Shay Agency, we proudly deliver excellent customer service and work with cutting-edge tools to provide you with quality insurance. Our well-trained and well-versed staff can expertly meet your changing insurance needs.

Give us a call at (570) 704-0074.