It's the worst thing when something happens to your home and you find out the repairs are not covered. Check your homeowner's policy to make sure.

--"Acts of God" is a catch-all phrase to include earthquakes, floods, and other uncontrollable incidents that could cause damage. To cover these kinds of issues, homeowners must pay for additional coverage. For example, there is FEMA flood protection if you live in a flood-prone area and tornado insurance against windstorm damage. To be sufficiently protected, you'll need to understand the weather vulnerabilities in your region and consider paying for these additional riders if it is likely that your home could be affected by one of these incidents during the time you plan to call your house a home.

--Bugs, pests, and rodents. If they make themselves cozy in a crawlspace, porch, awning, gutter, chimney, or another corner of your property. The situation can end in extensive damage and expensive bills that many insurance companies will not cover.

--The cost to rebuild your home. If your home is in a historical district, for example, rising construction costs and tougher building codes could make an exact replacement impossible. Similarly, if you've made upgrades and significant repairs to your home, then it's important to update your insurance policy to reflect those changes. Otherwise, the policy is likely pegged to the costs associated with your purchase of the home, not its true value many years later.

--Service lines. While the pipes inside your house are covered by your homeowners insurance policy if they leak or burst, typically service lines on your property aren't.

--Faulty safety and security systems. Get all the discounts they are entitled to by sharing with your insurance company if you've installed safety and security systems like hurricane-proof doors and windows, security systems and cameras, fireproof electrical systems, etc. But take care of them because a missing smoke detector, faulty sprinklers, and a disabled security system could all be used to deny a claim that might otherwise have been covered.

(RealSimple)

Jennie James