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The best part of being a homeowner is the part where you get to transform your house into anything you want it to be. You’re not hemmed in by your landlord’s expectations about your living space, or anyone’s unrealistic desire to recreate Home and Gardens with their spare room. Renovating your home can be incredibly exciting, but before you pick up that hammer make sure you’ve done your homework and let your homeowners insurance provider into the loop.

Wait wait wait. You have to let your homeowners insurance provider in on your renovation plans? Why?

Believe it or not, there are a number of reasons it’s important to let your insurer know if and when you’re going to be making major changes to the inside of your house. We’re not talking about the next time you decide to paint or rewallpaper. Those types of cosmetic changes don’t increase the risk of disaster picking your house to strike next and therefore aren’t going to make a big difference in your status in the eyes of your homeowners insurance provider.

If you’re going to be ripping out walls and flooring, however, your insurance provider needs to know about it. When you’ve got exposed wiring and plumbing being re-rerouted you’re at a much higher risk of having disaster strike in the form of fires and water damage than at other times (when your house is in one piece). That added risk inspires most homeowners insurance companies to deny you coverage during periods of renovation.

Since the last thing you want is for there to be a fire and your home be uninsured you’re going to want to pick up a builder’s risk policy. These are issued by most homeowners insurance companies and are designed to take the place of your regular coverage policy during periods of renovation. It starts the first day of renovations and ends the minute you or your contractors pack up your tools and call it a day. These policies are usually more expensive than your standard homeowners insurance rates, but they’re well worth the investment to make sure you’re not holding the bill for hundreds of thousands of dollars of lost home and materials costs if disaster decides to strike.

Secondly, have you considered what these renovations are going to do to make your home more insurance friendly? The safer your home is, the happier your insurance company is going to be to insure you at a reasonable rate. If you’re upgrading your wiring or plumbing, building a fence around your pool or rebuilding your roof, you might be eligible for some major savings on your homeowners insurance rates when you’re done. Your insurance agent will be able to point you in the right direction.

Finally, let’s talk about the value of your home. Most people are surprised by exactly how much the value of their home increases when they renovate. Making improvements to your home is almost always going to send its value climbing, and you want to make sure your homeowners insurance coverage reflects that change.

So have you called your homeowners insurance company yet?

Anthony M. Peck is the Senior Developer, Software Project Manager, and Director of Business Development for QuoteScout.com. To find out more about renovations and your home insurance, visit them on the web at http://www.QuoteScout.com.

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