Having been involved with rebuilding thousands of properties from every type of catastrophe imaginable, it's been my experience that the insurance companies don't make a habit of valuing policies too high. I have seen maybe 1%-2% of insurance policies being overvalued. I have easily seen a third of insurance policies valued too low for many different reasons. It's the property owners responsibility to know and understand these policies and sadly 95% of policy owners don't know what their buying. When limits are reached, you're done. Unless an E&O policy can be utilized if the broker made a mistake, when limits are reached, the well is dry. Its buyer beware folks and what you can sell your home for has nothing to do with the value of an insurance policy!!!! betaiota has some good points and many other variables need to be considered. The replacement policy value tends to set the basis for other coverage's such as contents, detached buildings and additional living expenses. So if your replacement value is low, you'll likely be low all the way down the line. Most insurance adjustors will allow you to move expenses from one bucket of policy money to another but once limits are reached, it's over. Keep in mind policy limits are affected by emergency services to the building, demolition, debris removal, cleaning and professional fees such as architects and engineers. Code upgrades which can be a big issue in older properties also can affect policy limits. To demo a house and haul the debris to a landfill can run into tens of thousands. There are limits for contents, usually 50% of the building and some policies up to 75%. Most people don't insure valuable contents properly. If you have specific high value items in the home such as art work, jewelry, coins, silverware, collections, etc. etc. you should probably schedule these with a rider. To have all your contents, furniture, clothing, etc, etc, cleaned and put into storage while your home is being rebuilt is expensive and falls under your contents coverage. Additional Living Expenses are usually 20% of the replacement value or it's capped at 12 months. Some higher end policies have no limits on A.L.E. but those are not typical. On a major claim for a total rebuild A.L.E. can easily run out if there are some problems or the value is too low. Unless you have money to spare, spending your own money to live in a rental property and the expenses that go with it, while your home is being rebuilt get ugly real fast. Detached structures such as garages, sheds and pools are usually valued at 10% of the homes replacement value. If you have a detached garage with an apartment above it or an in ground pool with some nice hardscaping around it, 10% can easily be low if the main policy value is low. In short, there are many variable to your insurance policy and you should know what they are, what you need and how much you are buying. I won't say you can never have enough insurance but if you're under insured with a major claim, you and your families lives will be adversely affected for many years to follow.

Technically the Ins co is responsible to cover the costs of damaged flooring & surrounding areas - the caveat (which I'm sure they wont reveal to you) - is wherever there is a transition/sash/threshold where one floor meets other they and that area (beyond transition) is not damaged - they are not responsible for. So, in your case if you have 1200 sq ft & 700 sq ft damage with NO transitions whatsoever they are responsible to replace 1200 sq - Once that is settled you may choose how you would like to proceed - You don't have to replace 1200 - you could replace the 700 if you have a good flooring person that can match the flooring How the insurance co settles is a toss up the higher they are rated the better the service - A++ rated will be more proficient than D rated Good luck

thanks so much for all your comments. Its like we are in a traumatic time with two row of sharks one insurance the other is the contractors in charge of rebuilding you home. We are still in wait and on our 3rd property manager. They sent a chemical testing company to the place where our things were "cleaned" by contractor we hired. Because I complained and didn't want the things exposed to the content. Much Aloha, Joanne

Thank you for the information. I believe that every insurance policy should be approached wisely. You have to know what life insurance policies provide and insurance pyramid scheme to figure it out. I believe that cash value life insurance may be one of the missing links that your organization needs in order for your teams, your executives and your owners to reinvest their core efforts and get back to reaching new heights as a competitive and friendly organization.