I'm terribly sorry, but glad everyone is safe.

Good luck! And may 2020 treat you much better!

This is terrible. I'm glad you are all okay. Here's to 2020.

Prayers for you to survive this horrific ordeal. Much great advice from previous posts. Let us know if you need help.

Sorry to hear the news. Hopefully 2020 will provide much happier times.

My prayers are with you and your family.

Very sorry to hear about your major issues in 2019.

But very happy to hear no one was hurt and it was just "property damage". Albeit it will be a PITA to deal with do know some of us have insurance knowledge so keep us updated as we may be able to help.

Well that's a giant ball of shittiness. Praying for a better 2020 for you and fast/great contractors.

Well dang man! So glad you all are safe, despite the loss of your home. I pray you get the settlement you need to get back to where you started. I grew up down the street from a family whose home burned down twice. Two different families across the street from the first also suffered total losses. Wood burning stove/chimney issues were all of the causes. Prayers sent.

Sorry about the fire. Glad you are safe and no one was injured and you were insured. Never an easy thing.

You need anything?

I know it can be some time between the incident and the insurance company helping your u out with a check.

Thanks guys. It is nice to read through comments like these when your head hangs low.

I will be sure to ask many questions in the near future.

I think I have already found a home for rent which is actually nicer then mine and for about 40% of the living expense the insurance provides me. It is also fully furnished and a 9 month lease with month to month after. I'm hoping to hear from insurance tomorrow with the approval.

I've already signed with a public adjuster who is a family member for a good deal. So I can sit back and take some time to prepare for the contracting of the rebuild.

quote:

Originally posted by ZSMICHAEL:

quote:

Your mortgage company (if you have one) will also be listed on the check, you can probably sign the check and hand it to your contractor and they will deal with the mortgage company for you...ask them.

^^^^^^^^
I would advise against signing the check over to the contractor. It is my experience that mortgage companies typically balk at this sort of thing. Perhaps it is different when it is an isolated instance and not a large federal disaster. It has been my experience and those of others that the mortgage company will allow for small draws on the amount which are paid to the policyholder and then to the contractor.

Again, the rest of your information is excellent, and as I said the customs may be somewhat different in your area.

To clarify: The check will be made out to "Bank of Yo Mama and Mr. Insured and Mrs. Insured" (contractor's name not on it.)

If Mr. and Mrs. sign it and hand it to the contractor, they will just mail it to the mortgage company and deal with them administratively. The mortgage company typically have an authorization form signed by the customer/loan holder allowing the mortgage company to talk with the contractor. Just makes things easier on you, 1 less thing to hassle with.

Then, the mortgage company puts that initial building repair ACV check into escrow and divvies out the funds as the repairs progress. They may pay the customer or the contractor directly, depends on them.

Then, there will probably big changes to the estimate and a supplement check sent (this could happen a few times). Then when repairs are finally done, a final check with any remaining supplement funds and the witheld depreciation. This final check, you won't pay to the contractor until you are satisfied everything is properly repaired.

It all has to go to the mortgage company and they will control it, I'm just suggesting letting the contractor deal with that mess, they likely have someone on payroll for this.

With your contractor, you first workout out what all the insurance related repairs will cost and that is what gets sent to the insurance company.

If you want to make any changes/upgrades or save money by doing something yourself, keep that separate and don't send it to the insurance company, it will just confuse them. It isn't wrong to decide to do something yourself and put that money elsewhere or decide you want hardwood instead of carpet etc. and pay the difference or pocket money for something you don't want to have replaced, it was still owed.

If you hire a contractor who isn't in the insurance restoration business, you could find yourself in a bind with the contractor demanding money you don't have because it is tied up with the mortgage co. Your insurance company can't send more, they already sent all they can. They also may be demanding more than the Ins company is willing to pay, they don't owe for the most expensive contractor in town. I've bent over backwards to work with all kinds of customers and contractors up to full custom home builders and multi-million properties to make it work, but I and my peers probably aren't the norm for most insurance companies.

If a contractor is telling you horror stories about your insurance company and promising you they'll fight, get limits, basically sounding like a used car salesman...be very wary. These types will get you to sign up front, then try to squeeze the insurance company for all they can (causing long delays) but not necessarily fix your house in a timely or quality manner.

Glad no one was hurt. Best of luck dealing with your insurer.

So very sorry to hear this. Things WILL get better.

wow. that's pretty scary. glad everyone is safe. that's huge

quote:

Originally posted by Nickelsig229:
I think I have already found a home for rent which is actually nicer then mine and for about 40% of the living expense the insurance provides me. It is also fully furnished and a 9 month lease with month to month after. I'm hoping to hear from insurance tomorrow with the approval.

I've already signed with a public adjuster who is a family member for a good deal. So I can sit back and take some time to prepare for the contracting of the rebuild.

Glad you have found something to be hopeful about in this nightmare.
I hope more positives present themselves.

Same thing happened to me some years back. I hope 2020 is much better for you!

Very sorry to hear this. Good luck.

Great to hear you and family are safe and sound. That is a tough break anytime, but it must really be hard during this time of year. Prayers sent.

Sorry this happened to you and your family.

Glad to hear you have already found a temp place and can start looking forward to rebuilding.

Keep us updated on the progress.