Buying a Second Home
Buying a vacation home can bring lots of opportunities for you, your family and friends. It can mean fun times down the shore or spending lazy afternoons by a lake or in the mountains. But it can also bring added risk of financial loss. Just like it is with your primary home, property insurance can be your first line of defense in protecting your assets in the event of a loss like a fire, theft or weather event.
Secondary Home Insurance Requirements
In order to insure your second home with NJM, you must first have your primary residence insured with us. Regardless of location, the second home must be solely used by the owner and never rented out to others to use on vacation or otherwise. The owner must stay at the second home every weekend of the year, or at least two to three days during the week. Lastly, the heat, water and electricity to that home must be maintained year round.
These requirements are in place to lessen the risk of fire, theft, water damage due to bursting pipes or other losses that may commonly occur when a home is left vacant.
What Types of Coverages Are Needed for My Second Home?
Property Damage — Coverage for the structure of the home is included on your second policy at an amount that you choose, as well as the items or contents like furniture, clothing, appliances and other tangible items commonly found in a home or yard.
Liability and Medical Payments to others — Coverage for injuries that occur to guests while in your second home (or on its property) actually comes from the policy that protects your primary residence. This coverage extends from your primary policy to your policy for your second home. You may want to consider increasing the Liability coverage on your primary policy if you purchase a second home.
Is an Umbrella Policy Right for You?
An umbrella policy provides extra liability protection for you if you are found to be legally responsible for your guests’ injuries or damage to their property. It is excess liability protection over the limits on your underlying personal coverage, like your primary homeowners and car insurance policies. Umbrella coverage extends to incidents that occur anywhere in the world, not just on the properties you own.
How Can I Get a Policy?
Give us a call at 1-800-232-6600 and we’ll be happy to discuss the coverage options that are best for you and provide you with a quote!
So whether you’re just considering the possibility of obtaining a second home, or you’re ready to sign your closing papers, you can trust NJM to be there when you need us most.
