Adventures in Personal Finance

I live in the suburbs of Atlanta, and if you’ve been aware of any news at all this week, you know we’ve had a situation here that had many of us thinking about building an ark. It seemed as if the rain would never stop, and unfortunately, a large area in my basement got flooded. My other complaints include a hole in my fence where a soggy-rooted tree fell through it and damage to a wall in my laundry room. I know that the damage to my home is nothing compared to the photos I’ve seen of folks floating around in their subdivisions in canoes. So I’m sure grateful that my major possessions and my family and friends are all safe.

That said, I’m now faced with fixing the damage. I’ve just had my first experience with floods and homeowners insurance. I assumed that flooding would be covered, but guess what? Flood insurance is what covers floods. Most homeowners insurance only covers things like the tree falling through my fence. If the rising water in my basement had been the direct result of a fallen tree, I’d have a case. Now, I’m still not planning to get flood insurance because the likelihood of this event occurring again is very low. An insurance adjuster is coming to my home to look at my roof to see if previous hail damage contributed to the rain drops sliding down my laundry room wall. If this is the case, we’ll get a new roof and maybe insurance will cover the damage to the laundry room.

So here’s my tip for today: Read your homeowners insurance policy and know what’s covered. If you’re in an area where flooding is likely, get some quotes for flood insurance. You can see the flood damage in these photos on AJC.com.

My husband and I will be ripping up the carpet and repairing our basement on our own. In the coming weeks, I’ll be blogging about my DIY experience. I admit I’ve never been much of a DIYer when it comes to my home. But I pay college tuition now and paying someone to do all the repairs seems like a luxury. Also, I’m really excited about learning some new skills that I know will save me lots of money in the long run.

You know, my home is 15 years old and seems to be on the verge of a midlife crisis anyway. So maybe now is as good a time as any to learn my way around Home Depot and Lowe’s.