Doing Your Own Home Repairs on an Insurance Claim

Damage to your home can cost a lot of money to repair, and sometimes hiring a contractor can be much more expensive than if you did the work yourself. Even if your insurance will be covering some of the costs of the damages, sometimes they do not cover enough to make it worthwhile. Depending on the work that needs to be done, there is no way to guarantee that you will save money from completing the work on your own, and if something does not go as planned, you may end up paying a lot more money than if you had just hired the contractor, to begin with.

Most of the time, insurance companies will allow you to complete your own repairs on your home, but not always. Usually, the insurance company will calculate how much it will cost to complete the repairs on your home, and either pay your contractor directly or sends you a check for that amount so you can either hire a contractor or complete the repairs on your own.

Before you decide to repair the damages on your own, make sure you check your insurance policy because they usually have details on how the repairs should be handled. If they are unclear, check with your insurance company to get things explained and to discuss with them your plans for handling the repairs.

Planning on Doing it Yourself

When you choose to do the repairs yourself, the first thing to do is inform your insurance company of your plan to ensure they do not have any rules against it.

Take your time to get detailed estimates of how much all tools, supplies, and equipment you will need. If your family needs to temporarily relocate or eat out while the repairs are being conducted, include that information too.

Learn the payout schedule and the timeline, then determine if you can afford to begin repairs before your insurance payout, or if waiting until it will have a drastic impact on your life.

There are also a few other things you will need to look into before fully committing to this.

Legal Issues

Depending on the scope of the work you will be doing, you might be required to get a building permit or have a license to perform certain types of work. Oftentimes, cities will require that more specialized types of work, like electrical, be done only by licensed electricians. Without the right approvals, you may not be legally allowed to conduct the repairs on your own. Before you commit to doing the work yourself, look into this information to make sure you legally can do so.

Mortgage Lenders

Your mortgage lenders may have rules regarding if you are allowed to conduct the repairs on your home yourself or if you need to hire a contractor. Lenders will often include clauses in their contracts that they must be named on any insurance claim checks, and they may place that money into escrow and pay the contractor directly. If this is the case, your lender may not allow you to conduct the repairs. Always check with them first, to ensure issues do not come up in the future.