Home Insurance replacement cost?

Question

Anyone have any idea how insurance companies figure out what it would cost to rebuild an entire house if it burned down or blew away...I live on long island....I would assume it is the square footage multiplied by a cost per foot....any ideas what the actual cost per foot is today????

Answer 1

I'm sure there is a mathematical formula somewhere, but when I was still writing home insurance we took all the information (either rooms or square footage information), plugged the details into an "estimator" and got a value. There is a standard estimator that most companies use, and there is probably a copy available somewhere on the web.

You can't just use straight square footage, because you have to consider bathroom fixtures, finished vs. unfinished basement, add-ons (built-in ovens, ceiling fans, central air, etc) too.

Answer 2

In Canada, almost every broker/agent uses the Marshall & Swift/Boeckh Residential Component Technology Evalurater. This program is available in the States but I'm not sure how popular it is there. You input the square footage of the house (and whther it is detached, semi or row) and the number of stories, then you input the different major features of the house which may affect the replacement cost of the house which includes: number of bathrooms and how many pieces in each; what type of garage (if any) and how many cars does it hold; size of finished and/or unfinished basement; size of finished or unfinished attic; central air conditioning; pool; size of deck; there are others but that is all that I can think of off the top of my head. The program has a very extensive list. Each feature has an associated cost that gets added to the size/number of stories figure. They then provide a factor to multiply the result for age, and the area the house is located in (nearest major urban centre). While it is not perfect all insurers here, assuming it has been properly calculated, accept this calculation as the replacement cost of the house. This is especially important if the insurer is offering Guarateed Replacement Cost for the building.

Answer 3

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RE Home Insurance replacement cost?

Anyone have any idea how insurance companies figure out what it would cost to rebuild an entire house if it burned down or blew away...I live on long island....I would assume it is ...show more

Answer 4

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RE :Home Insurance replacement cost?
Anyone have any idea how insurance companies figure out what it would cost to rebuild an entire house if it burned down or blew away...I live on long island....I would assume it is the square footage multiplied by a cost per foot....any ideas what the actual cost per foot is today????
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Answer 5

It varies. Look, I've seen a hundred of these. What you do, is you figure out the basic square feet of the house . . . go to a chart, and get the "base rate" for the square feet. Usually you have to interpolate, to get the actual base rate for THOSE square feet.

Then, to the base rate, you add extra for a full basement, partial basement, attached garage, construction factor (brick costs more than frame), extra full/part baths, fireplaces, a/c built in, there are literally PAGES of extras. You add all that to the base rate.

Then, you go to the age factor - and you multiply the base total by the home age factor, then you go to the zip code chart, and multiply THAT number by the zip code factor.

It's not a "quick & easy" number. In your neck of the woods, I'd guestimate that a rough cost per square foot would be $175, but you'd need an exact run through (your AGENT should do this for you FOR FREE!!!!), adding in factors like hardwood floors, custom wallpaper, etc. My number is just what it is . . . a WAG (wild a** guess) from a complete stranger who hasn't even seen your house.

If I were you, I WOULD NOT bet my house on a WAG from a stranger on the internet. JMHO.

Answer 6

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