Random Thoughts

[Chris]

I’ve been watching a fair amount of the California fire coverage…what a crazy, terrible, heart-wrenching thing. Could you imagine losing everything, everything, and starting from scratch again?

 

[Boone]

Yeah - it's awful. I am speechless.

 

[burgold]

I’ve been watching a fair amount of the California fire coverage…what a crazy, terrible, heart-wrenching thing. Could you imagine losing everything, everything, and starting from scratch again?

And we are seeing so many versions of that. I think the randomness of the natural disaster is awful, but so are the people who are losing everything to war (skirting political so I'll stop)

 

[Darrell Green Fan]

The real tragedy is the people who lost everything who were unable to find affordable insurance. Those mortgage payments are still due. Celebrities are putting up funds and raiing money but the figure I keep hearing is a million dollars, which MAY pay off the mortgage of one family who lost their home with no insurance.

 

[burgold]

I hate the insurance racket.

 

[Darrell Green Fan]

If they paid out more than they took in with premiums I don't blame the insurance companies for doing what they had to do.

 

[Chris]

I would guess that 1m in many of the areas currently affected is probably the basement of the range.

 

[burgold]

If they paid out more than they took in with premiums I don't blame the insurance companies for doing what they had to do.

This is most definitely a trap

 

[Miles Monroe]

If they paid out more than they took in with premiums I don't blame the insurance companies for doing what they had to do.

Not jumping ya brother, but that's easy to say when you don't live in an area prone to natural disasters. Premiums are just a part of the story. A lot of that money gets invested so they can make lots of money.... and they do. So, they have the money, they just don't want to pay out cutting their profits. I've watched insurance companies screw customers in Fl for a number of years. For a company as strong as State Farm to pull coverage in areas of CA is just scary. Another thing people don't take into account is building costs compared to when a place had been built. Updated construction codes drive prices up quickly, along with everything else in construction. That 1 million dollar house built in 1975 is now 6 million or more to rebuild. So again, follow the money and who's to gain from it. Can't have that bottom line effected. Shame our government lets this happen... it's nothing new.

Note: My hart go out to all those on the west coast effected by these fires. I have a close friend who's son is a smoke jumper out there, please keep him and all my brother firefighters in your prayers.

 

[skinsmarydu]

Neighbor kids across the street made a snowman yesterday!

 

[the evil genius]

Fwiw, if you have a mortgage, you will be required to carry home insurance in California. That said, the availability of affordable home insurance here and other places where natural disasters happen with higher frequency will be more limited as these companies have decided in the last decade or so to only chase profit.

The sad part is even with aquedate home insurance, the land is likely compromised in a lot of these burned areas so much that rebuilding might not be an option for a long long time.

 

[the evil genius]

Something also to factor in, Prop 13 in California limits property tax rates to 1% of the property's assessed value. It caps annual increases in assessed value, to no more than 2% or the rate of inflation, whichever is lower.

Properties are reassessed at market value only when sold or new construction occurs.

Guess what rebuilding a burned down house qualified as in California?

So people who might have been paying prop tax on assessed value of say 400k because they bought the house 20 years ago..will now be paying prop tax north of 1mil when their house is rebuilt.

 

[skinsmarydu]

I saw during halftime of the game that there are new evac orders.
No bueno.

 

[Miles Monroe]

Fwiw, if you have a mortgage, you will be required to carry home insurance in California. That said, the availability of affordable home insurance here and other places where natural disasters happen with higher frequency will be more limited as these companies have decided in the last decade or so to only chase profit.

The sad part is even with aquedate home insurance, the land is likely compromised in a lot of these burned areas so much that rebuilding might not be an option for a long long time.

It's been like that in Florida for over 30 years with a mortgage. You're right about the land, could have a lot of issues for a long time.

 

[Darrell Green Fan]

Not jumping ya brother, but that's easy to say when you don't live in an area prone to natural disasters. Premiums are just a part of the story. A lot of that money gets invested so they can make lots of money.... and they do. So, they have the money, they just don't want to pay out cutting their profits. I've watched insurance companies screw customers in Fl for a number of years. For a company as strong as State Farm to pull coverage in areas of CA is just scary. Another thing people don't take into account is building costs compared to when a place had been built. Updated construction codes drive prices up quickly, along with everything else in construction. That 1 million dollar house built in 1975 is now 6 million or more to rebuild. So again, follow the money and who's to gain from it. Can't have that bottom line effected. Shame our government lets this happen... it's nothing new.

Note: My hart go out to all those on the west coast effected by these fires. I have a close friend who's son is a smoke jumper out there, please keep him and all my brother firefighters in your prayers.

I understand all of this and share your sympathy for the victims. I stand by the position that State Farm had every right to pull out of the area, no business should be forced to cover an area where there is a very good chance they will lose a ton of money.

 

[skinsmarydu]

I always thought the "Fight Song" thing was Taylor Swift. Only time I ever heard it was when I was shopping somewhere.

 

[Mark The Homer]

I’ve been watching a fair amount of the California fire coverage…what a crazy, terrible, heart-wrenching thing. Could you imagine losing everything, everything, and starting from scratch again?

Did you see this?

 

[Boone]

Mother Nature is a brutal thing beyond our control. Very tough to see.

 

[SkinsFTW]

I understand all of this and share your sympathy for the victims. I stand by the position that State Farm had every right to pull out of the area, no business should be forced to cover an area where there is a very good chance they will lose a ton of money.

Especially when the state won't allow the insurance company to charge what it needs to insure in a fire zone. That is why they were uninsured.

The other thing is that those houses in Pacific Palisades were at a minimum 2+ Million dollar homes built right on top of each other near a bone dry forest of basically tumbleweeds. Look at the neighborhood on Zillow. Those houses are 2.5-10+ Million each on under 1/6 acre lots and they are all gone. It's crazy.

 

[SkinsFTW]

Apparently it's going to 10-30 degrees for 2-3 days starting Sunday night here in Tennessee.

I probably won't even leave the house!