Blogger BlogNet52438

Landlord insurance is an insurance policy that protects the landlord's investment. The most obvious part of the investment is the building that is being rented to generate income. However the losses that can be caused by a lawsuit or the loss of income from a tenant can be protected by purchasing a policy that will cover those losses.

There are basically two different types of policies a landlord can buy. The first is a peril policy. A named peril policy will only cover a loss if it is specifically stated in the policy as a covered peril. If loss due to a power outage outside the building is not listed, it is not covered. The second type of policy is a comprehensive policy or open peril policy which will cover a loss unless it is specifically excluded from being covered. That means if you suffer a loss and the policy does not say it is excluded, then it is covered. It is a more comprehensive and easier to manage policy, but usually costs more money to have.

Most policies offer coverage for the building. That would include damages caused by fire, smoke, wind, lightning, hail, explosion, fire department charges, emergency removal of property, damage from vehicle, damage from an aircraft, and riot or civil commotion. Some policies will limit coverage's to either interior or exterior, not both. You must evaluate carefully.

Endorsements are coverage's that are added to the policy in addition to the basic coverage's for an extra premium or charge. Some important endorsements include:

Landlord liability, medical payments, personal liability, flood, earthquake, loss assessment, vandalism, and business property. If your policy does not list these coverage's on the declarations page, chances are you are self insuring. In other words, you have no coverage.

Landlord liability is probably the second most important coverage after the building. Landlord liability protects the landlord from lawsuits arising from damages to the tenant or other person who is injured on the property. Injury does not necessarily have to be physical; it can be emotional such as libel, slander, and discrimination. Liability coverage will usually cover legal expenses and damages if awarded. This protects the landlord from having to pay the injured party should they win in court. It will count as a claim which could make it more difficult to get favorable rates for several years.

Most landlord policies cover the building on either a replacement cost or actual cash value policy. Replacement cost coverage will not take into account depreciation when paying on a claim which makes it the more expensive option. If a building is now worth $65,000 because it is old, a replacement policy will pay to build the same building at whatever that would cost today. An actual cash value pays the amount the building or property is worth, minus depreciation. That means you may have to pay out of pocket to have a similar home rebuilt. Changes in code also has to be considered such as updating a fuse box, that will probably have to be added to the policy and will cover an additional 10% of the building coverage amount.

Increasing deductibles are one of the easiest ways to reduce premiums without having to give up on important coverage's. Deductibles are a way of self insuring for a portion of the claim. If a claim amount is $10,000 and you have a deductible of $1,000, you pay the first $1,000 and the company pays the rest if it is covered. Deductibles range from $100 to 5% of the coverage A amount, or the building coverage. The decision is simple, the higher the deductible then the lower the premium will be.

Landlord policies do not cover renters. The renter should be required to purchase their own insurance policy. Renters insurance covers their property and can also cover the landlord if they caused a loss such as a fire to the building or someone being injured due to the tenant's negligence. Anyone can sue anyone for anything. Having a renter purchase a policy and include you as an additional insured can protect you from having a claim paid by your policy when the tenant was at fault. That is call subrogating.

Vacant properties are a very difficult situation to deal with from a landlord position and from the insurance company's position. A vacant property does not provide income and it also stands to be at risk for things like vandalism, negligence, basic deterioration. A vacant home is a property that is used for showing to potential buyers or renters. It can not be intended to be demolished, under repair, restoration, or remodeling.

A vacant home under renovation is not considered the same as a vacant property. Few companies will insure a home that is vacant and currently being remodeled or "fixed up". Fix up work includes painting, wood repair, installing new carpet, installing curtains, etc. A vacancy warranty clause states that a home is not undergoing renovation and will cause an insurance company to deny the claim unless they are insured under a vacant renovation policy.

Vacant homes are also limited by the amount of time they can be vacant. Policies will differ from 3 months to indefinite. Most companies will allow a home to be vacant for 6 or 12 months (depending on the company) and will not insure the property if it has been vacant for longer than 12 months. Usually a vacant home will have to be for sale and be a secondary property to qualify for coverage. Few companies specialize in vacant homes and will insure them indefinitely as long as the warranty clause (home is in a condition that is can be shown to potential buyers or renters) is being honored.

Building coverage amounts also affect eligibility for coverage. Some companies will not insure a vacant home over $250,000 while some will not consider the property unless it is worth $250,000. Limits are also to be considered as some stop at $1,000,000 while others will insure the property to the highest limit needed.

Another option to consider when looking to insure your rental home is that some companies will allow you to add the property to your existing home owners insurance policy. That has advantages and disadvantages. The advantages are a multi-policy discount and having one agent or company to deal with. The disadvantages are limited coverage depending on the company and a claim will count against your homeowner's insurance policy. Any claim will raise your rates and could make it difficult to purchase insurance at all.

To evaluate your options and decide which coverage is right for you please visit our website at www.getgliga.com or call us at 888-GET-GLIGA. Ask for Don.

Donald Stevens
President
GLIGA
248-552-3000
http://www.getgliga.com

Whenever I conduct a workshop or give a talk to a group of agents, I ask how many of them are in the business of selling insurance. Inevitably about 25% raise their hands. My response to them is, If youre in the business of selling insurance youll have a hard time succeeding because NO ONE WANTS TO BUY INSURANCE!

No one wants to buy insurance. Not homeowners, auto, life, health or disability They only want what the insurance provides. They only want the benefit. Believe me, if people could get the benefits they wanted in some other way, they would. So, if you sell insurance success will be tough. On the other hand, if youre in the business of helping people its a different story. Now, you might protest that the distinction is simply a matter of semantics, but there are fundamental differences between having a sales focus and having a helping focus.

This difference affects pretty much everything a person does along with how they do it. If they have a sales focus, their focus is on making the sale! Everything from the initial contact to the presentation to the close to the follow-up is done from a sales perspective. Marketing, contacting, presentation, and follow-up are from a product and/or company perspective. On the other hand, a person who is focused on helping rather than selling will understand that the service they provide (helping) is what matters and the insurance they offer is simply the means to achieve the solution they create.

Let me illustrate what I mean. Heres how a sales-focused person contacts: Mr. Jones, my name is Bob Smith and I am with the ABC Insurance Company. We have a full line of products to meet your needs. Id like to set up a time to show you our products and explain how they can solve your problems. The focus of the entire exchange is on selling their insurance products. In contrast, a person focused on helping, contacts this way: Ms. Jones, my name is Sue Smith and I help people protect their assets/reduce employee turnover/leverage their financial security. Is that something of interest to you? They understand that they are a professional offering help, rather than a salesperson selling products.

There are many other distinctions related to taking a professional, helping approach over a selling approach, and they have significant implications. Professionals help rather than sell. They have clients instead of customers/policyholders. They build relationships instead of conducting transactions. They offer solutions instead of sales. They attract clients instead of pursuing customers. People buy from them instead in being sold. They find cooperative opportunities instead of competitive obstacles. Think of the implications from these distinctions. Weve always heard that people do business with people they like, and people like people who help. Youve heard the term trusted advisor? This is what were talking about. It occurs when you shift from selling to helping. Imagine having clients who are eager to refer others to you.

When you adopt the attitude of a professional and take the focus off the products, guess who the focus falls on? You! You become the service that clients buy. You become valuable. You become a resource. You become an expert. Clients dont look to insurance policies for answers, they look to you! One of the greatest challenges in arriving at this mindset is becoming clear as to what makes you unique so you can communicate it effectively to your prospects and clients. I often work with my clients on clarifying their purpose and identifying their unique strengths so that their marketing and leadership is effective.

An interesting challenge we face is that we tend to downplay our strengths, especially if they come easily to us. We tend to take them for granted and we tend to assume that everyone has the same (or better) abilities. A very revealing exercise I often ask clients to do is to ask five people they know for five traits that make them excellent at what they do. (My suggestion is to ask people who arent family. Ask clients, friends, and associates.) You may be surprised at the results. I find that the responses fall into three categories. 1) Youll hear things about you that you and everyone else already knew and will thereby get confirmation, 2) Youll hear things that you already knew but didnt think anyone else noticed, giving you new insights as to what people notice and value, and 3) Youll hear things that you never knew about yourself; things that never occurred to you to be a trait that others would value.

These traits and insights are the things that set you apart from all the others out there. These are the things that cause people to do business with you. These unique traits will help you be more effective as you contact new prospects, present your ideas, and generate referrals.

I find that when people arent clear about what sets them apart and arent clear about their purpose (Inotherwords, why they do what they do) they end up leading with their products and their company. They rely on the strength and credibility of others instead of leading with themselves. The goal of every professional should be to become credible in their own right. That doesnt necessarily becoming the foremost expert in their field, but it does mean becoming excellent at what they do as a professional helping others. It means finding new ways to help. It may even mean helping in ways other than with insurance. You can become a resource for information or a networking source of contacts within your community. You can offer advice in other areas of business or life (other professionals are more than happy to provide you with article and insights you can pass on).

The whole point of this is to stop selling insurance and start helping people. Its been said that people dont care how much you know until they know how much you care, and its true. The interesting consequence is that when you take your focus off of selling and place it on helping, youll attract more clients, generate more referrals, and sell more insurance. Life is good

Written by Michael Beck, The Insurance Coach. Michael, an Executive Coach and Recruiting Activist, helps insurance professionals succeed faster and easier. He can be reached at 877-977-8956 or mbeck@theinsurancecoach.com You can learn more about his work at: http://www.TheInsuranceCoach.com You can subscribe to his newsletter at: http://www.theinsurancecoach.com/Subscribe.htm (C) Copyright 2006 Exceptional Leadership, Inc.

This report will focus on the Firepow Blogging Software, a subscription based internet marketing system promoted by Andrew Hansen of Australia. The various details of Firepow, including its features, benefits and the nuts and bolts of how it works will be analyzed and, it is hoped, a potential subscriber will learn enough about the program to be able to make up his or her mind about whether it would be a useful and profitable investment as part of their internet marketing toolbox.

For several years now the internet marketing community has known that one can make a good deal of money online by setting up a blog, using it to attract natural traffic, that is traffic that you do not have to pay to get, and then profiting by earning commissions on sales of affiliate products or by earning revenue by placing pay per click advertisements.

As this process becomes more and more refined, various experts in the field have created and marketed information products, software and other systems to make it easier for someone else to succeed in the realm of internet marketing.

Andrew Hansen previously offered programs called "Niche Marketing on Crack" and "Plug and Play Niche Marketing" prior to his introduction in the summer of 2008 of Firepow. Unlike the previous two systems which were basically informational products, Firepow is a much more elaborate membership site for which one pays a monthly subscription fee and then gets access to a wide range of tools.

One of the most important factors in building a profitable blog is to build it on the right kind of a niche and to pick the best set of keywords to use in optimizing one's blog so it will gain a high rank among internet search engines. Firepow makes this process very easy by making available to its members ready made databases of keywords that even include details of an affiliate product. During the month of August, 2008, 14 different niches were made available via the Firepow forum, and similar niches are expected to be added in successive months.

Firepow greatly automates and simplifies the process by which WordPress blogs are installed and configured, and plugins are activated. To make the process even simpler, Firepow even can supply a hosting service at no extra charge, leaving the webmaster having only to invest the domain registration fee which, in most cases, is under ten dollars per year.

One of the most unusual features of Firepow is that they have more than 100 different blogs and high page rank websites on which subscribers can post short articles in order to gain the valuable back links that help raise the profile and profitability of a new blog by generating traffic. Some Firepow users have reported that, in less than one week, their newly born websites have achieved page one search engine status for their primary keywords.

More details about how Firepow works are on Jeff Truman's website, tellthebosstogetlost.com. Mr. Truman also writes product reviews and reports for the reportsandreviews.info website.