Guest Blog from MyStrongHome by Eleanor Kitzman
Your home’s roof is its first line of defense against hurricane and other windstorm damage. A FORTIFIED roof is one of the best investments you can make to increase the protection of your home and potentially reduce your out of pocket costs, long-term. The only thing better than a FORTIFIED roof is a low-cost or free FORTIFIED roof. That's the aim of the Strengthen Alabama Homes grant program whose goal is to make communities stronger, lower insurance costs, and provide a way for homeowners to fund FORTIFIED Home™ upgrades.
But what do you do while you wait for your grant to come through or for the application to open again? We’re not sure when that may be, it could be over a year or more and if your roof is old, damaged or leaking, you probably can’t wait on the grant. Good news, there is an option that is the next best thing to free, and it could help you get a new FORTIFIED roof before the next hurricane.
MyStrongHome can finance your new roof based on the insurance savings earned when you get a FORTIFIED roof. It’s based on a concept called “Cash-flow neutral” financing, meaning that your new, lower cost monthly insurance premium + your monthly roof loan payment will be no more than you are currently paying for just insurance today. MyStrongHome calculates the insurance savings over time and fronts the money to pay for the cost of your new FORTIFIED roof. So, while it technically isn’t free, your out-of-pocket costs do not go up, which, for most of us, is the next best thing to free.
A few real MyStrongHome customer examples might help explain how it works; we aren’t using real names, but the numbers are real and reflect actual insurance premium savings and construction costs:
James Garrison in Baldwin County, Alabama saved $3,012.00 on his annual insurance premium and financed the full cost of his $17,000.00 FORTIFIED metal roof. He paid $0 up front, and his combined monthly premium and construction loan payment was $385.00, the same amount he was previously paying just for his insurance! When his construction loan is paid off in 7 years, approximately $250.00 per month in insurance savings will go in his pocket.
Linda Davis in Mobile, Alabama saved $761.00 per year on her insurance. We were able to finance all but $804.00 of the $9,600.00 cost of her FORTIFIED roof. Her new combined monthly payment is $186.00 which is only $3.00 more than she was paying for insurance alone.
Cassandra Harris of Mobile, Alabama is an example of how MyStrongHome can work with the Strengthen Alabama Homes grant program or other grant programs such as South Carolina’s Safe Home program. Ms. Harris’ FORTIFIED roof was going to cost $16,880.00, and she didn’t have the $6,880.00 over and above the $10,000.00 grant. MyStrongHome saved her over $2,000.00 per year on her insurance, financed the additional amount she needed for her roof, and was able to fund another $3,800.00 for the replacement of rotted siding and other much-needed repairs.
Not everyone will save as much money or be able to cover as much of the roofing costs as these homeowners, but they are not exceptions. You can learn how much you can save on insurance by visiting mystronghome.net today.
Even if you don’t use MyStrongHome, you could still save a substantial amount on your insurance with a FORTIFIED roof depending on where you live and who provides your insurance coverage. Regardless of how you pay for it, FORTIFIED is the best investment you can make in your home, and it will pay for itself well within the useful life of your roof.
Visit mystronghome.net or call 800-804-0410 to learn more.