Get Your Home Hurricane Ready: Prepare Before You Have To

We are in the peak of hurricane season again and it sure is an active one. Every year we write a blog about getting hurricane ready and yet last year our shelves ran out of stock when a hurricane came our way. Few people truly keep their household prepared for a hurricane, which means most of us end up with the rest – racing to the store desperately trying to get ready. We know most hurricanes don’t come our way but either way, don’t wait until you have to be prepared to get prepared.

Start with the un-perishables

Start your preparations by stocking up on items that won’t perish. Canned goods, water, batteries, flashlights, candles, and matches. You can also stock up on detergent you can use without a washing machine, bars of soap and medical supplies. You will need an emergency medical kit on hand with your basic medical materials.

Get your house ready

The next item on the list is your home. If you have hurricane shutters, make sure they function the way they are supposed to. clean out your gutters, patch any exterior flaws around the home and make sure the road drains are working. If you are in a flood zone you should have an evacuation plan in place, even if it is to get out of your neighborhood. While you can protect your home from flooding, you won’t want to be there and become an emergency situation.

Make a list of everything in your home

A picture is as good as a receipt for an insurance company. Make a list of all your belongings and take pictures of every room. Keep these pictures and your list with all your important documents. And speaking of documents, you will want to put anything important into a water-proof location. You can buy a small house safe which is easy to find and not too expensive.

If you are really worried about your home you can also have an appraisal done. A current appraisal will ensure you get the most out of your insurance if you need to call on them to make repairs or rebuild. A pre-listing inspection is another way to document issues in your home that can be identified before the storm and prove issues that happened as a result of the storm. You can easily schedule any property inspection directly online with Divinity Inspection Services.