These days, sayings like "another day, another dollar", and "a penny saved is a penny earned", might need some tweaking when related to the rising costs of home ownership in Canada.
Interest rates have been on the upswing in the past 18 months. So, on the other end of the equation, any way to shave a few bucks off home insurance premiums helps bring some welcome relief to both first-time buyers and existing homeowners. Here are a few novel ways for any individual or couple to save on property insurance.
Bundle it up
You know how volume discounts work. Buy plywood or peanut butter in bulk and save. Insurance isn't all that different. Placing your home insurance with the company that carries your auto policy could mean substantial savings. Carriers reward loyalty and repeat-buying with discounts on both ends of the spectrum: one that applies to auto insurance, and one that applies to home insurance. Add a boat or an RV to the mix, and you might even trim a few more dollars off all three policies.
Nail it down
Securing your home — inside and out — from common hazards always results in some form of cost savings. Security systems reduce the chance of burglaries or exterior damage from vandalism or mischief. Typically, the more sophisticated the monitoring capability, the deeper the discount will be on your homeowners policy. Smoke or heat sensors and security devices connected to fire or police services tend to reduce premiums more than alarms that just sound on the premises.
Mull it over
When shopping for a home, you may fall in love with century-old charm and character or you may desire sleek and modern designs. Newly constructed homes fetch more attractive premium rates largely due to local code and building requirements that require contractors to meet certain standards of quality. It's not to say that older homes lack structural integrity. It's just easier for an insurance company to assess risk on newer dwellings — and price it accordingly.
Get out from under
If you're a first-timer, new to the insurance market, or a seasoned homeowner shopping your policy for competitive rates, put your financial house in order. In many Canadian provinces, credit scores impact home insurance rates. Thus, just as you would when applying for a mortgage, don't bite off more debt than you can chew, do pay down or pay off any existing loans, and do get the bills paid on time. Like many other companies that take a chance on you, insurance carriers may use objective measures like creditworthiness to determine how safe of a bet you actually are.
Conclusion
Thriftiness is next to godliness. We may have mixed our metaphors a bit but you understand the gist. To make your hard-earned dollars stretch further in 2019, it's prudent to wrench out every kilo of savings you can on contracts such as homeowners policies. Not only will a gram of prevention and preparedness spare you some extra expense, it will also lessen the possibility of incurring claims that may push your insurance premiums higher. Check out Insurance Hotline to compare home insurance rates across many major carriers in Canada.
