Self-Build and Renovated Properties
Building a home yourself, renovating
a barn etc? Insuring this is highly specialised; so is
raising money to finance the purchase.
Most insurers simply don’t offer policies and many lenders are very
picky when it comes to self-build / renovation!
If you’re
in a hurry and want a quote or cover now…..
Whilst we
offer a selection of policies, the link in the rectangular button below will
give comprehensive and competitive cover for most situations.
When
you click the button, you will be transferred to the Self-Build Zone website,
where you will be able to arrange your own no obligation and confidential
instant quote, together with all the information you require to apply online
for this cover. If the site won’t quote
for your risk, or if there is an error, please telephone us on 01332 380149 and ask for Phil Marshall or Richard
Brown. Alternately e-mail us, using this
link - Click Here!
Self-Build
Zone Limited is directly authorised and regulated by
the Financial Services Authority under registration number 309040.
Please
be aware that responsibility under Financial Services Authority regulations
will therefore be assumed directly by Self-Build Zone if you insurance through
them. Having said
that, we expect to be available to give you help and advice should you need it.
For a quote or cover now, press this button...
If you want
more detail…..
We have yet to see two propositions the same. Before making a recommendation to you we
shall need comprehensive information about you, about the proposed works and
what you intend to do with the property on completion of work.
Whether you
have bought your first plot of land, barn to convert or whatever, or if you are
a seasoned property converter, we have everything you need.
We are independent insurance brokers, financial and
mortgage advisors offering all types of insurance, mortgages and financial
planning for the landlord or managing agent.
If you want something not listed here, e-mail a request (see link below)
- we will try and help.
Whatever the cost, we can
help you control it and ensure you have the correct cover and advice. We do
this in the following ways:
Discussing
with you ways in which you are exposed to risk.
There is no point in insuring what is never going to happen, but not insuring
something which could ruin years of planning and hard work varies from a slight
commercial risk to the downright foolish, depending on circumstances.
Advising
you on ways of managing and reducing your risk.
It can be surprising how often a slight change in work procedures can
reduce insurance premiums or make otherwise unavailable cover possible at
reasonable cost.
We
have been professional insurance brokers for many years. Whilst one can never pretend to know all
about everything, if we don’t have the experience of a particular feature, we
know someone who will have. We should be
to your insurances what your accountant’s advice is to your financial
accounts. And you wouldn’t dream of
being without him!
We
add value to what you buy from your insurers and we know if they are being
unreasonable in terms and conditions or when they are charging too much for the
risk involved. If there is a more
cost-effective solution, we shall be working to secure it for you.
A brief list of what is available:
Insuring
“self-build” homes is not as straightforward as insuring one ready built. Most home insurers will not insure
“self-build.” Those who do often don’t
provide an adequate policy wording under their normal home insurance policy.
Do
not allow someone to persuade you that an ordinary home insurance policy will
do the job – it won’t! And if you ignore
this advice don’t think the insurers won’t find out on a claim – they will,
with the likely result that your claim will not be met!
We
have several specialist schemes available and will offer you the one which (in
our opinion) offers the best combination of terms, conditions and competitive
premium.
Buildings cover:
·
Please
insure for what the full rebuilding cost will be after all work will have been
completed, NOT the market value of the property.
·
You
will want the insurers to clear the site and rebuild the property if it came to
the worst, so that is what you insure for.
·
If
you don’t know how much this is, the lender will usually say what their
surveyor thinks it should be (see mortgage offer).
·
The
Association of British Insurers web site (http://www.abi.org.uk
or http://www.abi.org.uk/Public/Consumer/HouseholdPersonal/newbuildingcalculator.asp)
gives advice on setting sums insured; or ask your supervising Architect,
Chartered or Quantity Surveyor.
·
If
you don’t have a mortgage, your supervising Architect will probably know.
It is for you, the insured, to set
the sums insured. We don’t know the
property and, in any event, we are not valuers.
You
may decide to insure for what the property may be worth on the open
market. This may (only may!) be ok, but
rebuilding costs can be quite different from that; sometimes less and sometimes
more.
Property owners’ & public
liability:
o
Example
– someone’s head gets split and you get sued!
Do not go without this cover!
o
Some
of our insurers offer £1 million cover, others £2 million. We prefer at least £2 million, as liability
claims can be very expensive. An
accident putting someone in a wheelchair could easily cost £1.5 million. £5 million cover is not too much….
Employers’ Liability:
o
You will very likely be setting on labour only
tradesmen to do some of the work. If one
of them is injured at your site or whilst otherwise working for you, there will
almost certainly be a claim. You need
this cover; it’s also a legal requirement for employers to have it. Labour only
sub-contractors are classed as employees for this purpose!
Once you have this information, please telephone us on 01332 380149 and ask
for Phil Marshall or Richard Brown.
Alternately e-mail us, using this link - Click Here!
Buying your plot or property – Financing it - The first thing you want to do is
buy a property. Please take appropriate
professional advice on the suitability of what you are buying. If you don’t know where to find this we may
be able to give you suitable names.
We
are completely independent mortgage advisors, with access to all the lenders
(as far as we know) who lend on “self-build.”
We up-date our mortgage sourcing software every day, to avoid your
missing out on the latest good deals.
We
do not simply look at the lowest initial interest rate. Many lenders offer catchpenny schemes which
claw back their “gift” very quickly. We
ask you to tell us your needs and then we examine carefully the list of
available lenders to see who is the most cost effective over several periods:
for most clients this is 3 years, 5 years and the full mortgage term. It’s not as simple as taking the cheapest;
usually the different lists we compile have several lenders and the best course
of action is not immediately obvious. We
then help you select the ones best for you, using our market knowledge and
professional judgement. We may need to
discuss matters further with you before arriving at our conclusions.
In
asking us for this service you are tapping into:
§
over 30 years’ professional mortgage sourcing experience.
§
the very latest computer search and analysis tools.
Usually
we are paid by commission from the lender.
As your mortgage would not cost any less were you to deal direct with
the lender there would seem little sense in your dealing with a lender
direct. Lenders also have schemes which
are only available through firms such as our own. Additionally we progress your application
through to completion, where our experience can prove invaluable for a
successful conclusion.
Very
occasionally we may find it is in your interests to deal with a lender who does
not pay commission. In that case we will
tell you in advance and agree a fee with you.
Either way no money will be spent without your prior knowledge and
approval. (To put this in perspective,
it is extremely rare.)