Is a Home Warranty Worth Buying for Major Home Appliance Protection – Part Two?


Home Warranty Advantages

Home warranties cover big unexpected home repairs, which in turn gives homeowner’s solace knowing they have home warranty in place in case it’s needed. These days lots of people don’t have the savings to pay for a big repair or they may want to protect their savings with a home warranty, so they don’t have to pay for an expensive out of pocket. Additionally, most people do not have the expertise to repair the sophisticated appliances in today’s modern world and they don’t want to have to find a dependable service provider, like plumber, to fix a BIG problem like a heating repair requiring installing a new furnace when the old one gives out. Home warranties are particularly wise to own if your home features high-end appliances including big multi-burner stoves and giant refrigerators.

When a home is up for sale or it is being purchased, home warranties are normally part of the conversation and the sale. Home buyers gain confidence and feel good about a new home purchase and moving forward with a closing on the sale more easily because a home warranty with extended coverage is included.

By providing a paid in full 1-year home warranty to a buyer, home sellers give the buyer protection on major home component systems and alleviate any hassles from occurring down the road if one of the home’s system needs repair or replacement. Bear in mind, home warranty does not mean a home seller no longer has to provide information about major component problems in the home

The Downsides of Home Warranties

Home warranties sound amazing, but since it sounds so amazing, why does not have every home owner buy one ever year.

A home warranty does not cover components which have to be maintained properly. The definition on the practical side of home component good maintenance is point of contention between home warrant companies an home owner warrant contact holders. As can be the case, warranty companies operating in bad faith many times deny claims because the component in question was not maintained properly supposedly.

When a newer homeowner buys a home that is used, it could very well have a furnace that is 7, 10 or even 15 years old. The prior owners may not have maintained the furnace. Regardless of how much effort the newer homeowner puts in to maintaining the old furnace it cannot make up for the prior lack of care. Home warranties include a variety of warranty exclusions with spelled out limits on the dollars allowed to pay for repairs and for the age of the unit.

The cost of a home warranty is low when you look at it opposed to the cost of repair or replacement of the expense components of a home. This makes a home warranty contract with a home warranty attractive. Many years can go by where none of the components in a home break or completely fail. During a phase where nothing happens, a home owner pays for coverage when it’s not needed, but it’s better to have it and not need coverage than the other way around. The annual premium could have been saved to cover repairs or major component replacement instead. The other side of the coin of paying a home warranty premium each year could be one where a claim is filed against a home warranty and it’s denied due to age of the unit or lack maintenance. Then it feels like the money paid was not worth it at all.

A home warranty does make the hassle of finding a contractor to make a repair or install a new appliance go away. But it also means you do not get to pick the service provider, such as plumber, to do the repair if you elect to file a claim against your home warranty. If the work is below par or you don’t care for the service provider your out of luck. Plus, it’s hard to get things done quickly when the repair work is getting done indirectly through the home warranty company, instead of you and the contractor dealing with each other directly. Homeowner does not get decide what component gets installed. But most warranty agreements to state the component needs to be a quality product like the one that broke.

The Final Say

Home owner’s relying on a home warranty need to know it’s not the be all to end all way to mitigate the risk of an appliance going bad, but it does lower the cost of repairs and the cost of replacing a major appliance, such as furnace. Be sure to read the entire contents of a home warranty agreement before buying to ensure it covers what you need and it’s worth the cost. Both the home seller and buyer should take the time to find the best home warranty provider with best reputation  that does pay when a claim is made when including a home warranty as part of a home purchase agreement.

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