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Shopping for a Home Warranty: What You Need to Know
LendingTree points out that a home warranty is something worth considering if you are trying to protect your home from an appliance or something else that needs to be replaced. Having a home warranty can help you save money and ensure that you’re able to get your repairs made in a timely manner. The Chism Atnip Team shares a few things to keep in mind during the process.
Understanding What a Home Warranty Does and the Benefits
Your home warranty can help protect you if an appliance breaks or otherwise goes bad. CBS News notes that it’s important to understand that a home warranty is different from insurance. Insurance for homes protects your house in case it is damaged by elements like wind, water, or fire. A home warranty is just for specific items, so keep this in mind before making a purchase. Also, covered items are those that may no longer be protected under a manufacturer’s warranty.
One benefit of a home warranty is that it can protect you as a homeowner from paying for expensive repairs or replacement costs. This is especially helpful when a home system breaks down because of normal wear and tear. These policies also can cover a variety of appliances (e.g., dishwasher, stove, washer and dryer, garbage disposal) depending on your coverage. Home warranty plans can even expedite the process and save you time, since you don’t need to find a contractor to do the job. In short, an appliance warranty results in peace of mind.
The Benefits of Getting Multiple Quotes
It’s helpful to get multiple quotes from different places when you are in the process of choosing a home warranty that will work for you. You can make a list of what each one offers, keeping in mind factors such as:
- Cost
- What is included
- Any limits that are involved
- If the company uses licensed technicians or not
Weigh your choices and see which one you feel the most comfortable with. Having several different quotes can give you an idea of what to do when you are trying to make an informed choice.
Finding a Company That Meets Your Needs
When looking for a home warranty, know that not all home warranty companies are the same. You might think you are simply looking for a company that can cover the repair or replacement of an item such as a dishwasher, but it’s helpful to consider how easy it is to get in touch with someone, the hours the business keeps, customer service, and if they provide any guarantees about when they can have the work done by.
Read reviews of the companies you are interested in to find out which one might be a good fit for your needs.
Keeping Everything Organized With PDFs
When dealing with home warranties, it is important to keep the information as organized as possible. That way if you need to find warranty information or proof, you’ll be able to produce it at a moment’s notice. If you find that your normal paper files are usually a mess, consider using digital documents instead. You can create a PDF and if you need to share files, PDFs are often the preferred format over Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files. You can use an online tool that allows you to convert these types of files to PDFs in just four easy steps. To get started, you can try this listing.
Shopping for a home warranty can be easy if you know what to look for and how to approach the situation. Making sure you have the coverage you need and can easily get your appliance and home systems replaced or repaired is the main goal when working with a home warranty.
Written By: Tina Martin
