Rebuilding your home after a catastrophe is a lengthy, tiring & expensive process. Therefore, you must make a lot of considerations to be sure that rebuilding is what you need. Often, following a very devastating disaster, most survivors choose to move somewhere else, as the pain of their loss is often profound if they remain where they watched their investments of 30 years go to the ground.

Sometimes, it is about the cost. The expenses to be incurred will always be so high, and with the consideration that companies in the area must be destroyed too (so there’s no hope of getting a job there), getting required funds must be difficult. So, many leave, but it doesn’t make you any less thoughtful if you choose not to. You can become a building expert and make a lot of cash helping others rebuild their homes and properties. So, if you’re deciding to rebuild your home regardless…

Considerations when Rebuilding Your Home After a Catastrophe

Help from Insurance?

Typically, the purpose of insuring your home is to be refunded if it’s destroyed. Sounds good, but that’s not going to help much, I’m afraid. If you still owe on the mortgage, that amount is first accounted for, and you only get what’s left. Now, given that it takes so long to complete your mortgage payment, you can see the situation. 

However, even if your mortgage is paid, your insurance policy will still not be enough. If you bought your house for $48 000 30 years ago and have finished payments before a catastrophe happened, your insurance policy will only give you the exact amount initially paid: $48 000. Now, think of it, will that be enough to build a similar property after three decades?

If there’s any positive from a homeowner’s insurance, it is that you’re not completely helpless like disaster victims of the 18th century. There’s something to start with, no matter how little.

Do It Yourself?

When in this position, you have to choose from only two options: to build by yourself or not?

Building by yourself will save you a lot of money. If the catastrophe affected minor items that can usually be self-repaired, then I advise that you handle rebuilding yourself. For example, Hurricane Harvey mostly was water damage to insulation, wallboard, trim & carpeting, all of which are things that a handyman can repair. It would be unwise not to handle things yourself. In fact, if you do not have the necessary skills required for repairs, you should learn from someone who does.

True, rebuilding your home yourself is a lot of stress & time, but you should know that labor cost accounts for about 40% of the amount you pay to build a home. Saving such a percentage may reduce expenses to such a level that your insurance payout will be enough or almost be.

However, keep in mind that this only works if there’s enough parts of the home to start with, which is rare if the catastrophe is a fire. As you may have seen with the disaster in Paradise, California, a burnt home offers nothing to work with.

Final Thoughts on Rebuilding Your Home after a Catastrophe

Honestly, the financial and mental costs of rebuilding your home after a catastrophe can be overwhelming. You must think things through to be sure that doing so will be more favorable than moving elsewhere. If you’re choosing to rebuild your home where it fell, I hope this article is enough insight for you.