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Small Cabin Forum / General Forum / Insurance for your cabin or storage unit
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toyota_mdt_tech
Member
# Posted: 4 Oct 2010 17:03 - Edited by: toyota_mdt_tech
Reply 


Ok, looking into insurance. My insurance company said no unless it has power, phone and a hydrant or within a mile of a fire station. I dont have any of that. Certainly there has to be a company that can sell insurance for remote cabins for fire, theft etc.

hilltop
Member
# Posted: 4 Oct 2010 18:51
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I am in NY State and my insurance agent had no trouble finding coverage for the same thing you are looking for. Maybe it differs by state ?

toyota_mdt_tech
Member
# Posted: 4 Oct 2010 20:03
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You may be right. I have State Farm and maybe she was looking only for a State Farm policy, not other types. I have no issues with getting insurance from another source. Might I inquire who your insurance company is?

Gary O
Member
# Posted: 9 Oct 2010 10:18
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Sent pix of our place to our Farmers agent six months ago. I think he pulled in the wecome mat and locked the door.............

toyota_mdt_tech
Member
# Posted: 9 Oct 2010 17:16
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So Gary, you got the bums rush or cold shoulder too?

Certainly someone in here has a name of an insurance source for us cabin owners.

Gary O
Member
# Posted: 9 Oct 2010 17:34
Reply 


Cold shoulder.
Starting to lump ins agents with Re agents and attorneys......

Really do need insurance out there before too much cash outlay and back layout......

fooboo
Member
# Posted: 10 Oct 2010 08:49
Reply 


I can't find cabin insurance either but my insurance agent will let me insure personal property like TV's, appliances, guns, furniture, etc. That means I can pretty much insure the entire contents of the cabin, just not the wood and insulation and things that make up the cabin shell. In my case, the cost of the cabin shell is the lowest cost thing out there. It's all the other stuff that adds up - tools, ATV, guns, appliances, solar equipment, etc. All put together, that stuff is worth a lot and is more easily stolen than doors and windows.

If the whole thing burned down, I would take the money from the personal property coverage and rebuild the cabin. I would then slowly buy new appliances and tools with my own money. So in my mind, the cabin is insured, but not the appliances, guns, ATV, tools, etc. In the end, I'd have to compensate with a cheaper ATV, less guns, less tools, and cheaper appliances, and I probably wouldn't replace a lot of things that are listed in the policy - like video tapes, taxidermy, and clothing - but at least I'd have a replacement cabin.

I also got an umbrella liability policy in case someone gets hurt while visiting. They didn't have a problem writing that policy.

hilltop
Member
# Posted: 11 Oct 2010 17:49
Reply 


I am presently with a company I think is only for NY called NY Property Insurance Underwriting Association. They specialize in barns, cabins, etc.
I found I can also get a policy next year through Erie Insurance where I will get a better rate . All my other insurance is through them.
Good luck , at least in NY it is not that hard to find.

toyota_mdt_tech
Member
# Posted: 11 Oct 2010 23:12
Reply 


Ok, found a source for cabin insurance. I'm going to request a quote.

http://www.amig.com/seasonal_home.html

hilltop
Member
# Posted: 12 Oct 2010 19:36
Reply 


Great, hope they have the coverage you need.

bobrok
Member
# Posted: 5 Nov 2010 16:50 - Edited by: bobrok
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This is a weird topic for me and I can't figure it out. I am in NY and as mentioned above I, too, had no problem getting insurance. Fire, wind, etc. Now there is a guy who has a camp here who lives in MA and who also owns an insurance agency in CT. He said no way are these places insurable and doesn't carry any...and he's an insurance agent for goodness sakes.
Something about being behind a locked gate.
What's up with that?

MtnDon
Member
# Posted: 5 Nov 2010 18:01
Reply 


You mean that because there is a locked gate at the property he can not get insurance? That could be the insurance company is afraid the fire department would be delayed/prevented from access. Here where our cabin is both the local volunteer fire department and the forest service fire fighters have the combination to the gate. That makes it no problem.

bobrok
Member
# Posted: 5 Nov 2010 22:56
Reply 


That is the case with us as well MtnDon. The FD has a gate key, the propane company has a gate key, heck everyone seems to have a key. Maybe my friend was applying CT insurance rules to his NY property. Dunno.

elkdiebymybow
Member
# Posted: 19 Jan 2011 00:11
Reply 


We have tried as well. The company that handles my corporation sent inquiry out into the marketplace and came up short. No options at all. We talk with our homeowners and they can't do anything at all. Our place has no permanent foundation (pressure treated timbers on a compacted crushed stone base), no power, no water etc...

We tried to get the contents covered. No luck. I have plans to build a "Bath house" which would be an additional structure on a foundation, with power and water then I think we could get the cabin covered as an outbuilding.

I'll try the company hilltop suggested but I doubt they do biz in Idaho....

elkdiebymybow
Member
# Posted: 19 Jan 2011 00:24
Reply 


toyota,

Thanks for the link, I'll let you know how it pans out!

~Elk

insuranceman
Member
# Posted: 4 Aug 2011 16:34
Reply 


Hey check out IOA for insurance. They are independent insurance agents who really look after you. I have had them for my log cabin for some time now and are pretty happy with their rates.

smitty
Member
# Posted: 4 Aug 2011 17:27
Reply 


Can you buy a chicken, and call it a farm?
Then insure your farm and buildings on that farm?

Ann
Member
# Posted: 5 Aug 2011 10:43
Reply 


I got insurance for my cabin from Nationwide. It was added to my homeowners' policy.

They were nervous, though, about the woodstove and requested an additional fire resistant rug in the front of the stove pad, although the installation was done by professionals and met the stove manufacturer's specs for stove pad and wall clearance.

They also wanted porch steps, which I had not planned to add.

The agent was a bit perplexed about the purpose of having a cabin in the first place.

smitty
Member
# Posted: 6 Aug 2011 04:06 - Edited by: smitty
Reply 


Quoting: Ann
The agent was a bit perplexed about the purpose of having a cabin in the first place.


Isn't that frustrating?.. Just explaining it is frustrating..

turkeyhunter
Member
# Posted: 6 Aug 2011 07:41
Reply 


Quoting: smitty
Can you buy a chicken, and call it a farm? Then insure your farm and buildings on that farm?


my insurance agent told me , what do you grow????.............i said pine trees & wildlife. ( so he listed mine as pine tree/forestry production)
he has ( the agent) 7 blueberry bushes and has his listed as a farm.
so there are ways to get it listed as a farm ~~~~ so to speak.

toyota_mdt_tech
Member
# Posted: 6 Aug 2011 16:15 - Edited by: toyota_mdt_tech
Reply 


Quoting: turkeyhunter
( the agent) 7 blueberry bushes and has his listed as a farm.
so there are ways to get it listed as a farm ~~~~ so to speak


TH, my entire acreage is considered a "timber farm". I had to submit a forest management plan, cost was about $350, good for 10 yrs. I was then told that a harvest is no longer a requirement for "farm" tax status as they realize "old growth is also beneficial to the community also. They reffered to is as providing "wood fiber" for the community. In my state, with 20.25 acres, it was about $32 a year in taxes. Of course, when I put the building on it, they removed 1 acres from the farm status (you must have 20 acres minimum to qualify, they round up, so 19.5 actually) and even with 1 acre removed, I still have a total of over the minimum, as you still have the 20.25 total, just one acre is taxed as the "homesite" even if its just a permitted tool storage building. So now my taxes are $198 a year. We also have other tax status, ie open grasslands, grazing, actual food production, ie crops, cattle etc.

Do any of you guys tax advantage of timber farm tax status or open space tax status? Many states have this.

toyota_mdt_tech
Member
# Posted: 6 Aug 2011 16:15
Reply 


Quoting: Ann
The agent was a bit perplexed about the purpose of having a cabin in the first place.



If they have to ask, then they wouldnt understand.

241comp
Member
# Posted: 8 Aug 2011 10:52
Reply 


Quoting: toyota_mdt_tech
Do any of you guys tax advantage of timber farm tax status or open space tax status? Many states have this.


If I recall correctly, you're in KY, right? I have 65 acres in KY and am looking to actively manage it for timber. Eventually, I would like timber sales to cover taxes and maintenance on the property at least. I would really like to hear more how you got farm status, etc and anything you're actively doing for "timber improvement."

toyota_mdt_tech
Member
# Posted: 8 Aug 2011 15:59
Reply 


I am in Washington State. I have land full of evergreen timber (Ponderosa pines) and that was all I needed. Its a timber (tree farm)

If I had some open space, they would classify part of it as open space, rest as timber. Fortunately, mine was chocked full of timber.

241comp
Member
# Posted: 8 Aug 2011 16:09
Reply 


Quoting: toyota_mdt_tech
I am in Washington State. I have land full of evergreen timber (Ponderosa pines) and that was all I needed. Its a timber (tree farm)


Ah, no idea why I thought KY. So, are you doing anything actively with the timber (ie taking out diseased trees, reducing competition around quality trees, etc)? Not sure if I should just let mine grow, or actively manage it.

Borrego
Member
# Posted: 8 Aug 2011 21:01
Reply 


You can sometimes add on to an existing home you own, I think this is what we have.....

toyota_mdt_tech
Member
# Posted: 8 Aug 2011 21:37
Reply 


Quoting: 241comp
are you doing anything actively with the timber (ie taking out diseased trees, reducing competition around quality trees, etc)?


No, I have scoured it close. I have actually 90% Ponderosa Pines, 10% Douglas Fir. I have no disease. I could thin out some crowded seedlings and allow the remaining to grow quicker. Also, they like to see all under debris cleared out, tree branches trimmed of the trunks clean up to the about the 6-8 foot mark.

I left it heavily forested for cabin cover. I am in the process of barbwiring fencing my entire 20 acres, I have 1/3rd of it done, cost about $2650 for each 1/4 mile. This should help to make my place more secure.

TomChum
Member
# Posted: 17 Aug 2011 00:30 - Edited by: TomChum
Reply 


A local forester told me to thin the pines and grow Doug firs as it is generally worth 3x pine. However, currently Doug fir is barely worth cutting at ~$550Mbf. There is no price at all for pine, nobody wants it period. He also said I'd net about $800 per truckload. 10 truckloads, $8,000. Not worth it. Now is a good time to enjoy looking at your trees.

toyota_mdt_tech
Member
# Posted: 17 Aug 2011 09:01
Reply 


Tom, yeah, I have no interest in a harvest plan at all. I just love my standing timber. But because I'm a "timber farmer", and growing a "crop", I get a killer tax break ($32 per year for my 20.25 acres) . The state doesnt require a harvest, their exact statement was "we realize old growth is also beneficial to the community".

When I ordered my lumber package from a local lumber yard over there, I'd say 50% was pine, rest was doug fir. It was quoted as "SPF" which means spruce, pine or fir. All remaining lumber I needed, picked up at Home Depot close by, was all douglas fir. I built when lumber prices were in the tank. Much more $$$ for the same stuff now. I remember 1/2" plywood, $11 per sheet, now I paid $14+ for 3/8". My 5/8" T1-11 wood siding (no chip board) was $28 per sheet, now the cheaper OSB T1-11 for the thinner 1/2" is $26. Glad I built when I did. :D Hopefully, another lumber slump when I start my next project over there.

thayer187
Member
# Posted: 2 Oct 2011 08:19
Reply 


not available for new york state

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