Tammi K Posted November 5, 2015 Share Posted November 5, 2015 Yep! It's been that kind of day. We got a call from the township property inspector to tell us that the house we own in Pa was in the process of burning down. The tenant was a single dad with 5 kids. I have no idea what he is going to do. There was some indication that one of his children was seen running from the house. No idea if he was involved or if a passer-by just made a mistake. No one was in the property when the firemen arrived but the kid still hasn't been located as far as I know. The dad must be frantic. We still have a mortgage on the house, which is smoldering, so I have no idea what we are going to do. Seriously, has anyone faced the loss of a rental property. i have no idea what the timeline going forward will look like. Of course, the house has fire insurance since there is a mortgage, but I have no idea how things will progress from here. Anyone walk this path before? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freesia Posted November 5, 2015 Share Posted November 5, 2015 No, we do rent out properties, but that has never happen. How very horrible. I hope the child is safe and well. I don't know what happens next with regard to the insurance, but I am really sorry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Random Posted November 5, 2015 Share Posted November 5, 2015 Wow, I am really sorry for your loss. You should call your agent immediately. Hopefully, you have enough insurance to cover your losses. Hopefully, your renter also had renter's insurance. I'm glad everyone is safe. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted November 5, 2015 Share Posted November 5, 2015 Yes, although our property didn't "burn down." There was a fire that started from an overloaded electrical circuit. It burned up that room. Most of the other damage was water damage and breakage from the fire dept. The insurance company moved us routinely through the process and the house is back on the rental market. So sorry you have to deal with this and I hope the child is safe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NorthwestMom Posted November 5, 2015 Share Posted November 5, 2015 How terrifying. Please update about your renters' safety when you can. Hugs to you, I'd be a nervous wreck. :grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug: 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ausmumof3 Posted November 5, 2015 Share Posted November 5, 2015 I would find your insurance paperwork etc as soon as possible so as soon as you know the extent of the damage you can make the call. Hope the kid is ok. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanaqui Posted November 5, 2015 Share Posted November 5, 2015 Oh no! I hope that kid is fine, and everybody else. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Renthead Mommy Posted November 5, 2015 Share Posted November 5, 2015 Call you agent ASAP. They will walk you through it better then we can. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted November 5, 2015 Share Posted November 5, 2015 Call immediately. The sooner the claim is submitted the better. What a mess for you and them! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carol in Cal. Posted November 6, 2015 Share Posted November 6, 2015 Find your policy and read it and then call. We haven't had this exact thing, but we did have a bad tenant that vandalized the house before moving out with rent in arrears. Insurance paid for loss of rent during repairs and for the repairs as well, but not for the arrearage in rent. We have a landlord protector policy from Farmers. I don't know whether they are all the same or not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spryte Posted November 6, 2015 Share Posted November 6, 2015 Oh no. :( I hope the kid is ok. And found quickly, safe. Our ins co routinely insured enough to cover kiss of rental income for a year, plus rebuilding and housing tenants elsewhere. At least thatsxwhatcthey advised us a few months ago when we priced ins for a rental home. I hope your coverage is adequate to do what you need, and that the renters had ins, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tsuga Posted November 6, 2015 Share Posted November 6, 2015 Oh my god. How horrible. Are they all okay? I agree: call the insurance company. Do you know if they had renter's insurance? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KatieJ Posted November 6, 2015 Share Posted November 6, 2015 Yes, we had a fire caused by a negligent renter. I saw photos on the Internet as it was happening. Very wierd. The house had to be gutted and rebuilt totally on the inside. Your insurance will walk you through the process. The renters insurance covered emptying the house of their belongings, including their freezer full of food. At that point our insurance took over. They helped us find a contractor who could handle that kind of clean up and then it was rebuilt. It didn't take the insurance long to get it all started . Sorry you are all going through this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThisIsTheDay Posted November 6, 2015 Share Posted November 6, 2015 Yes, we had a fire caused by a negligent renter. I saw photos on the Internet as it was happening. Very wierd. The house had to be gutted and rebuilt totally on the inside. Your insurance will walk you through the process. The renters insurance covered emptying the house of their belongings, including their freezer full of food. At that point our insurance took over. They helped us find a contractor who could handle that kind of clean up and then it was rebuilt. It didn't take the insurance long to get it all started . Sorry you are all going through this. I can't "like" your post, but this is what makes the boards such an amazing resource--there's such a great likelihood that someone else will totally get what you are going through. OP, I'm so sorry about the loss of the house. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tammi K Posted November 6, 2015 Author Share Posted November 6, 2015 Actually, the very first person to tell us the house was on fire was the insurance agent! Apparently, the agencies in the area monitor the fire dispatch. When they hear about a structure fire, they check their data base to see if it is one of theirs. Sure enough, our agent discovered we were one of 'his'. So, they called us to tell us what was happening. The agent went to the scene while it was still burning. An adjuster called this evening and got the process started. The renters lost several pets ( that we didn't know they had :sneaky2: ) but no people were injured. There is still a lot of speculation about how it started, who was there, etc. They will start an investigation tomorrow. Fortunately, we are covered for loss of rent. So, that is a huge relief. It was pretty disconcerting to figure out how to adjust for the loss. I think we will be okay. It sounds like a long process but it seems like the insurance co. is on top of things. 12 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tsuga Posted November 6, 2015 Share Posted November 6, 2015 I am glad to hear they are on top of things. I hope your renters were taking care and had renters insurance and were not being stupid at the time of the fire, but it sounds like the dad was out and the child was playing at home for a short time. Ugh. What a nightmare. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlsdMama Posted November 6, 2015 Share Posted November 6, 2015 Another thing to be aware of - in some states, if the house is a total loss, you are allowed some kind of excess payout. My brother did not lose a rental but his personal home. The offer by the insurance company came in and they thought it was THE figure. My sister sells insurance (didn't have my brother's policy, it's complicated) but she informed him he was due (because of our state) a payout above because it was a total loss. Turns out the settlement was actually negotiable and she was correct. So just an FYI on that one to be aware of.... I wish I knew more but maybe someone here can comment. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plansrme Posted November 6, 2015 Share Posted November 6, 2015 Just a reminder to everyone that THIS is a great example of why it is critical to tell your insurance company if your home is vacant or being rented out. Your premium probably goes up (or they drop you--some insurance companies will not insure a home that is not being lived in by the owner), but you don't lose everything when the agent finds out that it was occupied by tenants, and you'd never 'fessed up. OP, so glad you did the right thing when you moved out. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trulycrabby Posted November 6, 2015 Share Posted November 6, 2015 I am so sorry, and hope everyone living there is okay. :grouphug: 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melissa in Australia Posted November 7, 2015 Share Posted November 7, 2015 :grouphug: :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twigs Posted November 7, 2015 Share Posted November 7, 2015 :grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarlett Posted November 7, 2015 Share Posted November 7, 2015 Ugh. The pets. So sorry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiwik Posted November 8, 2015 Share Posted November 8, 2015 Providing you had the right kind of insurance you should be fine. Your insurance company will go after the tenants if their is negligence so hopefully they have insurance but if they don't there isn't a lot you can do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carrie12345 Posted November 8, 2015 Share Posted November 8, 2015 We don't have a rental house, but my husband works in an industry that deals in fire/water damage and insurance, usually with renters. He's also walked a relative through the rebuild of their fully burned down house. Do you have any specific questions? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TranquilMind Posted November 8, 2015 Share Posted November 8, 2015 Yep! It's been that kind of day. We got a call from the township property inspector to tell us that the house we own in Pa was in the process of burning down. The tenant was a single dad with 5 kids. I have no idea what he is going to do. There was some indication that one of his children was seen running from the house. No idea if he was involved or if a passer-by just made a mistake. No one was in the property when the firemen arrived but the kid still hasn't been located as far as I know. The dad must be frantic. We still have a mortgage on the house, which is smoldering, so I have no idea what we are going to do. Seriously, has anyone faced the loss of a rental property. i have no idea what the timeline going forward will look like. Of course, the house has fire insurance since there is a mortgage, but I have no idea how things will progress from here. Anyone walk this path before? Wow, no. You need to find out who caused this, because that is who is going to pay. Sounds like it might be the Tenant's responsibility here, unless it was just an old wiring issue. Inspector will be able to tell. I'm sorry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tsuga Posted November 8, 2015 Share Posted November 8, 2015 Somehow, TranquilMind, I seriously doubt that Tammi is going to be getting the big bucks from a single dad of five who's renting a house. I might be off on this, but I'm just guessing that if he hasn't already declared bankruptcy due to the fact that you know, now he's homeless and may have all kinds of additional expenses like food, clothing, etc., he will be soon and she's going to have to cover it. If he was skimping on renter's insurance--because single parent five kids probably doesn't even have health insurance for himself--that's even less money she'll see. Insurance will determine fault but I absolutely wouldn't count on a renter to pay. If our house burned down right now, you may find this amazing, but even if we sold our cars and actually even if we sold a kid or two, we could never pay our landlord back in full, or even in half. It's much more expensive than we could buy, which is of course why we aren't paying a mortgage on a house like this. If we could buy a house like this, even paying 30 years, we would have already. I wish Tammi and her renters the best of luck. I do hope the renters had insurance. :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KatieJ Posted November 8, 2015 Share Posted November 8, 2015 Wow, no. You need to find out who caused this, because that is who is going to pay. Sounds like it might be the Tenant's responsibility here, unless it was just an old wiring issue. Inspector will be able to tell. I'm sorry. When our house fire happened, it was clearly caused by the renter, actually, a "guest" of the legal tenant sleeping on a mattress in the basement utility room, and smoking in bed. To my knowledge our insurance did not go after the tennant or their insurance company for any kind of payment. We were just thankful they actually had insurance to cover their mess they left behind. I was told they left thru a window and never came back, even tho there were things they could have salvaged. We were underinsured and needed our funds for repairs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soror Posted November 8, 2015 Share Posted November 8, 2015 Our own house burned down, horrible but we made it through. Since you dont' actually live in the house and your agent is already on it then I wouldn't expect there to be much to it. For us the adjuster was out within a couple of days, declared it a total loss and payment was fairly quick. We didn't have an adjustable pay-out(as it was we were underinsured really) but there were several extras on our insurance that we didn't realize- living expenses and payment for outside structures and landscaping for example that were separate from our total loss pay-out, some of which required receipts- also we had to submit listings for all of our possessions, that was the worst part of the process but I'm not sure how that works for a rental- perhaps that isn't at all included. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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