Protecting Your Home’s Memories Like Mom Would

Middle Aged Woman Hugging Her Elderly Mother

How Mom’s Impact the Value of Our Homes

When we think of our mothers, we may have a mix of joyful and bittersweet memories. For those who are fortunate enough to still have their mother in their life, we want to cherish her, protect her, take care of her, and love her immensely. If we asked her to share her life story, I bet she would talk about the sleepless nights she endured after bringing you home from the hospital or the pitter-patter of little feet running all around the hardwood floors. She would laugh and talk about all the sibling arguments and teasing. She would reminisce on the secrets and love she shared with your dad around the fireplace.

Her home would tell the same story and broadcast the same memories for all to see.

Have you ever wondered what your home might say if it could talk? Would it talk about sleepless nights when you brought the newborn home or the constant noise of little feet running up and down the hardwood floors? Would it laugh about the yelling and banging on the bathroom door when your children were late getting ready for school? Maybe it would mention the fires that crackled on those cold winter nights as you and your spouse cuddled on the couch. Maybe it would share some secrets about heartache and pain endured through the years.

If it were possible, each of our homes would tell a unique story, because home is where memories are made: the good, the bad, and the ugly. You wouldn’t let just any doctor care for your mother. Would you let just anybody repair your aging and damaged home? Just as we love our mothers and would find the best care for them, we all love our homes and the memories connected to them, so wouldn’t we do everything to cherish, protect, and care for our homes, especially as they age?

Historical Homes in Dallas

Dallas is home to the Southwest’s finest collection of Early 20th Century residential architecture. Located in Old East Dallas, Swiss Avenue Historic District showcases homes built as early as 1905. Wouldn’t you love to sit and listen to one of these houses share memories? I bet it would talk about a time when a baseball went through an upstairs window. It would share a story about a tub overflowing because the little girl who lived there wanted a swimming pool. Maybe it would talk about the time the fire department came because of forgotten cookies in the oven.

That house, along with many others along the Swiss Avenue Historic District, could share some stories and secrets about their caregivers. These old homes must be taken care of, like an aging mother or grandmother. These houses have outlived their first, second, and possibly even third families. If the current caregivers continue to love these houses as family members, these houses will outlive future generations.

Chevron and Striped Patterned Hard Wood Floors and Radiator

Black and White Photo of Husband and Wife Roasting Marshmallows in Fireplace

Protecting Your Historical Home

If we intend for our homes to outlive us, especially the homes that have been around long before the residents were even thought of, there must be a proactive way to protect them. We like to remember our mother as a young, vibrant woman that can still chase around her grandchildren. We do not like to think of her as getting older, we want to help keep her in her prime. We feel the same with our historic homes! We want to keep everything as it was originally constructed, when memories were first made.

Tower Street is your partner in preserving your historic home’s character. Through our loss control services, we can provide advice as to the best ways to maintain and preserve your home’s uniqueness. We can provide guidance regarding loss prevention measures and technology to avoid a loss from ever occurring in the first place. Today’s preventative technology can reveal existing water damage, electric hot spots, and missing insultation as well as detect a pipe leak or burst and automatically shut off the water to prevent further loss. We coach you on the best methods of documenting your belongings, so you are prepared to provide an adjuster with the details needed to get a full payout of your personal property coverage limit. Lastly, through the appraisal process, our carriers document the finer features of the home so you can repair or replicate them in the event of a loss.

How to Submit an Insurance Claim for a Historical Home

The best claim is the one that never happened. But if—God forbid—your historic home ever caught fire and needed a repair or a complete rebuild, you would want a replica of your home, not a new version of it.

If your insurance is through a middle-market insurance carrier, the insurance company will rebuild the home or repair the damages using a standard contractor using modern twenty-first century techniques and materials. This is not what you want! You want a high-value home insurer who will help you source an artisan or restoration specialist with an expertise in reconstructing historic homes. You deserve a carrier who will pay the additional costs to rebuild or replace the damage to your home to reflect the era of the original construction.

Also, with middle-market insurance, your policy would include an ordinance & law clause covering only up to $5,000. However, your historic home will have to be updated and brought up to code while keeping the home’s originality, which would far exceed the $5,000 limit. This would become an expensive out-of-pocket cost to you. Medical insurance would pay for your mother to have the best care after a hip break, to rehabilitate her and have her walking again. Why would you settle for a Homeowners insurance that doesn’t treat your historic property the way medical insurance treats your aging mother? Wouldn’t you want a high-value home insurance company behind you offering to find that artisan specialist for historic homes with policies to cover the cost of a rebuild or repair?

Antique Wooden Trim on Door in Historical Home

Best Insurance for Historical Homes

High-value home insurers understand the importance of keeping the uniqueness of your historic home. These insurers will find companies who customize in re-decking your Ludowici tiles damaged during a hailstorm and take extra precautions when assessing damage to lath and plaster walls or your antique wave windows. These insurers understand the need for an artisan of historic home building, not just a contractor. Their policies include guaranteed replacement cost, so in the event the coverage limit on the policy isn’t enough, they will approve the extra costs for repairing the items in a historic home, and they only use adjusters who understand the importance of preserving your home to last for generations.

Your historic home is precious and deserves to be protected by the best in the business. Tower Street Insurance works with the best high-value home insurers, such as Chubb, AIG, Nationwide Private Client, PURE, Cincinnati, Berkley One, and Vault. We understand the importance of preservation and insure some of the oldest homes in Dallas. Tower Street is so invested in these historic homes that we are a sponsor of the 2022 Swiss Avenue Mother’s Day Home Tour. This event will take place on Mother’s Day weekend and will be a wonderful time to reflect on how precious mom is while viewing the preserved history of Dallas.

Tower Street Insurance can Help You Protect Your Historical Home

When was the last time you had your insurance truly evaluated to assure there are no gaps? Our agents here at Tower Street Insurance can assess your current coverage, not just for gaps for your homeowners insurance, but for all of your personal and business insurance needs. Tower Street understands the importance of memories and preservation. We have the resources and solutions to properly insure your home’s historical significance and preserve the heritage and value of landmark districts and homes on the National Register of Historic Places. We would love to set up a meeting to go over your coverage with you and provide you with a coverage gap analysis completely free of charge! Reach out to us today to schedule a meeting and get a quote today.