July 2, 2024, WTVT-TV, Fox 13, Tampa – “If your driver’s license says Florida, it’s your home that will be struck,” insurance advisor and disaster recovery expert Lisa Miller said. “It’s how your home performs that matters.” “The first, most important component of your house is your roof,” Miller said. “Second, are your windows and your garage.” (Original story location, including video version: https://www.fox13news.com/news/my-safe-florida-home-program-reopens-how-apply.amp)
TAMPA, Fla. – The My Safe Florida Home Program, helping cut property insurance costs for Floridians, reopened on Monday and will start offering grants again.
This program offers matching grants for Floridians of up to $10,000 to homeowners who shore up their homes with storm-protective upgrades like hurricane-safe doors or windows.
“If your driver’s license says Florida, it’s your home that will be struck,” insurance advisor and disaster recovery expert Lisa Miller said. “It’s how your home performs that matters.”
Governor Ron DeSantis signed Senate Bill 7028 into law in April to allocate $200 million to the My Safe Florida Home Program.
The bill also allows applicants under the program to still receive home inspections even if they’re not eligible for a grant.
“The first, most important component of your house is your roof,” Miller said. “Second, are your windows and your garage.”
First-time applicants must complete an initial wind-mitigation inspection to proceed to the grant application. That inspection will then provide homeowners with:
- The opportunity to share that report with their insurance carrier to make sure they’re receiving all possible discounts on the hurricane portion of their home insurance premium
- A roadmap to retrofitting their home with improvements to strengthen it against hurricanes
Existing users can access their portal account to see their Grant Group Category number.
“It’s a fact that we, as Floridians, have to realize that the days of inexpensive insurance premiums are over,” Miller said.
Miller says inflation, re-insurance costs for insurance companies, litigation from lawsuits against insurance companies and people scamming the insurance system have all contributed to the rising insurance premium costs.
“That has been driving the cost of insurance,” she said. “So, you know, with that, I think if we can get that cost down by making our home stronger, do it. Absolutely.”
Miller says the My Safe Florida Home program is worth the investment and can save you money and time in the long run.
My Safe Florida Home was established in 2006 and brought back in 2022.
Miller says the grant money is in high demand, so people will need to be patient with the application process and the portal. She hopes to see the program continue to receive funding.
To apply, click here.
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