When working out building costs for house insurance, tf you start off at under R5 000/m2 you will be shooting yourself in the foot – top-of- the-range houses are coming in anywhere between R 10 000 and R12 000/m2.
And if you want to replace your solid teak doors and window frames, along with the suspended Oregon pine floors, they will all increase the amount you should be insured for.
A thatch-roof house poses a different series of questions, so consult a broker or insurer who specialises in this field.
So now we have, let’s say, a 110m2 house, fairly modern with average finishes, with a square metre rate of R6 000.
The value for insurance purposes equals R660 000, plus the other items we have mentioned, such as a single garage (18m2 at R4 000/m2 equals R72 000), swimming pool at R50 000, around 50m2 of brick paving at R350 equals R17 500, and finally 80m of boundary wall at R500/m, equals R40 000.
Totalling all that gives you R839 500, and that’s not the end of it. Again, I must point out that policies and wording vary from company to company, and I’m giving you only a rough guide.
If the unthinkable happens and your house is gutted by fire, the first thing that will be done is to demolish it and remove the rubble. So, add R35 000 for that. Next, you need an architect to draw up plans for the new house, engineers to do design, council fees and so on, so allow roughly another R84 000. Now our total is R958 500 – and don’t forget the government’s share, VAT at 14 percent, bringing the overall total R1 092 690.
Do you still think you are adequately insured?
You may suspect I’m being paid by the insurance companies, but I can assure you that this is not so. In the past 25 years I have seen many families left in utter despair because they have not been insured properly. Please take an hour in the next week to ensure that you are not one of the under-insured. - Weekend Argus