Earthquake insurance & preparedness
Hey folks, I'm based on Salt Lake City (an active earthquake zone) and I'm hoping to get a bit of feedback on how homeowners and property investors in earthquake zones are managing the risk of earthquakes.
A few questions:
First, does anyone have recommendations for insurers that will provide earthquake coverage in Salt Lake City for older (50-100+ year old) brick homes? (the key words being "older" and "brick" --I've found insurers who will do it for newer non-brick homes, but not for old brick houses).
Second, does anyone have any stories, recommendations or feedback about preventative earthquake reinforcement of older homes? (this is something I know nothing about, so any info would be appreciated--such as recommendations on engineers/contractors who do that type of work, what types of reinforcements people are doing, ballpark cost estimates or what people have paid, has anyone witnessed a reinforced older home survive an earthquake, etc., etc. ...any info would be appreciated).
Lastly, a more general question: what (if anything) are folks in earthquake zones doing to protect their homes or property portfolios from earthquakes? In casual conversations with homeowners and investors, I'm always surprised at how few people in Salt Lake City seem to have earthquake coverage. I realize that earthquake policies are very expensive, but if you're an investor who has a portfolio of multiple homes in an earthquake zone, and none of them are covered for earthquakes, presumably a major earthquake could bankrupt you; no? ...I also haven't met many people who have done any type of preventative reinforcement to protect against earthquakes.... ....any stories people have about what they're doing to protect against earthquakes would be great... also, if you're in an earthquake zone but NOT doing anything to protect against earthquakes, I'd be interested in hearing your rationale (e.g.; is it just too cost prohibitive, or is there some other reason?)
A bit of backstory: we had a small-ish earthquake here in SLC back in 2020. ...a few months before that earthquake, a family in my neighborhood bought a STUNNING late 1800s brick home. I believe it was approximately 4,000 sq feet, and it was easily one of the nicest homes in the neighborhood. ...and given the SLC housing market, I'm sure it was a fairly pricey property to buy. Tragically, when the earthquake hit, an enormous section of the front of the house collapsed, and the property was eventually condemned and razed. As far as I know, nobody was injured, but I can't imagine the nightmare it was for the new owners. Presumably, this house was their dream home, and it was condemned within months of their move-in :( . Also, given how hard it is to insure an old brick home, there's a decent chance that it wasn't covered for the earthquake (though that's just speculation on my part)... I'm guessing the property cost 800k-1 million to buy, which begs the question: what does an owner do if they owe 800k on a house (or millions on a portfolio of houses), and their property/properties are condemned by an earthquake, and they don't have any earthquake insurance? I'm guessing such a scenario could easily be enough to bankrupt a lot of homeowners or investors-- am I wrong?
Anyway, I look forward to hearing folks' thoughts and feedback on these topics. Thanks in advance!