Are You Prepared?

My neighborhood was flooded this weekend. There was great disparity in the level of preparedness from house to house. Some neighbors had generators, sump pumps, and plenty of food on hand. Others sat in the dark or asked better supplied neighbors for milk. As these “hundred year” storms seem to be hitting us almost every year, more and more people are preparing for them. One thing many of us have not done is to document our possessions. If you are unfortunate enough to have your home flooded or damaged you will be in a much better position to recoup your losses if you have performed a home inventory. It’s not as painful as you might think. You can use a video camera or digital camera to show all the items in a room. You can narrate on video the value of items. The Insurance Information Institute has set up a helpful website where you can download free software to help you perform a home inventory. If you have some family heirlooms you want to find the worth of, the library has quite a few antique and collectibles price guides.