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Say What?

A fire broke out at the local A&P yesterday, and the store was still closed today. So I went to the Sav-A-Center on Tchoupitoulas to buy ingredients for curried tomato bisque.

Wow. All registers were open, yet the lines were so long that they extened into the grocery ailses. The wait was so long I had to bust out a beverage from my cart.

In fact, the wait was so long that I had time to call Fidelity insurance and check the status of our flood claim. Understand, you’ve gotta wait on hold forever before you can talk to a live human being.

But when the guy told me they were cutting a check for 80-odd thousand dollars, I nearly dropped my phone.

How could it be that much? Even if it includes the homeowner’s settlement — which it shouldn’t — and the contents claim — which it shouldn’t — 80K seems like too much.

This has me worried, because my understanding is that if your house is damaged beyond 50% of its value, you have to elevate the whole thing above the floodplain. I don’t know what to make of it.

Published inFinancial ShitKatrina

2 Comments

  1. I have heard that the housng market is a bit bumped up in NO currently due to uncertainty and speculation of a possible housing shortage depending on what will happen with the vacant houses. NOLA’s pre-flood prices were way below the national average and the prospect of reconstruction money will tend to pull them toward the median, I would imagine. If your insurance folks have told you to expect a 50% settlement, that may well be the number. Plan wisely with it! 80k will go quick if you plough it right back into the house, as you will certainly need to with a serious chunk.

  2. Hmmm, I’d call ’em back and make sure they have the right place – lots is screwy with all the claims going on…maybe I’m just too cautious myself

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