What Florida homeowners need to know
Every piece comes from real experience: the mistakes made after Hurricane Ian, and the knowledge that came too late. Written by Andy Don, Cape Coral.
New articles publish weekly through hurricane season, in English and Spanish.
Every guide here points back to one tool: your free Storm File, saved on your own phone.
What Hurricane Ian Really Cost Me (It Wasn't the Storm)
The full first-person account: the claim, the settlement, the contractor, and everything learned too late.
Read it →The 15 Contractor Red Flags I Missed After Hurricane Ian
Numbered and specific, from experience. Doubles as the printable checklist.
Read it →How to Verify a Florida Contractor License in 3 Minutes
The step-by-step DBPR lookup: search, status, discipline history, and the qualifier match. Do it before any meeting.
Read it →Cómo verificar la licencia de un contratista en Florida
La verificación paso a paso en el portal oficial del DBPR: estado, historial y el calificador. Tres minutos, gratis.
Read it →Document Your Florida Home Before Hurricane Season
The room-by-room documentation guide, what formats to save, and where to store it.
Read it →The Contractor Payment Schedule That Protects You
A modest deposit, progress payments tied to finished work, and the final payment held for the punch list. Plus the Florida statute that backs you up.
Read it →El calendario de pagos que lo protege al contratar un contratista
Nunca pague el total por adelantado. Un depósito moderado, pagos por etapas terminadas y el pago final retenido hasta que el trabajo esté completo.
Read it →The One Paper You Should Not Sign in the Driveway
Assignment of benefits (AOB): what that clipboard paper did to Florida homeowners, and the law change that means nobody should be handing you one now.
Read it →The Two Deadlines That Can End a Florida Storm Claim
One year to report, 18 months to ask for more, both counted from the day of the storm. When the clocks start and what to put on the calendar this week.
Read it →Los dos plazos que pueden terminar su reclamo de seguro en Florida
Un año para reportar y 18 meses para pedir más, contados desde el día de la tormenta. Cuándo empiezan los relojes y qué anotar en el calendario.
Read it →Insurance Words, Translated Into Plain English
The 25 words on your claim paperwork, translated: deductible, actual cash value, the depreciation holdback, proof of loss, supplemental claim, and the rest.
Read it →Las palabras del seguro, explicadas en español sencillo
Las 25 palabras en inglés de su papeleo de reclamo, explicadas en español sencillo, del deductible a la recoverable depreciation.
Read it →One Afternoon of Photos Can Carry Your Whole Claim
The room-by-room home inventory method: wide shots, open drawers, serial plates, and where the record must live. With a checklist that saves your progress.
Read it →Una tarde de fotos puede sostener todo su reclamo
El inventario del hogar cuarto por cuarto: tomas amplias, cajones abiertos, placas de serie y dónde debe vivir el registro. Con una lista que guarda su progreso.
Read it →Public Adjuster or Handle It Yourself? An Honest Comparison
What a public adjuster legally costs in Florida, what doing it yourself actually takes, the free middle paths most people skip, and the cold math for deciding.
Read it →¿Ajustador público o manejar el reclamo usted mismo?
Lo que cuesta legalmente un ajustador público, lo que exige hacerlo solo, y los caminos gratuitos que casi nadie menciona.
Read it →What Not to Say to the Adjuster (and What to Say Instead)
The phrases that quietly hurt claims: guessed causes, polite minimizing, volunteered speculation, on-the-spot agreement. Not tactics, just accuracy.
Read it →Qué no decirle al ajustador (y qué decir en su lugar)
Las frases que en silencio dañan un reclamo, y la alternativa honesta para cada una: exactitud, no tácticas.
Read it →The Hurricane Deductible: The Biggest Number Nobody Reads
It is a percentage of your coverage, not of the damage. See your own 2, 5, and 10 percent in dollars, and learn the calendar-year rule that can save thousands on a second storm.
Read it →El deducible de huracán: el número grande que nadie lee
Un porcentaje del valor asegurado, no del daño. Vea su 2, 5 y 10 por ciento en dólares, y la regla del año calendario que puede ahorrarle miles.
Read it →What Goes in a Storm File
A Storm File replaces a messy folder of receipts with a single, clear record. Learn the five parts, the ten papers you need, and exactly where it should live.
Read it →Qué va en un archivo de tormenta
Un Archivo de Tormenta reemplaza una carpeta desordenada de recibos con un registro único y claro. Conozca las cinco partes, los diez papeles que necesita y exactamente dónde debe vivir.
Read it →Flood or Wind? Why One Florida Storm Can Mean Two Claims
A hurricane brings both wind and rising water, but your homeowners policy only covers one. How to handle the two adjusters, the two deadlines, and the photos you need.
Read it →¿Inundación o viento? Por qué una tormenta en Florida puede significar dos reclamos
Un huracán trae tanto viento como agua que sube, pero su póliza de propietario solo cubre uno. Cómo manejar los dos ajustadores, los dos plazos y las fotos que necesita.
Read it →Lo que aprendí después del Huracán Ian
La historia completa, en español: el reclamo, el contratista, y lo que nadie le advierte.