Premier Home Watch of Jupiter, LLC - Jupiter, Florida

04/19/2024

SQUATTERS!

Seasonal residents are returning to homes throughout the country and beyond. They are leaving behind dwellings that will remain unoccupied for 6-8 months. Departure preparations, water shutoff, a/c adjustment, lock check, etc. have been completed. For many though, one step has been overlooked.

What have you done to protect your property from squatters? Most people have not considered the possibility of squatters moving into and taking over their homes. The problem has become widespread and the cost to homeowners has been excessive. The State of Florida has invoked legislation with penalties for squatters effective immediately.

For homeowners, however, that is not enough to prevent damage and financial loss from a squatter invasion. After all, there are many laws against burglary, armed robbery, assault, and even murder. Just the same, the news is filled night after night with reports of heinous crimes.

How important is your seasonal home to you? Can you absorb the financial loss caused by smashed appliances, counters, and bathroom fixtures? Does your home have irreplaceable family photos and collectibles? What if someone built a fire in the middle of your living room and stoked it with wood from your furniture?

Preventing squatters from entering your unoccupied home is nearly impossible. Still, there is a step that will minimize damage and lead to prompt extrication while protecting your home from other types of damage like mold arising from a/c failure, storm damage, water damage, or electrical issues.

There are “home watch” services available in communities throughout Florida. They enter and inspect unoccupied residences periodically with the approval of the homeowner. They look for and identify hazards that can result in property loss, notify the homeowner, and take steps to rectify the problem. Regardless
whether the visits are weekly, biweekly, or even monthly, they are better than leaving the home unattended for six or eight months.

The best home watch services are staffed by certified, bonded, and insured professionals with the experience that offers the best chance to protect your property. Premier Home Watch of Jupiter (https://phwjupiter.com) meets all the criteria as it serves seasonal residents throughout Palm Beach and Martin Counties.

09/23/2022

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>>> H U R R I C A N E P R E P

05/12/2022

HOW CAN THE HOME WATCH INDUSTRY HELP ALLEVIATE THE FLORIDA INSURANCE CRISIS?

According to reports, since 2017, six Florida insurance companies have become insolvent, with two more in the process of following suit. While the amount of fraudulent roofing claims and the litigation surrounding them is seemingly “the straw that broke the camel’s back,” by pushing insurance companies past their limits in today’s market, historically it has been water damage and hurricane losses which have been the biggest burden for property and casualty companies in the Sunshine State. With estimates of 1.7 million vacant homes in Florida, many of which are unoccupied second and vacation homes, issues gone undiscovered while homeowners are out of the state or area have certainly added to what has become an insurmountable burden placed on these companies, causing them to stop writing homeowner’s insurance in Florida. And that adds more risk to the already overburdened, state-sponsored Citizens Property Insurance Company.

The National Home Watch Association is a trade association with hundreds of members in the state of Florida. We believe that once Home Watch is recognized by the State of Florida as a risk mitigation service based on regular visits and timely reporting of obvious issues to clients, not only can the amount of property claims be reduced, but the dollar amount of the claims submitted could be substantially less because potentially undiscovered problems may be discovered because of a scheduled visit. We believe that property and casualty providers in the state of Florida should require an accredited—properly insured, bonded, and educated—Home Watch company to check on second and vacation homes in order to acquire and retain homeowner’s insurance. There are already companies that require “someone” to check on an unoccupied home, but that someone can be anyone—a neighbor, friend or one of the countless people calling themselves home watchers who are un/underinsured, uneducated, and unbonded. These choices offer no recourse to the homeowners whose homes they have been entrusted with. This requirement has obviously not been effective. We believe that employing an Accredited Home Watcher could make all the difference and relieve the burden on for-profit insurance companies, thereby allowing policies to be written by them and not forcing Citizens Property Insurance Company to carry additional risk.

With the Eastern storm season beginning June 1, Governor Ron Desantis has ordered the Florida Legislature to take part in a Special Session that will address the current insurance crisis later this month. The National Home Watch Association is happy to discuss our accreditation process, requirements, standards, and available training with any Legislator or insurance company interested in speaking with us.

Respectfully,

Jack Luber, Founder & Executive Director, National Home Watch Association (NHWA)
Steven Stiffler, Chair, NHWA Government Relations Committee, Florida Member of the NHWA Advisory Board
Doris Fink – Florida Member of the NHWA Advisory Board
Carl Lorenzini - Florida Member of the NHWA Advisory Board

04/22/2022

Are you finalizing arrangements for your departure and return to your home up North, or have you already left? We hope you have enjoyed the weather and all the changes you have noted during your stay in South Florida.

One quick question: Have you secured a home watch service to perform periodic checks on your Florida home? If you have not taken that important step, here is a link to the website of a service you might need: https://propertydamageconsultants-pb.com/

We sincerely hope you will not experience the property damage commonly caused by mold, water, hurricane, storm, roof, fire, or flood damage, theft, or vandalism.

Best wishes and have a safe journey.

When you have suffered damages at home or at business from floods, water, fire or any other incident, you need urgent help to overcome the situation. Everybody who buys insurance policy expects that policy help them during these events; but many times that is a fake: insurance claims are uphill. But...

04/05/2022

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This could happen to you while you are away from your seasonal home:

POLICE TELL WOMAN WHO SPENT 3 WEEKS IN HOSPITAL THEY FOUND 3 PEOPLE LIVING IN HER HOME

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (CBS12) April 5, 2022 — A woman who'd been in the hospital and then rehab for weeks found out her home had been burglarized, and police say they caught three people in the act.

A West Palm Beach police officer was called to the scene on Lilac Court on Thursday and said he met the property manager. She said a neighbor told her someone may have broken into apartment 102 and explained the situation with the tenant.

The officer wrote in the arrest report, “I knocked on the door to the apartment and announced ‘police.’ At this time no one came to the door and [complex name] maintenance used the key and opened the door. As maintenance opened the door, I observed a [man] inside of the apartment.” The officer wrote the man was detained in handcuffs pending further investigation and identified as Dennis Manning, 56.

At that point, he and another officer cleared the rest of the apartment and found two other people: Larry Sylvester, 35, and Leslie Ann Barcus, 53.

He noted in the arrest report, “Within the apartment I observed furniture and clothing strewn throughout the apartment. The bedroom and closet appeared to be rummaged through as well. I observed a television box for a 50 inch Spectre Box but did not observe the television inside the apartment. I observed no forced entry into the apartment.”

Next, the officer wrote he went to the rehab facility and met with the victim. She said an emergency crew took her to the hospital and “one of the medics locked her door prior to leaving the residence.”

The officer wrote, “[The victim] was adamant she did not give permission to anyone to stay in her home or give a set of keys to anyone while she was gone. I presented a picture of each suspect located inside of the apartment. According to [the victim], she stated she does not know or seen the suspects who were located in the residence. [She] added she did not allow suspects to stay there. [She] advised there should be two televisions inside of her home. I notified her I only located a smaller television in the bedroom and the larger 50 inch television was missing.” She said that TV was worth $500.

The suspects were taken to the West Palm Beach police booking facility.

04/01/2022

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GOING NORTH? SUMMER-PROOF YOUR FLORIDA HOME TO AVOID WORRY, DISASTER

By Judy Lawrence, Naples Daily News

When you return to your home or condominium after a summer away, you expect to find it as you left it. After all, you did everything humanly possible to secure it.

Or did you?

Local Realtors and service people relate horror stories about returning vacationers and snowbirds who have opened their doors to nightmare conditions that were the result of storm damage or improper preparation.

Storm damage can't be predicted or controlled, but knowledgeable preparation will go a long way in saving the homeowner money, time and heartache.

According to Jack Dalton of Property Services International, hundreds of thousands of houses are left in an unoccupied state during the year in Southwest Florida alone.

'It's the small things that you don't think about that may cause the biggest problems,' said Julie Grubb, broker at Amerivest Realty Lucas & Associates, Bonita Springs.

Like cleaning out the refrigerator, turning it off and/or unplugging it ? good idea, yes?

Not according to Maria Procacci, president of Vineyards Services, a home owner personal service.

'There is no reason to unplug the refrigerator. If the door shuts, it will be mold city when you return. And many people keep spices, candles, coffee and other things in the refrigerator so they maintain their freshness.'

Grubb advises that someone come in at least once a month and run the dishwasher to prevent the seals from drying out. 'Catch problems before they cost a fortune,' she said. 'It will save you money if you pay a little extra now and have things checked more often.'

Having things checked often is the top advice from the experts; weekly is best, but at least once a month.

Procacci tells of a resident who carefully prepared the home, but didn't have anyone check it. The air conditioning unit failed and the homeowners returned to mold covering the walls, the furniture, everything, said Procacci.

If they had asked a friend or neighbor to check on it periodically, or contracted with a service to inspect it on a regular basis, a disgusting and expensive situation could have been avoided.

Air conditioner failure is one of the greatest concerns and can be the cause of expensive repairs.

'The air conditioner is the heart of the home,' said Jack Dalton of Property Services International, a home services agency that has been in business since 1990.

To more fully control conditions that encourage mold and mildew, he recommends that the humidistat be tied into the air conditioning thermostat and be able to override the thermostat if the need arises. If you don't have a humidistat, have one installed. He also emphasized that the water be turned off outside at the emergency cut-off. If you don't know where it is, be sure to find it before you leave.

But someone should still check everything periodically. If you elect not to have anyone come in and check your home, be sure someone locally has a key, advised June Mueller, of Keystone Custom Homes, an Arthur Rutenberg franchise.

'It is vital that someone have a key and a phone number where you can be reached in case anything does happen, like a leak or storm damage or a burglary. If you're in Ohio and someone needs to get into your home to fix something, what then?'

If you're worried about a burglary, and even if you're not, you should alert the Sheriff's substation nearest you when you leave, no matter how short or long the trip.

'Tell the substation when you are leaving, when you're returning and supply an emergency number,' said Dennis Huff, Crime Prevention Practitioner for the Collier County Crime Prevention Bureau, 'If someone will be checking on your house, tell the substation what kind of car they have, to prevent embarrassing questions if they see your friend or neighbor in the driveway. An officer will check the house several times a week. If it is easily viewed from the street, he may just drive by, but if it is not, or if something looks suspicious, he will check the doors and windows.'

Huff tells of repeatedly checking a house where the alarm kept going off several times in one day. The officers couldn't find anything amiss, until someone noticed a parakeet fly across the room. The loose budgie was the culprit.

'Something as small as movement of the drapes caused by the air conditioning can activate a motion sensor and set off the alarm,' he said. 'But more often than not, pets are the reason for the false alarms.'

Anything and everything can go wrong when you're away, from an alarming parakeet to an electrical storm.

Gary Beaumont, president of Beaumont Electric Company Inc. advises surge protectors for all appliances.

'If a nearby transformer is struck by lightning, or a car hits a light pole, it sends a surge of electricity to all the homes on the street,' he said. 'That rush of electricity can internally damage or destroy everything electronic in your home.
And nowadays, that's almost everything in your home that plugs in.'

To double protection against electrical surges, consider a whole-house surge protector that is installed in the main electrical panel, which will protect the air conditioning unit and appliances and help protect your computer from larger surges.

'High-rises and condominiums almost always have the whole-house surge protector, but it's not usually included in new construction of homes. We highly recommend it,' Beaumont said.

If you're overwhelmed by the minutia of it all, home inspection services will do it for you, from closing the home (turning off the water, unplugging the hot water heater/turning off the breaker, unplugging appliances, and bringing in the lanai furniture) to undoing all that and stocking the refrigerator before you return, according to Procacci.

You select how often they should inspect the residence.Weekly is best. You also supply them with necessary information ? such as the location of the water shut-off valve, the name of the pool service company, the warranties and service agreement, security alarm information and more.

The agency will perform the obvious tasks such as running the dishwasher and garbage disposer, flushing the toilets, checking for insects, making sure the air conditioner works properly and a long checklist of other items. They turn the water on when they enter and turn it off again when they leave.

If anything needs maintenance, they will schedule it and send a monthly report.

Property Services International even posts a decal on the front and rear of the home, much like the security companies do, with its phone number in case of emergency.

Some condominiums and developments offer a concierge service to take care of every detail of closing and opening the home.
But the single most important thing to remember is to lock the door. According to Huff, 'People actually forget to lock their doors when they leave.'

THINGS TO DO BEFORE YOU LEAVE:

-- Turn the water off at the emergency cut-off valve outside the home.

-- Unplug the computer and remove the phone jack from the wall if you have a modem.

-- Leave the refrigerator on, but do not leave any food in it or in the freezer.

-- Prop open the dishwasher door to prevent mold growth from residual moisture.

-- Turn off the water to the washing machine and the hot water heater.

-- Unplug the hot water heater or flip the circuit-breaker.

-- Unplug lamps, televisions, stereos.

-- Close the fireplace flue.

-- Turn down the volume on the phone so it won't ring endlessly for outsiders to hear and know you're not home.

-- Don't move plants to group them together for easy watering. Plants may not adjust to their new locations.

-- There is no need to unplug the stove.

-- Give a trusted friend or neighbor a key and any security alarm information and a number where you can be reached.

-- Don't leave the house empty-looking. Have someone open or close the drapes occasionally.

-- Put a radio and lights on a timer to make it seem the home is still occupied.

-- If you contract with a service, make sure they are licensed, bonded and insured.

For more information or schedule routine inspections by a registered, licensed, bonded, and insured professional, contact Premier Home Watch of Jupiter (phwjupiter.com)

03/31/2022

https://www.phwjupiter.com

After many challenges and more than a little frustration, the Premier Home Watch of Jupiter website is up and running.

This is your chance to share your constructive thoughts. Please visit the website and comment on its value.

03/29/2022

NEW WEBSITE

Premier Home Watch of Jupiter is getting ready to launch a new website. Watch for the announcement and please prepare to offer your thoughts and comments.

03/27/2022

TRUST! IS THAT ENOUGH?

Your family member, friend, neighbor, maintenance man is trustworthy - perhaps someone you have known for years. But...

You scrimped, saved, and sacrificed to own your vacation home in sunny South Florida. Why put it at risk by failing to hire a licensed, bonded, and insured professional to complete a thorough visual inspection of the interior and exterior of your home on a regularly scheduled basis? A professional will check windows and doors for leaks and locks, test alarm systems, a/c units, etc., check for mold and mildew and infestations (termites, fleas, ants, etc.). A professional will prepare your vacation home for storms and hurricanes and will address post-storm cleanup.

A certified, professional home watch expert will follow up with a detailed report sent to you following every inspection of your home.

Can you afford to make the mistake of trusting someone to inspect your home when he has a chance? What if something does go wrong? Your homeowner's insurance policy may deny any claim if your vacation home is unoccupied for more than 30 days. Your best protection from catastrophic loss is the services of a registered, licensed, bonded, insured, certified home watch expert.