Hurricanes are scary enough, but the idea of broken glass flying through your living room at 155 mph is downright terrifying. Fearing that hurricane winds coming in through broken windows can create dangerous pressures inside your home that can collapse your walls and roof is even worse.

Add hurricane window film

Tough, clear plastic hurricane film is popular because you can’t really see it, and you can leave it in place year-round. If the glass breaks, hurricane film prevents glass shards from zipping around inside your home. 

You can install peel-and-stick hurricane film on your windows for a mere $25 per linear foot. As a bonus, the film blocks ultraviolet light that can fade carpets and fabric.

But  the film may NOT be strong enough to stop hurricane winds from blowing in the entire window frame. That’s why most insurance companies don’t offer discounts for hurricane film and why you should also shield your windows with plywood.

Shield windows with plywood

Some tips for using plywood to shield your windows:

• Cut sheets of 1/2- or 5/8-inch-thick plywood. Make sure you overlap window frames by a good 8 inches all around.

• Use heavy-duty screws and anchors (in wood) or expansion bolts (in masonry) to attach the plywood to your home’s walls (not the window frames).

• Pre-install screw anchors around window openings to speed up installation.

• Store shields in a handy location where you can reach them easily and put them up fast.

• Keep your cordless battery charged so it’ll be ready to use when a storm is coming.

• Keep extra flashlights and batteries handy in your home. It gets very dark inside once the plywood is installed.

• Expect to spend $1 to $2 per square foot if you do the work yourself and $3 to $5 per square foot if you hire someone.

Add storm shutters

Simply pull the shutters into place before a hurricane to prevent damage and broken windows.
Look for shutters that have perforations or are made from tough translucent fiberglass that lets in light. 

Expect to spend anywhere from $10 to $50 per square foot for professional installation of storm shutters, depending on style and material.

Install high-impact glass windows

Expect to pay three times as much for a window with high-impact glass as for a regular window of the same size and type. You need to have windows that are extremely strong to fight those strong winds.

Ask about home insurance discounts

To encourage you to take steps to minimize damage, your insurer might offer discounts for hurricane-mitigation improvements. With improvements, such as storm shutters or high-impact glass your insurer will offer a great discount.

Adjustable rate mortgage or ARM: Type of loan that does not have a fixed interest rate. Instead the rate changes based on the index rate.

Annual Percentage Rate or APR: the “true cost” of a loan, shown as a yearly rate, which includes the simple interest of the mortgage and other charges.

Equity: calculated by subtracting the amount still owed on the mortgage loan or loans from the home’s fair-market value.

FHA loan: Stands for Federal Housing Administration. It assists homebuyers who normally would not qualify for conventional financing. The federal government provides mortgage insurance to lenders to cover most of the losses that would come when a borrower fails to make payments.

FICO Score: Stands for Fair Isaac Corporation. Also known as a credit score. Lenders and credit companies use the score, which range from 300 to 850 to help determine someone’s financial stability and trustworthiness.

Fixed rate mortgage: Type of loan that has an interest rate that does change.

Private mortgage insurance: Also known as PMI. Bought by a buyer to protect the lender in case of default. It’s routinely required if you don’t have a 20 percent down payment.

Points: One point equals 1 percent of the principal of your mortgage. Points are usually collected during the close of escrow. They could be paid by borrower or homeseller or split both ways.

Pre-qualify: Pre-approval of a loan application to determine the maximum loan amount.

PITI: Stands for principal, interest, taxes and insurance, the parts of housing costs.

Refinancing: Paying off one loan by taking out another. This is usually done to get better terms, such as a lower interest rate. However, in some cases, consumers may end up paying more over time, so it’s best to do the math.

Source: HUD

ca_anaheim

click on this link for the market report of first quarter, 2011. This is information provided by the California Association of Realtorsof which I am a member.

Whether buying or selling, or just curious, it is good information to have.