My Safe Florida Home program comes to an end

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – July 3, 2008 – Florida Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink announced today that the My Safe Florida Home (MSFH) program will end this weekend, once it meets the Florida Legislature’s goal of approving 400,000 homeowners for free wind inspections. The program will cease to take new applications in the next few days, ending its mission a year ahead of schedule.
 
In 2007, the Florida Legislature directed the MSFH program to provide inspections for at least 400,000 site-built, single-family, residential properties and provide grants to at least 35,000 applicants before June 30, 2009. The first-come, first-serve program averaged over 5,000 new sign-ups per day.
 
“When the Florida Legislature created the My Safe Florida Home program, their intent was to create a culture of mitigation in our state,” says CFO Alex Sink. “Almost half a million homes later, homeowners served by this program are better informed and most are better prepared for the next big storm.”
 
Participating homeowners receive a free wind inspection report, which suggests ways homeowners can harden their homes against storm damage and informs homeowners if they are currently eligible to save money on their wind insurance premiums.  To date, 58 percent of homeowners who received a free wind inspection were eligible for discounts on their wind insurance premiums, with their average savings $219.31. The MSFH program, including local government and non-profits, approved approximately 39,000 homeowners for mitigation grants so far, and has paid 18,787 grants totaling more than $63.8 million.

For more information, visit the program Web site at: http://www.mysafefloridahome.com

© 2008 FLORIDA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®

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