major water damage

[Jacob Thorpe]

Major water damage in my investment property from a sudden pipe burst 

there was some other damage from a break in

and had a previous break it

I have max 160k  insurance payout.

It is a builders risk policy for house flipping. Through this flip I have had break ins, I have had contractors cheat me and pull knives on me, one of them hit my dog in the face with a drill. I have had theft and windows broken in, squaters staying in the back shed. Finally a major catastrophy happened and a water pipe burst causing major flooding. I am in talks with an insurance lawyer now, but how can I ensure to have max payout? I want the full 160k through all of the pain and suffering I have gone through.  The house is completely totaled and cannot be sold now, unless I dump in another 100k. I have losses financially now as the rehab time is almost twice the timeline now that was given in the beginning. I will also be taking the contractor to court soon as well for damages. I cant sleep at night, I cant think straight, I am on the verge of potentially losing everything. More than this, I have to fall gracefully because I cannot lose face infront of other investors because I do not want to lose out on future opportunities if people believe I am not handling things well. I have done everything the right way, the ethical way, treating people with honesty and respect.. treating the market and the process with respect (not cutting any corners, permits, etc) and it seems like I have been beaten down at every turn and now I am at risk of losing everything I have worked hard for years to obtain.  How can I make sure I dont get screwed over by the insurance company? THey are my last hope to get back what money I put in. I know it depends on the policy, but the house is completely destroyed and cannot be sold, ive lost lots of money already and this is affecting my mental health.

[Kevin Sobilo]

@Jacob Thorpe, I would seek out a good public insurance adjuster. That is what they do, they negotiate with the insurance company to get you the biggest payout that you're entitled to.

For example, if you were rehabbing an old house with plaster walls, the insurer might spec them to be replaced with drywall and base their payout on that BUT the public adjuster digs into all those details and makes them payout based on plaster because that is what is there originally. This is just a simple example for how a public adjuster gets you more money. I believe they just take a cut for what they get you.

To be fair, some of those issues may not be covered such as contractor's cheating you and I have never seen a pipe burst cause a total loss. I mean if you are talking about a $2 million house than sure $160k damage is possible, but if $160k is the replacement value of the home its hard to imagine a payout near that for a pipe burst.

Also, why did the pipe break? Was this because of a break-in and someone stealing copper pipes. Was it because of freeze damage causing the burst? Was it because of a contractor or plumber error? The why matters, especially if someone like the contractor is at fault because their insurance covers damage they cause to the property. 

Finally, be honest with yourself. If you think you did everything right and can't consider otherwise, I suggest NEVER trying to invest again! I have NEVER gone through a deal and done everything right and all of my deals have done well for me! There are clearly things you could/should have done differently that would have affected how things have done. 

You REALLY need to figure out what you can learn from this situation. That education/experience is worth more than whatever money is lost. Investing is at its heart a risk. So, if it goes badly it goes badly and you shouldn't be investing such that one bad deal ruins your life.