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Pace of home inspections doesn't slow ambitions

By IVAN PENN
Published March 8, 2007

A committee reviewing the state's effort to inspect and strengthen homes against hurricanes is recommending a dramatic expansion of the program despite criticism of its operations over the past 10 months.

The Windstorm Mitigation Study Committee wants the Legislature to tap tens of thousands of licensed architects, engineers and contractors to assist with home inspections.

The goal is for the state to inspect 350,000 homes statewide - about 10 percent of all homesteaded properties in Florida - and to strengthen 35,000 homes by June 30, 2009. So far in the first year of the $250-million program, about 14,000 home inspections have been completed, but not a single grant has been issued to strengthen a home.

"I know and the committee heard there is frustration about the speed," said Garrett Walton, the committee's chairman. "It's unfolding. Is it unfolding fast enough for most of us? No."

In addition, the Department of Financial Services has been criticized for its handling of a critical contract during the pilot phase of My Safe Florida Home, while Tom Gallagher was the state's chief financial officer. The contract was approved at $457,000, but improperly escalated to almost $3-million.

The state's new Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink said that despite the problems with the contract and slow pace in implementing the program, she believes it can be successful.

"I want to make it work for every homeowner," Sink said. "My goal would be to educate homeowners about the importance of hardening their homes, whether they get a grant or not."

As concerns about the operations and slow progress of My Safe Florida Home arose, the Legislature created the eight-member study committee in January to analyze and make recommendations about the future of the state's mitigation efforts.

The committee's recommendation headlines a series of proposals in a 62-page report to the Legislature released this week.

The report also recommends the state:

- Increase the pool of contractors available to perform mitigation work by allowing all licensed contractors to participate.

- Provide financial incentives and mandate insurance discounts for homeowners and business owners that participate in mitigation efforts.

- Strengthen the building code to make homes more hurricane resistant.

"Consumers have to be able to understand the benefits of mitigation," said committee member Michael Aranda, chief executive officer of EH Building Group II LLC. "Consumers who build or remodel in excess of the minimum code should receive some credit on their windstorm insurance premiums."

Results from the initial phase of the My Safe Florida Home program show homeowners already should be receiving an average premium discount of 18 percent without having to make any repairs to their dwellings, because many people are unaware of discounts they already are entitled to.

Lawmakers created the My Safe Florida Home mitigation program last spring, touting it as a way to keep homes safe during storms and to reduce homeowners' insurance costs.

My Safe Florida Home offers free home inspections and matching grants of up to $5,000 for qualified homeowners.

With hurricane season less than three months away, the process of hardening homes is just now under way, and no one has received a grant. The committee attributed part of the slow progress to the difficulty in creating the My Safe Florida Home program.

"It was created from scratch," Walton said. "But a lot of that nitty-gritty is behind us."

Although 14,000 home inspections were completed during the program's pilot phase, which ended in February, more than 50,000 homeowners remain on a waiting list for the inspections.

That process is not expected to begin again until mid April.

Committee members hope that by adding skilled professionals such as engineers and architects, the state could move more quickly to inspect more homes.

With the larger army of inspectors, homeowners would be able to request the free home inspections directly from a contractor rather than go through My Safe Florida Home. The state would reimburse the contractor when the inspection was completed.

Funding would come from an existing allocation of $250-million for the state's My Safe Florida Home program.

The report now goes to the Legislature for consideration about possible action.

"It is doable," Walton said. "It is very doable. We've made recommendations to help get us there."

Ivan Penn covers consumer affairs issues and can be reached at ipenn@sptimes.com or 727 892-2332.

Fast Facts:

On the Web

For information about My Safe Florida Home, go to www.mysafefloridahome. com or call toll-free 1-800-342-2762.

[Last modified March 8, 2007, 01:21:19]