Spring and summer bring a surge of home purchases on Cape Cod. If you’re buying, Cape Cod home insurance is usually the last item on a long checklist.
That’s usually where the problems start.
A Common Cape Cod Home Insurance Problem
A client bought a Cape Cod cottage in the fall. Over the winter, they made a few minor improvements and left the home vacant while they weren’t using it.
Routine stuff. Nothing dramatic.
But when their insurance company conducted an inspection, the property was flagged as unoccupied. That changed the risk profile entirely. The policy was cancelled, and they were scrambling to find new coverage in the middle of winter , with fewer options and higher costs.
The situation was preventable. It just needed the right questions asked upfront.
The Questions That Actually Matter
- Will the home be occupied year-round, or only seasonally?
- Will it sit vacant during the off-season?
- Are you planning any renovations?
- Is it furnished?
- How often will someone check on it?
The answers shape the coverage. Skip those questions, and you may end up with a policy that looks fine on paper but falls apart the moment something happens.
What We Do Differently
Before you bind a policy, we read it line by line, not just the summary.
For Cape Cod properties, that means checking how the policy handles seasonal vacancy, whether wind and flood are actually covered or quietly excluded, and what happens if the home sits empty for months at a time. Standard policies often carve out exactly the risks that matter most on the Cape: coastal wind exposure, salt air damage, and off-season vacancy.
We have an office on the Cape and five additional offices across Massachusetts which gives us relationships with insurance carriers who will cover coastal properties that others won’t touch.
If You’re Buying This Season
Don’t assume the coverage you’re quoted is the coverage you need.
Schedule a quick review with Nanci Cicchetti before you close. She’s based in our Cape Cod office, has lived here for over 20 years, and knows exactly what to look for based on how you plan to use the home.
You will leave knowing what’s covered, what’s not, and who to call if something comes up after the policy is in place.
Contact Nanci here.