Buying a house is a big expense, and it is normal to be concerned about what all can go wrong. You may worry about plumbing problems or your air conditioner breaking down, and these large expenses can be a financial drain. This is about the time when someone will recommend a whole home warranty. But, is purchasing a whole home warranty worth it?

What is a Whole Home Warranty?

Whole home warranties act as another insurance policy on your house. These policies cover the repair or replacement costs of items that aren’t generally included in a regular homeowner’s insurance policy, such as plumbing, appliances, electrical systems, and heating and cooling systems. As a homeowner, this kind of coverage can seem like a great way to prevent yourself from being bogged down by large, unexpected expenses. With Cates Care, our home warranty option you can be sure that your home is in good hands, and that you won’t be duped by shady home warranty companies that don’t have your best interest in mind.

What is Covered?

Basic homeowner’s insurance covers your home’s structure and your belongings if there is a storm, fire, flood, or other event that causes serious damage. Realtors often push for whole home warranties to help homeowners cover the costs of other problems in their homes, such as malfunctioning HVAC units or appliances.

Unfortunately, however, in most cases, whole home warranties are often costlier to homeowners than replacing appliances as they break. This can be especially true when it comes to heating and cooling equipment, because the warranties don’t always cover the replacement of the system. For this reason, many people shy away from these types of warranties. Cates Care offers homeowners an option that won’t break the bank and actually covers common problems that homeowners face on critical hardware, including:

• HVAC units,
• Water heaters,
• Sump pumps,
• Septic tanks,
• Boilers,
• and more!

Learn more about everything that is and is not covered on our Cates Care page.

Not all home warranties are created equally. In fact, many providers have found ways to weasel out of paying for appliances and HVAC equipment that breaks down. Many home warranty providers don’t grant homeowners the funds to pay-in-full for the repairs or replacements that homeowners need, and in some cases, providers will refuse to pay for any part of the appliance’s repair or replacement.

It is important that you know just what is covered by your whole home warranty before you sign the contract. Some contracts will contain vague language about what is and is not covered. If you are worried about your AC unit, you will want to double check the contract to make sure it will be covered by your warranty in the event it needs replaced.

Cost of a Whole Home Warranty

The price of a whole home warranty depends heavily on the provider. Cates Heating and Cooling’s Cates Care Home Warranty starts at $384 per year, which is only $32 per month. We also offer adds on that will increase the monthly price, but they offer more protections for the homeowner.

It is important that homeowners know what is covered in their warranty. If there are things that aren’t covered in the original plan, you may want to add on services that include the appliances that you want covered.

You should also note that the price of a whole home warranty can be drastically different depending on the provider and your location. Don’t be surprised if you see options between $300 and $800 per year.

Whole Home Warranty Services

When you have a whole home warranty through a third-party, you don’t get to pick your service provider. If your HVAC unit breaks down, you don’t get to call your favorite technician out to work on the repairs. Instead, you contact your warranty provider, and they send out a contractor. Often, the contractor will be the least expensive in your area. Typically, this leads to poor quality service that leaves homeowners with a bad taste in their mouths.

Purchasing a whole home warranty through a company that you already trust is the perfect way to ensure that you get high-quality, professional technicians in your home every time there is a problem. This is one of the main reasons that many customers come to Cates directly for their whole home warranty.

Advice for Whole Home Warranties

Here is some advice for choosing a whole home warranty—especially if you are going through a provider that isn’t Cates:

• Understand just what the warranty will cover in your home. Like insurance, not all coverage options are the same, and you don’t want to find out after your dishwasher breaks down that it wasn’t covered. Some warranties don’t cover certain types of damage, and you want to know just what is covered before you sign a contract and fork over your money.
• Understand all fees associated with the warranty. While the cost of the plan will probably be laid out for you, be sure that you ask about service fees and deductibles. You won’t want to be caught off guard by fees down the road.
• Find out if you already have warranty protection on the appliances and systems in your home before you decide to purchase additional protection. For a lot of brand-new equipment, there will be 12 to 24-month warranties that already protect you from the costs of repairs, so you won’t need to shell out more money for coverage.
• Find out if there are any limits on the plan. You’d hate to think that your warranty will cover the cost of a brand-new HVAC system only to find out that they only pay up to $1,500, and you are left to foot the rest of the bill yourself.
• Find out if broken appliances will be replaced or repaired. Some companies will replace an appliance or system completely if the repair charges are deemed too expensive. In this case, they may only want to pay for the depreciated value of the product, which means you will have to pay more to get the same item put back in your home. Other providers may want to go through with repairs before they think about replacing the item.

Using our Cates Care home warranty, you don’t have to worry when you start having problems in your home. If your HVAC unit breaks down or needs repairs and you live in the Kansas City Metro Area, including Overland Park, call Cates Heating and Cooling today at 913-888-4470. A Cates technician will be out to service or replace your HVAC unit as soon as possible. With emergency HVAC services, your family doesn’t have to suffer in the heat of summer or the cold of winter.