One of the painful aftermaths of fires and tornadoes that decimate homes may be the crushing realization that the home is dramatically underinsured. According to one of the largest residential building cost data companies, Marshall & Swift/Boeckh, 64 percent of U.S. homes are undervalued by an average of 19 percent. If this figure is applied to a home with a replacement cost of $400,000, it might be insured for only $324,000, a shortfall of $76,000.
