Preparing your home — and wallet — for hurricane season

Twenty years ago, Hurricane Isabel came ashore on the Outer Banks, then scraped across much of Virginia, causing $925 million in property damage to the state. With the core of the 2023 hurricane season about to get started, there is the potential for more damage in the next couple of months.

Ian Giammanco, lead research meteorologist for the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety, examines the influence of extreme weather on residential and commercial structures.

"Our role is to test buildings and structures against the elements. What are the vulnerabilities in our building materials and structures, and what are the things we can actually do to reduce damage," Giammanco said.

He suggests homeowners spend some time now to guard against wind damage. Some things are simple; others are more involved.

First, go over your homeowners policy with your insurance agent. While not especially exciting, it will prevent surprises later. The next step is to walk around your property, looking for trees close to your home with big limbs that hang over your roof. Trim them back so they are no longer a threat.

Giammanco cautions: "tree damage occurs in winds that ordinarily would not have structurally damaged a home, but every time trees come down, branches get knocked into roofs. And that also lets water in: sometimes in the worst case, that means you're out of your home because you have to gut the drywall."

Even a little water can do lasting damage. In homes that are more than 30 years old, he suggests checking for cracks and gaps around windows and sealing them up, as water driven by hurricane winds can easily get in through those cracks.