It has been three months since the tragic night of October 20, 2019, when 800+ people were displaced from the homes due to an F3 tornado that rocked Preston Hollow and NW Dallas. People left their homes in the dead of night with only the clothes on their backs and although a lot has happened since that night to begin the recovery process, it can also sometimes feel like nothing has transpired. 

What HAS happened? Well, some of us did get our tax values lowered by the Dallas Appraisal District which only seems fair. Why should one be taxed for the value of a home that is uninhabitable? This, of course, opens another can of forms as FEMA still has not declared the area a natural disaster despite the governor requesting a presidential disaster declaration for Dallas with an estimated $38.5 million dollars being needed to clean everything up and get even the most basic things like traffic lights back up to speed. What happens if FEMA and the president do not approve this disaster declaration? The Dallas taxpayers are stuck with the bill. Sigh. 

It seems like most of us are currently waiting on insurance and trying to explain and prove the damage that was done to our homes. We are waiting for the adjusters to come to a decision and crossing our fingers that we are all able to rebuild or sell without too much of a loss. Remodelers have started swooping in to “fix” the homes that were left standing. I would recommend getting engineering reports and very detailed line items of what was done in the remodel before purchasing one of these projects. There have already been a few cleared lots for sale in Preston Hollow and, while the values trickled down a tad, the numbers seem to be holding steady now. 

The mortgage companies are also involved in this process as they are the ones who hold the loan on most of the homes. When we finally do get our insurance check, it is payable to both the homeowner and the mortgage company for that reason. That means the mortgage company will be collecting and monitoring the re-building process. What a treat! This will add weeks to the process for those of us who are making the decision to rebuild and get back into our homes. 

The next three months will be the most telling because those who received a six month lease from their insurance company will have to be out of their lease by the end of April. Those that were granted a year of lease money will have more time to decide what they are going to do. At the end of the day, however, everyone battling with this mental and physical rebuilding process will have to come to a decision as to whether they are going to commit to rebuilding or if selling the land makes the most sense for their family. 

Christy BerryJanuary 15, 2020