Insurance companies can’t under value a home if you have the policy current. A home owners policy will state the value of the property you have covered.
Going back to the original question those with mortgages are required by the bank to have insurance, so if they don’t this will be a huge problem for the loan holders. Relief money will be going to the banks once again…
If it plays out as you suggest it’s likely to end in a class action lawsuit
insurance companies can and WILL undervalue a home, it's one of the most common problems in claims. This situation is unique in that like I said white families bought these homes in the 70s for $100,000 and HELD them to give to their kids who are in their 50s. So they've never been on the market, and this leaves an insurance company a lot of room to undervalue.
Also, the VAST majority of these homes were built before 2000, and so they do not fall under current building codes. The insurance company will have so many reasons to not pay out.
Regardless of what happens, the insurance company will put you through so much litigation on the claim that your legal fees will out way whatever you're trying to get from the insurer. They know this.
To determine "value" part of your policy has AGREED in the fine print that an insurance adjuster from your insurer will be the one determining the value. I promise they will undervalue it.
You could list redfin or something, but those are not official quotes. You would have to pay to hire your OWN adjuster to value your home, then have his testimony against the insurance adjuster. It could be such a brutal, long legal battle. 99% of responsible white families just settle for 50 cents on the dollar.
Wealthy Los Angeles is unique in that home prices have gone up 500-1000% since the 70s(Arnold bought properties for $50,000 in Santa Monica in the 70s). It's very hard to prove how much your home "would" have been worth with an aggressive insurance adjuster fighting you
And the "requirement" for a home to have insurance in Cali is that you are required to have 80% of the value of your home insured.
It's a mess. Collecting from insurance is a mess.