Public adjusters in Birmingham, Michigan.
Half of Birmingham's homes were built before 1960, and the typical home is valued near $700,000. On August 24, 2023, rain fell at a peak rate of more than three and a half inches an hour and the city logged 178 flooding reports. An older house finished to that standard costs far more to rebuild than most estimates allow.
AdjustFair works only for the policyholder, from our Ferndale office about seven miles down Woodward. We read the policy, document the full loss, price the repair the way a contractor would have to build it, and put that number in front of the insurance company with the proof behind it.
Where claims here get underpaid.
Most serious Birmingham claims we see fall into one of three groups, and each tends to come up short in a different place.
- Sewer backup after a cloudburst. Birmingham drains to two sewer districts, Evergreen-Farmington and George W. Kuhn, and part of the city still runs on combined sewers that carry rain and sewage in the same pipe. Of the 178 flooding reports after the August 2023 storm, 111 came from the Kuhn side. The insurance company may pay the whole loss at the backup endorsement limit even when the water came from a failure in the home's own sewer lead, which the policy can treat differently, so have the line scoped and the cause written down before you accept that label.
- Custom finishes priced as stock. With a median home value near $700,000, many Birmingham kitchens, baths and built-ins were made to order. Estimates are still routinely written with builder-grade cabinets, tile and trim, and the shortfall sits in what was specified, not in the unit prices.
- Smoke in older houses. Half the city's housing predates 1960, and in older framing and ductwork smoke from a contained fire can reach rooms that never saw flame. An estimate that cleans and paints only the room of origin leaves odor and residue in the rest of the house, and in the contents.
Called two days after the fire, and it never needed appraisal.
A kitchen grease fire put smoke through the house. We were engaged two days after the loss, and the scope was settled by negotiation without appraisal.
Questions we get here.
Birmingham flooded in August 2023. Can I also file with the city for my basement?
You can. The city considers a sewer backup claim only when it is filed in writing, and notice is due within 45 days after the damage is discovered. That claim is separate from your insurance claim, which depends on your policy and any backup endorsement. Keep photos, the plumber's report and receipts, because both claims will ask for them.
Will the insurance company price my Birmingham home's finishes correctly?
Not always. Custom cabinetry, stone, plaster, hardwood and millwork are often written up as their cheapest equivalents. We record what is actually in the house, from brand and material to dimensions and photographs, and price the repair as a contractor would have to build it. Old listing photos, invoices and remodel plans all help.
How far is your office from Birmingham?
About seven miles, straight down Woodward in Ferndale, so Birmingham is close to home for us. Call the number on this page and you will reach someone who can tell you what to photograph and keep before anything is removed, and when an adjuster can walk the property with you.
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