REAL ESTATE : Building Group Offers Unemployment Plan to Home Buyers

Home affordability in Orange County is on the rise with mortgage loan interest rates at a 20-year low, but many apartment dwellers refuse to buy a house because they fear losing their jobs.

So the Building Industry Assn. of Southern California is offering a new insurance plan to protect home buyers who are laid off. Participants will receive as many as 12 monthly payments of up to $3,500 each month if they lose their jobs within a year of buying a home.

The insurance premiums average 3% to 5% of a home buyer’s monthly payment, based on a person’s career and the home’s location. The policies are renewable.

The program is administered by the Averback Co. insurance brokerage and is backed by insurance companies Transamerica Corp., Lloyd’s of London and Senior Corps of Retired Executives. For information, call the BIA’s Diamond Bar headquarters at (909) 483-5146.

Those with certain jobs are not eligible for the insurance, said Averback spokesman Jeff Brehmeyer. He mentioned farm and seasonal workers, military employees and elected officials.

“They get unemployed too often,” he said.