If you’ve lost power in your condo, it’s hard to imagine doing anything other than walking over to your utility closet, opening up your electrical panel, and flipping a switch in your circuit breaker. But for others living in older buildings, it may not be so easy to get power back. Some residential buildings built 30+ years ago are still equipped with fuse boxes. Fuse boxes are usually located in a common area, such as a hallway or a meter room. And unlike a circuit, a fuse will blow when overheated and will need to be replaced. Time to get strata to call an electrician! On the other hand, the internal mechanism of a circuit breaker will trip and shut off the power when there is a surge of electricity. Nothing gets burnt, so there’s nothing to replace. To restore power, you can simply reset the circuit breaker by flipping the switch back on. This makes a circuit breaker the preferred choice between the two, as it can be used over and over again. A fuse box is an example of functional obsolescence.
What is Functional Obsolescence?
You may have never heard of the term functional obsolescence, but there is a pretty good chance you might have seen it. Ever been to an apartment unit that has three bedrooms but just one bathroom? The textbook definition of functional obsolescence according to the Dictionary of Real Estate Appraisal is “the impairment of functional capacity of a property according to market tastes and standards.” Another common (and outdated) feature found in older properties is single-paned windows. There’s a slim chance you’ll find these in newer buildings, as double-paned (or even triple-paned) windows are now the norm due to their energy-efficient, noise-cancelling, and long-term cost-savings qualities.
Functional Obsolescence and Insurance Appraisals
At Normac, our accredited appraisers use a Cost Approach to determine our replacement costs. Estimates are based on replacing a property with an equally desirable substitute, as close as possible to where the property stands now. In other words, we generally assume a like-for-like replacement of all components of the property. However, we must also consider what has changed since the original property was built. There are some circumstances—such as in the case of fuse boxes—where it is safe to assume that existing components within the property will be replaced with a similar alternative, one that is up to current industry and technology standards. Fuse boxes were not designed to deal with today’s electrical loads—they are considered functionally obsolete—and so replacing them with modern circuit breakers in the case of a total loss is a reasonable assumption.
We take functional obsolescence into consideration in this process because in most cases, it will cause the cost per square footage of the property to go down. During an appraisal, we try to estimate how much it would cost to replace the utility in the building rather than how much it would cost to reproduce the exact property.
Copper vs. PEX Plumbing
To illustrate this point, let’s take a look at copper vs. PEX (plastic) piping. Technology often changes the choice of construction materials. Two decades ago, copper piping was the gold standard of plumbing. It is a time-tested water supply line material with its list of pros, but that doesn’t mean that it’s immune to trouble. For one, copper pipes are more likely to break if the water inside freezes. Copper is also a very rigid material, which means it has to be cut and soldered to size, requiring more connections and thus more installation labour. Then there’s the issue of cost. Copper pipes will cost 58 to 68 per cent more to install than PEX pipes.
Conversely, due to its plastic nature PEX pipes can be installed 30 to 40 per cent faster than copper pipes. PEX is also known for its durability. When adjusted for pressure and temperature ratings, it has a predicted life expectancy of 50 years. It is no surprise then why many prefer PEX over copper. Given the higher labour, material, and maintenance costs associated with copper, it is simply impractical not to go with PEX instead. This shows how vital it is for your appraiser to have insight on current standards of material and design in order to produce the most accurate Total Insurable Value (TIV) for your property.
Qualified appraisers will have the specialized skills and training to determine appropriate costing estimates that take into consideration additional factors such as functional obsolescence, current building practices, and technology improvements. For your peace of mind, leave insurance appraising up to the experts. At Normac, our appraisers keep up to date with construction methods, trends, costs, building codes, bylaw, demolition costs, and provincial Condominium and Property Acts to ensure you are paying for exactly what you need. No more, and no less.
