I Never Thought It Would Happen to Me… Until It Did
There are some things in life you think will NEVER happen to you. A house fire was one of those things for me… until it wasn’t.
When the fire happened, everything changed in an instant… the chaos… the fear… the unknown. It’s an overwhelming feeling that’s hard to explain unless you’ve lived it. One minute you’re living your normal life, and the next you’re standing there, trying to figure out what comes next.
You go into survival mode quickly, handle what’s right in front of you, make the calls, check the boxes. You do what you have to do to get through the moment. But, no one talks about what comes next.
After the fire, when it came time to file our insurance claim, I was asked what sounded like a simple question:
“What was in your home?”
Not just generally, but a detailed list. Photos. Approximate purchase dates. Replacement values.
And I froze. Because the truth was… I didn’t know where to start.
My husband and I had built a life together more than 14 years. Room by room. Drawer by drawer. Closet by closet. We had accumulated memories and things that made our house feel like home. And suddenly, I was being asked to recall all of it, as if I could just pull it from memory on demand.
What was in each room?
What was tucked away in closets and drawers?
Items I hadn’t thought about in years… boxes sitting in our basement, completely forgotten until that moment.
You don’t realize how much you own… until you’re asked to list it all out.
There were moments I knew I was forgetting things. Important things. And that feeling sticks with you. When you’re trying to rebuild, every item matters. Every detail matters. And not being able to fully recall what you had adds another layer of stress to an already emotional situation.
Looking back, I wish I would have created a home inventory.
If there’s one thing I can share from my experience, it’s this: simple is better than nothing.
If you’re not sure where to start, here are some great resources that can help guide you:
- The National Association of Insurance Commissioners offers a helpful guide you can check out here: https://content.naic.org/consumer/home-inventory
- Apps like Bevel Home Inventory (https://inventory.bevelmade.com/) and HouseBook (https://housebook.io/) are designed to simplify the process if you want something more organized
Or just start with your phone.
Walk through your home with your phone and take a video. Open drawers. Scan closets. Talk through what you’re seeing. Take quick photos of high-value items like furniture, electronics, and jewelry. Save receipts when you can—even if it’s just snapping a picture or keeping them in an email folder. If you want to use an app, great—but you don’t have to. Your phone is enough. Just make sure whatever you do, you store it somewhere safe—somewhere you can access it when you need it.
Because going through a loss is already emotional and overwhelming. A home inventory won’t change what happened. But it will make the process easier.
If I could go back, I wouldn’t try to be perfect. I wouldn’t wait until I had time to “do it right.” I would just start. Because in a moment where everything felt uncertain, having even a simple record of what we had would have made all the difference.
If you’ve been putting off creating a home inventory, let this be your sign. Not out of fear… but out of preparation. Because I never thought it would happen to me… until it did.