In California you can demand four months of ALE up front. In Colorado a signed lease starts a 20-day payment deadline.

Two states put an advance of living expenses into statute. California requires, on request, an advance of no less than four months after an emergency-related loss. Colorado requires loss of use to be paid within twenty days of documentation, and a signed lease counts as documentation.

Which states require an advance?

What happens between the lease and the check?

What is due before the first check?

What goes in the request?

1. Claim number, date of loss, and the statement that the residence is uninhabitable, with the adjuster's or inspector's note attached if you have one.
2. The statute, by section, if you are in California or Colorado. Elsewhere, a sentence that you are requesting an advance against Loss of Use coverage.
3. An itemized amount: rent or nightly rate for the period requested, deposit, moving and storage, and the increase in food and transport, each with a figure.
4. A sentence that you will reconcile the advance against receipts in the monthly packet.
5. A date by which you need the answer, tied to the landlord's deadline.

United Policyholders publishes a sample letter requesting information about ALE benefits that can be adapted to this purpose.

The assumption that costs the most

Households wait for the first check before signing anything, and lose the unit to another tenant. The order is the reverse: get the comparable rate and the advance decision in writing, then sign. In a state without a statute the insurer can still say yes, and often does when the request is itemized and dated.

What to do this week

1. Find your state on the ALE statutory table.
2. Send the itemized advance request by email and keep the sent copy.
3. Open the account that will receive ALE money and nothing else.
4. Start the monthly ALE packet; the advance is reconciled inside it.