Are home warranties worth it? If so, which of the million companies are worth considering?

I am trying to finalize a home purchase but there are some old components (Furnace, A/C, H20) heater, etc.) For the life of me, I can't see how these warranties can be that effective. The company obviously will spit-ball the defective piece so that replacements will not have to be purchased. So in the end, it's not much of a bargain...is it?

When I purchased my home about 1 1/2 ago the seller purchased a home warranty for us through Globe (or Global) Home. Two weeks before the home warranty expired our air conditioner went out in the house. They sent a rep out and they replaced the whole heat pump unit on the outside of the house. It was well worth having the home warranty, it saved me Mucho Denaros!!!

I COULD HAVE GUESSED THE COMPANY EVEN IF PLAID HAD NOT MENTIONED THE NAME. I WOULD JUST SELF INSURE. YOU JUST CAN'T DEAL WITH CROOKS AND WHENEVER YOU HAVE A BAD INSURANCE COMPANY, YOU LOSE. YOU MAKE A BETTER DEAL WITH THE SELLER AND DON'T GET INSURANCE.

We had a Home Warranty when we bought our house. Our A/C went out in the summer. They sent someone out and then said we needed to clean the coils ($800) before they would replace the $35.00 part. So, needless to say, it was not worth it for us. I think we used American Home Shield.