BY SOLO INSURANCE®

Why is my home insurance so expensive?

Many ask the question, “Why is my home insurance so expensive?”  Rising Home Insurance Costs are no fun. Understanding some of the causes may help pinpoint some roads to savings. No one wants to see any of their insurance rates go up, especially their home insurance, but it’s a fact of life. It’s important since coverage protects your most valuable asset, your property.

Home insurance premium increases happen for countless reasons. Sometimes, they occur through no fault of your own. In others, however, you have control over the situation that might raise your premiums. Let’s take a closer look at common causes of rising homeowner rates and what you can do about them.

COMMON CAUSES OF INCREASING HOME INSURANCE COSTS

Home insurance is more expensive. Rates are going up. Homes, themselves, are more expensive. Disasters (like fires, hurricanes, tornados) have hit with a fury and wiped out neighborhoods, not just a single home. Since companies are regional or nationwide, this history over the last decade impacts everyone’s rates. In addition to the disasters, inflation and material costs cause insurance rates to go up. What else can cause your rate to go up?

• Additions to the Home – Making changes or improvements to your home increases rates. Tell your insurance company, even so, to make sure your coverage is enough to cover them. In making these additions, you might even face safety risks when your just trying to make your home better. For instance, adding a fireplace, swimming pool, tree house or even a deck to the home might create additional safety risks. How? As examples, the fireplace might become a fire risk or a swimming pool could cause injuries. Therefore, your home insurance rates might increase to  cover the increased risk. Though changes to your home are good and often exciting, they can increase home insurance cost.
• Structurally Less Secure – Aging homes can increase home insurance costs. As a home ages, safety risks might be a factor. Older wiring, unsafe appliances or other potential hazards might put you at risk of a fire or other issue that, while not apparent, might still lurk below the surface. These safety risks might cause your rates to increase, which is why you should always perform regular upkeep and maintenance tasks.
• Neighborhood Becomes Less Safe – Most property owners are concerned about safety when choosing where to live. For example, burglaries might increase in your neighborhood. Risks of bad weather, floods or other disasters might also increase, even if they don’t directly impact your home. The fact that there is a higher likelihood of them happening could cause your home insurance rates to increase. However, by making your home more secure against weather, theft and related hazards, you can still minimize these risks.
• More or More Expensive Possessions – As you accumulate more possessions, particularly possessions of value, you will likely need to buy more contents insurance. As a result, you’ll probably see your home insurance rates increase. Not only is this added coverage, but it is also added risk to the insurer. If an expensive item is damaged or destroyed, there is a change your home insurer might have to pay more.

Other Factors that Increase Home Insurance Costs

A big factor in rate increases is claims. Think twice before making a claim. Look at your deductible amount then get bids. If the bids are anywhere near the deductible, there is little reason to ask your insurance company about it. In insurance, asking about a claim means there is one (even if it shows zero dollars paid out). As with disasters, a large amount of claims for a company can increase overall base rates even though you haven’t made a claim on your policy.

Additionally, other factors might influence your premiums and drive up your home insurance costs. These include such things as inflation, increase material costs, state insurance regulations, or adjustments to insurance risk pool. Furthermore, if you make claims on your policy, then you could see increased rates, too. Still, your home insurer may work with you to make sure you maintain as affordable a premium as possible under the circumstances.

No one recommends lowering insurance coverage; however, sometimes it does save money. The question is, is the short-term savings worth the potential cost in case of an event? Go through your policy to make sure you understand and need all of the coverage you have.

A Really Good Idea: Review Your Coverage with Your Agent

Whether your home insurance is more expensive or not, it’s good to review your coverage every so often. Reviewing your coverage with your agent involves having a conversation about what you have and what you need or want. Ask questions to understand your coverage. You don’t want to find out that you don’t have the coverage you thought. Have a conversation about what you could do to minimize costs. Cutting coverage isn’t always the only way. Are there any discount that you’re not getting? Keep you agent current on any changes to see how they impact your coverage and costs.

For a Manufactured Home or Mobile Home quote : click here.
🚗  -----  🚗  -----  🚗  -----  🚗  -----  🚗  -----  🚗  -----  🚗
Solo Insurance® where great rates and personalized service meet.   – NO FEES – Veteran/Family owned since 1994 –
We shop the rates for you upfront and at renewals to ensure you get our best rate every time.
Solo Insurance® ~ 800-207-7656 ~ Soloinsurance.net ~ Get a car insurance Quote here ~ Like us on Facebook
Over 30 years in business helping people navigate car insurance with top insurance carriers,
because at Solo, you’re a person, not a policy.