homeowners insurance help

[kelleyrn2000]

I realize homeowners insurance rates are going to vary by location, home value, etc.

We have never had a claim over 10 years of ownership. Our rates have gone up (as I'm sure is happening to alot of people). I got an "estimated quote" in the mail from Allstate (currently using Country Financial) and they estimated less than half of what we are paying ($310.00/year vs $778.00/year). The description of coverage is very similar, except the dwelling coverage is a little lower, but not that much lower. Deductible is the same at $500. Am I missing something here??

What companies in your experience have offered better rates?

Are there any companies you would steer clear of?


TIA!!

 

[Swimalie]

Do you have access to USAA? We've had them for over 15 years and they have been lowering our rates and giving us better coverage for it. I think we pay around $300 a year for a 2600 sq foot house.

 

[Darcy03231]

My understanding is the rate increases each year have to do with your home being another year older and the possibility of a claim because of an old roof, etc.

We just put a new roof on our home and our insurance dropped by almost $300/year.

 

[ccgirl]

I spoke to my insurance company about my rates. They say most insurance policies go up each year due to inflation. They said you can have the insurance company re-write the policy rather than just assuming an inflation rate. I have my company re-write the policy and it went down a significant amount. So, it seems, rather than re-writing your policy every year they just tacked on a percentage they thought was fair for inflation.

Good luck.

 

[kelleyrn2000]

My understanding is the rate increases each year have to do with your home being another year older and the possibility of a claim because of an old roof, etc.

We just put a new roof on our home and our insurance dropped by almost $300/year.

That's good to know. We are planning to replace our shingles (17 years old). They are warped on the back side of our house, and on dh's workshop. We were hoping to hold off until next year because we want to refinish the basement this winter. $300.00 is a big reduction!

 

[wmharley]

Do you have access to USAA? We've had them for over 15 years and they have been lowering our rates and giving us better coverage for it. I think we pay around $300 a year for a 2600 sq foot house.

we pay about $900 for a 1700sf with them. It was at $600, then went up almost 400, then they realized the mistake and lowered it a bit.

Taxes now are coming down. Got notice it was coming down about 400.

 

[DisneyGuy758]

Most homeowner polices have what is called automatic increase included with the policy. What this is is a percentage that raises the coverage amount on the home. I usually set my policies to 4%, where the default is around 8%. Each year upon renewal, I have people calling my office asking why their policies went up a certain amount, and I explain that coverage to them. Also, if you 'shop' around every year and change to a new company often, companies have ways of tracking this, and will rate you accordingly.

Companies have many (many many) different rating tiers. Your tier is different from mine and different from hers. Many things are taken into account when placing you in a tier. Age, credit score (yes that. I don't like it, but it's how they work), number of past claims and size of claims, age of home, and if you have canceled for non-payment at any point in the past.

Keep in mind too, that if you 'package' your homeowners and auto in the same company you get a discount. It varies company to company, but I've seen the standard being about 5-10%.

I don't know if that answers any questions, but I thought I'd throw in my two cents.

 

[scrapquitler]

The description of coverage is very similar, except the dwelling coverage is a little lower, but not that much lower. Deductible is the same at $500. Am I missing something here??

TIA!!

How has the value of the 'replacement cost' part changed?

It seems to me that if my house burned down today, it would cost me more to have it rebuilt than it would have last year or the year before, and the replacement coverage would have to increase to cover that. With my policy the amount they are willing to pay for replacement goes up every year, so it is logical that the cost of the coverage would increase each year.

Twelve years ago when we bought our house, our policy cost like $700, now it is more like $1200. But the cost of plywood, sheetrock, etc. has gone up.

 

[kelleyrn2000]

How has the value of the 'replacement cost' part changed?

It seems to me that if my house burned down today, it would cost me more to have it rebuilt than it would have last year or the year before, and the replacement coverage would have to increase to cover that. With my policy the amount they are willing to pay for replacement goes up every year, so it is logical that the cost of the coverage would increase each year.

Twelve years ago when we bought our house, our policy cost like $700, now it is more like $1200. But the cost of plywood, sheetrock, etc. has gone up.

Good point. I would have to check that.

Does anyone have insurance with Progressive? They have had the best online quote so far.

 

[pixiewings71]

That's what I was going to say. Make sure the replacement value is comparable and then I would contact your current company and tell them you got X offered from a competitor and see what they say. Having dealt with a house fire replacement value is extremely important!!! Also make sure you've got the coverage to cover all new building codes, you have to make sure you're covered well just in case.

 

[here757]

depending where you live it will vary greatly..
i live in Hampton Roads VA.. its very hard to get decent priced insurance for a house. alot of companies have stopped issuing polices due to hurricane risks.

i used to work for an insurance company that has been mentioned in this thread already LOL no names!!

the city tax assesment has nothing to do with insurance.

a word about those mailed quotes. keep in mind your rate is determined by the house.( what its made of.. for example. if you have plaster walls vs sheet rock. the plaster costs more to insure , because its not used. and most newer companies cant do it. so they have to hire a specialist to replace.) they also are based on your credit history. and claim history.
these companies that just mail rates might not have up to date info on your home. they might not have knowledge of upgrades.
they do not have ur credit history either.
alot of times u call that company and they rerun the quote and it comes up different.

most of your standard homeowners policies have an inflation guard on them. they are not exactly accurate. it estimates the value. ur best bet is to call the agent and review their understanding of your house.
i know when my company switched software companies it messed up alot of polices. the softwear will say the owners have 2 car garages. and they dont have a garage at all. or it would say a custom bathroom. meanwhile they have standard bathrooms.

also when u update your home its very important to tell the insurance company. they are not so much interested in replacing your liminate kitchen floor with another color of the same. but if you tear out plaster and put in drywall. its cheaper to replace..

alot of the polices also insure your home for xx plus an additional 25-50 percent..

my best advise to you.. call the agent. tell them u think the price is high and u have gotten quotes from other companies. ask for the review. they dont want to lose ur business. if they cant beat the other company. most will tell u.
good luck

 

[Dziactor]

By best advice as an insurance agent is call around. Rates vary from company to company and you want to compare the coverage for the dwelling and for the contents. Typically in the area's i'm in were seeing prices go down. There are many good companies out there and even Progressive is now doing Homeowners coverage. Progressive is one of the many companies our agency sells and I have never had a complaint from a customer. In fact, some customers have raved about their claims service.

 

[andymattmom]

I just went through this. Switched from being with USAA form 20+ years on auto and 11+ years on homeowners. Start with All State in next couple of weeks. I got so many quotes from various companies and found rates all over the board. The replacement cost seems to vary dramatically from company to company.

Did I want to switch--NO! I love USAA but with no claims my policy almost double in 3 years due to the way they were writing in my state (Indiana). I phoned and they spent so much time on me trying to lower the rate...the only time it was ever competitive was when they made the deductible 1% which would have been $3500. I am sorry I can't afford that deductible if I have a claim. They were great at USAA about telling me what questions to ask when comparing insurance, etc. The only issue I had was when All State (who let me say has outstanding customer service) asked for a letter of experience. Three calls to USAA and a refusal each time to write the letter (we don't have to is response). Finally yesterday the All State lady I have worked with (and this is through #800) conference called with me on the line. USAA FINALLY put me through to correct department and magically they CAN and did write letter within 15 minutes. This floored me since I had called three times, emailed, etc and 3 different people said no (think because I dropped auto and homeowners to get multi-policy discount with All State. My rate with USAA was going to be $1700 for a 3200 sq ft. house. With All State the rate is $972. The auto was $60 less with All State so that is more comparable.

Shop and ask questions, and keep asking questions. I just learned here that if you get a new roof cost might go down. We plan on one next year so I will inform them at that time our roof is no longer 16 years old but new.

I spent hours on the phone with so many companies getting quotes and researched the companies. I got a quote through Sams Club (they quote through many different companies) and they refused to do a homeowner quote because I have no fire hydrants in the county where I live....other places all wrote but I did find another company (think it was Prudential wouldn't quote either). The Sams place did quote auto for $250 for 2 cars for 6 months.....great rate but company was one who got terrible reviews and I would rather pay more and go with reputable company.

Good luck....thanks for the info about roofs too to that poster!!!

 

[kelleyrn2000]

Thanks for all the tips! Hopefully next week I will have time to call around for more quotes. I guess I should look to add our car insurance to see if there is a better discount that way as well.

 

[riley2008]

I just got a blind quote from Allstate in the mail too quoting less than half of what we are currently paying. We had been with Allstate up until 5 years ago until they would no longer insure non-brick veneer homes in our area. (We got dropped right after hurricane season that year. We never had a claim and I had them long before DH and I even got married.)

We moved last year, so I called Allstate based on the mailed letter and sure enough they were substantially cheaper than our current policy - reduce by 40% (but not as inexpensive as their quote in the mail as we live just outside the city limits, literally JUST outside the city.)

I'm still deciding what to do, although it seems obvious. I keep thinking there must be some catch or the Allstate agent left off something. I'm going to take their quote to my current insurer I think and have them review it and see if they can compete.

Let us know how it works out for you!

 

[buzz5985]

depending where you live it will vary greatly..
i live in Hampton Roads VA.. its very hard to get decent priced insurance for a house. alot of companies have stopped issuing polices due to hurricane risks.

i used to work for an insurance company that has been mentioned in this thread already LOL no names!!

the city tax assesment has nothing to do with insurance.

a word about those mailed quotes. keep in mind your rate is determined by the house.( what its made of.. for example. if you have plaster walls vs sheet rock. the plaster costs more to insure , because its not used. and most newer companies cant do it. so they have to hire a specialist to replace.) they also are based on your credit history. and claim history.
these companies that just mail rates might not have up to date info on your home. they might not have knowledge of upgrades.
they do not have ur credit history either.
alot of times u call that company and they rerun the quote and it comes up different.

most of your standard homeowners policies have an inflation guard on them. they are not exactly accurate. it estimates the value. ur best bet is to call the agent and review their understanding of your house.
i know when my company switched software companies it messed up alot of polices. the softwear will say the owners have 2 car garages. and they dont have a garage at all. or it would say a custom bathroom. meanwhile they have standard bathrooms.

also when u update your home its very important to tell the insurance company. they are not so much interested in replacing your liminate kitchen floor with another color of the same. but if you tear out plaster and put in drywall. its cheaper to replace..

alot of the polices also insure your home for xx plus an additional 25-50 percent..

my best advise to you.. call the agent. tell them u think the price is high and u have gotten quotes from other companies. ask for the review. they dont want to lose ur business. if they cant beat the other company. most will tell u.
good luck

I'm fascinated - I ripped out old "horsehair plaster" walls from my home - built in 1870. I now have sheetrock with skim coat of plaster on top of that. I would expect the same replacement if anything happened. I would never settle for drywall and joint compound.

These are the things that you need to find out. Is your insurance really full replacement value, hence the higher price.

 

[here757]

I'm fascinated - I ripped out old "horsehair plaster" walls from my home - built in 1870. I now have sheetrock with skim coat of plaster on top of that. I would expect the same replacement if anything happened. I would never settle for drywall and joint compound.

These are the things that you need to find out. Is your insurance really full replacement value, hence the higher price.

yes the insurance company will attempt to insure the home for full replacemnt cost. if the customer chooses to insure for less.( or accidently insures for less ) there are pentaltys involved..under insurance clause.. for example..
lets say house replacement is 100,000. and owner insures for 60,000. lets say there is a fire and the house is a total loss..because the house is only insured to 60 percent.. the claim paid will be paid for 60 percent of the 60,000. this is the exact reason its sooo important to inform ur insurance company of upgrades.

the way the policy reads.. they have to make every attempt to give u what you got...
the only way they can put in just regular sheet rock is for you to agree to it ..

i used to get people tell me all the time if the house burns down ill go with modern materials... (they had plaster) .. it was their way of getting the replacement cost of the house cost down.. didnt work that way.. i had to insure for higher costs. because if the customer changes mind at time of loss that insurance clause could come into play,

the company i worked for refused to insure for less then 100 percent. they would non-renew a policy if the customer lowered the coverage

 

[barkley]

i just want to chime in and say how valuable having coverage for lodging/living expenses can be in the event damage occurs that keeps you out of your home.

we had substantial damage to the interior of our roof a couple of years ago during a major snow storm in our area-it was'nt so much the time we were out of the home due to the actual repairs that this type of coverage helped, but the period of time while it was being determined IF it was safe for us to be inside the home. our insurance company was great in responding to our call to report the damage, but they were inundated with similar claims and the reality was it took several days before qualified professionals could get to our home to assess the safety of continued habitation. having this coverage meant that we were not out of pocket for having to motel it and eat our meals out for the better part of a week.

 

[Swimalie]

i just want to chime in and say how valuable having coverage for lodging/living expenses can be in the event damage occurs that keeps you out of your home.

we had substantial damage to the interior of our roof a couple of years ago during a major snow storm in our area-it was'nt so much the time we were out of the home due to the actual repairs that this type of coverage helped, but the period of time while it was being determined IF it was safe for us to be inside the home. our insurance company was great in responding to our call to report the damage, but they were inundated with similar claims and the reality was it took several days before qualified professionals could get to our home to assess the safety of continued habitation. having this coverage meant that we were not out of pocket for having to motel it and eat our meals out for the better part of a week.

That's a good point. We upped our coverage about 4 years ago and added that in. I think we have out of home coverage for up to a year now.