The average home insurance cost in the US is surprisingly extremely variable on a state-to-state basis. Across the country on average, it averages around $1,250 – $1,445 per year. On the higher side, it can get as high as $4,000 a year in a couple of states, way down to $600. Among the highest-cost states are Texas, Kansas, and Oklahoma. The cheapest states for home insurance include Delaware, New York, PA, etc.
There are sites that allow you to enter your zip code to compare the cost of your home insurance cost and premium with that of other states and the national average. One thing the states with the lowest costs have in common is that they are located in areas that are less susceptible to major disasters and/or have lower home values. In New York, most of the population lives in or near cities and therefore requires rental insurance more so than homeowner’s insurance.
The costs are obviously impacted by the various risks for each state, and each insurance provider has its own way of rating the importance of each factor, including fire and lighting, water damage, freezing, theft, liability, wind and hail, etc. Property damage is by far the #1 cause for claims, and the leading cause of property damage is wind and hail, followed by water and freezing and fire and lightning.
Average Home Insurance Cost for What You Need
How much coverage do you actually need? Knowing this helps you better understand average home insurance cost. The cost of coverage for the dwelling itself, which includes the physical structure of the home, should be equal to the rebuild cost of the home. Dwelling insurance coverage may also include built-in appliances and sometimes extends to other structures such as sheds and garages. Shoppers should buy policies with limits just high enough to cover the entire cost of rebuilding the structure(s) if they are completely destroyed.
However, if any of the structures such as sheds or pool decks are rundown, they might not be worth the cost of protecting.
As for the cost of personal property, it may or may not be included in the average home insurance cost. You’ll likely be offered a standard HO-3, which includes coverage for clothing, furniture, jewellery, and electronics. However, this policy usually comes with coverage sub-limits on higher-value items, such as expensive firearms and jewellery. If you have spent a lot of money on valuable collectables, you might want to take out additional insurance on them.
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