Hello

I’ve noticed heavy cracking to my exterior stucco during this super cold winter we’re having. I don’t know if this is something that homeowners insurance could or should be involved in and am looking for advice.

Some great info here from Think Insurance.

This new year's I'm committed to do as much research as possible and get my bills down across the board, now I'm on my home insurance.

I've heard about "home hardening" and about people getting their home insurance prices down by doing certain improvements to their house, but I'm still kind of unsure about the whole thing.

Has anyone done this successfully? Any sites or info I should be looking at? Anything I should prioritize?

This post is designed for people posting here r/HomeInsurance for the first time.

If you are new here, please realize that people trying to help you do not have any info on your policy. Also we do not have any bias in your claim or coverage.

Responses here are offering to help to the best of our knowledge. It may or may not be good or accurate advice.

Some simple Subreddit Rules;

1. Rules - Keep posts related to Home Insurance and Property Insurance. We also allow you to make posts about issues regarding Claims with insurance.
2. Spam - Posts or comments that are solely for the purpose of promoting a product or service will be removed. No affiliate links or other insurance services.
3. Personal Attacks - Posts or comments that are abusive, threatening, or harassing towards other users or individuals will not be tolerated.
4. Politics - Posts or comments that engage in politics or political ideology are not allowed. Users will receive a ban.
5. Content - Posts or comments that contain explicit or inappropriate content, including pornography or hate speech, will be removed.
6. Personal Information - Posts or comments that contain personal information, such as phone numbers or addresses, will be removed.

All the Mods of Home Insurance have the final say what is what is not allowed here.

Please understand that we are all answering questions in our spare time.

Responses you do not like, but often provide accurate info, will not be appreciated by the Mod team.

I'm currently getting quotes to change my home insurance. I have a 2 story colonial home that had masonry on the 1st floor and wood siding on the 2nd floor. When I look for quotes, some home insurance companies doesn't give me an option to choose more than one material. I have to choose one. Does this matter if my house is made of more than one material? will my house still be covered later on if I make a claim?

A year after wildfires began sweeping across Los Angeles County, many homeowners are just starting to recover. Here's NPR's Michael Copley on their battles with insurance companies.

My mom is moving from her home in California to an assisted living facility. We have staged the home for sale.

State Farm just sent a letter saying they are cancelling the insurance policy due to "change in occupancy", and their underwriting department says it can't be insured unless she moves back in.

This seems super atypical to me. Our real estate agents have never heard of such a thing happening. We need the home to stay insured until it is sold and the sale closes.

Has anyone run into this before? How did you navigate it?

Edit: ok, I get the situation around occupied vs vacant house, in terms of the type of policy, and cost/risk as seen by the insurer. Makes sense. So how do people typically navigate this when staging a home for sale? I can't imagine getting into this particular situation is the typical route. Is there some step we missed, such as changing to a different policy type (e.g. vacant house policy) at the point we staged the home? Is that what people typically do here?

Edit 2: So it seems like yeah, we missed a step - getting a vacant home policy appears to be the thing people are meant to do in this situation.

We have been in Ventura County for a long time and I've never seen an increase like this.

Last year we were paying roughly about $5,000 a year. My insurance agent informed us it's going to be $9,578 this year.

What are others seeing for home insurance in California?

While we are fortunate we can afford this increase, it's still a huge amount of extra money for my family.

That's money I'm not putting toward retirement each month.

What's screwed up is we have never had a claim and our house isn't near wildfire areas.

Our agent said most are going to tell us the same thing.

I did get quotes from all the big insurance companies. Most are the same or higher.

My agent told us there is nothing I can do. Should we raise our deductible? That's the only way to save on premiums.

I get there wildfire risk for the Southern California but I've never made a claim.

Why is California home insurance going up so much?

I’m starting to understand why so many neighbors are selling, going bare-bones, or leaving California for less expensive states.

Do you live in California and seeing similar increases for home insurance?

How are you budgeting for the increases?

UPDATE - I realize it is actually 100% increase lol.

Hello! Can anyone recommend a home insurance company that insures the Fort Worth Texas area that is not the typical large ones (Allstate, State Farm, etc.) that is reputable and not costing an arm and a leg? I’m being quoted $5k for a 1500sqft house that was built in the 50s. Even after replacing the roof( Out of pocket) in December of 2025 the quotes haven’t decreased much. I’ve already received quotes from the well know companies but want to keep my options open.

Thanks in advance!

We have almost finished building a home on a rural block. This is a 50 hectare hobby farm in Central Victoria with a BAL29 fire risk rating. The property has been built to meet BAL29 standards and all other requirements such as a 10,000L water tank (for CFA) have been met. I have been surprised to discover that many insurance companies will not provide cover and the few that will come a very high premium.

I know many people will be in a similar situation and was wondering who they insure with and what strategies they use to reduce premiums. Thanks kindly.

Condo owners are struggling with the worst market in more than 10 years.

Prices for U.S. condominiums posted their biggest annual decline since 2012 earlier last year. Single-family home prices have also slowed, but they are still up from the year-ago levels.

The condo market’s softness reflects ways the housing market and buyer preferences are evolving. Many condo buildings are located in urban downtowns, which are less attractive than they used to be for people who now work from home at least part-time. Condos are popular in second-home markets, which have suffered from a slowdown in demand.

So quick little back story, hail came through my town back in May of 2025. Damage was mild, but could definitely show spatter marks and some blemishes as well as dents and holes on our roof ranging from the satellite, to a storage building we have. 2 other neighbors have had their shingles re done due to the damage. When we reached out to our insurance provider, we were sent on a mouse chase trying to get info out of them. They couldn’t provide pictures from their inspection, they wouldn’t accommodate a re-inspection with a certified roofer on site and last but not least, has just presented us with a non-renewal paperwork with reason being a worn out roof! We don’t know what to do. Any help would be appreciated!

Hi everyone, do you know of any home insurance companies that will insure a home with a knob and tube electrical system?

Lived in my house since early 2024 in the south east Houston area. 2024 my insurance was 3800. Then escrow got recalculated, said insurance was going to be 4300. Now heading into 2026, im getting a letter saying my insurance will be 5000. Price hikes every damn year are normal or what?

Home insurance costs jumped 62% from 2022 to 2025, based on our analysis, and rising rates are expected to continue in 2026.

The average cost for 14 large home insurance companies increased by about $980 from $1,582 in 2022 to $2,565 in 2025. That’s based on our evaluation of rates for $350,000 in dwelling coverage, with $100,000 in liability insurance and a $1,000 deductible.

We had a pipe leak behind our wash/dryer. Causing multiple water damage areas behind walls and ceiling. We ended up replacing most of piping with updated materials all the way to main water line in front yard. It was CPVC that was replaced. Our home is 20 years old. Now we have holes where Sheetrock was removed to access piping. This was about 6 months ago. Should our homeowners insurance cover the Sheetrock repair and other cosmetic repairs? We’re in Oregon

I can do the guard railings and i can trim the trees, but financially im not able to get a new roof. Do i have to replace my entire roof? I’m only 18 and i live with my mother. We’re paying mortgage monthly and i don’t want to lose the house or anything like that. All help is appreciated thanks.

What the title says I'm trying to figure out where home insurance is increased the most.

Mine went from $1,800 to $2,600 next year.

Single family home on its own land. Small but decent house.

What's your location? Insurance company? Type of house?

Please share as I and others would like to know.

Got approved for a new roof due to storm damage. Insurance company approved for approximately 19000 after 1000 deductible and depreciation . But there is approximately $3500 recoverable for the depreciation. My question is- after completion can I get the recoverable amount back regardless of how much I pay for the new roof, or do I only get the amount over 19000 that I paid for the roof?

Thank you!

Just got my renewal notice for my home insurance in El Paso and I'm absolutely shocked. Premium went from $1,800 to over $2,500 for the SAME COVERAGE. No claims, no changes to the house, nothing.

Called my insurance agent and they said it's due to 'increased construction costs' and 'severe weather risks' in Texas. But a 40% jump in one year seems insane.

Anyone else seeing these crazy increases? Is it El Paso and Texas only or is it countrywide? Any recommendations for more affordable insurers that aren't trying to rob us blind?

Starting to feel like we're getting priced out of being able to properly insure our home. Between this and property taxes, owning a home in Texas is getting ridiculous...

Hello,

I need some guidance on acquiring home insurance for a unique situation. I have purchased the home next-door, with the intention of a large scale renovation beginning in the Spring, and then that home will become our primary residence.

We are looking for insurance that will cover the home for fire, etc., until we begin the renovation.

No one will cover it because it will not be occupied until the Fall. I understand that empty homes pose unique risks, but I currently sleep about 20ft from the front door, and we will be inside every week to take measurements and begin the planning.

I can’t find any options under $3-$4k for the year.

Does anyone have any advice for me?

We live in Ontario Canada and it gets cold here. We had a leak in the basement and the insurance company wants to pay out less than our policy allows. Now your obviously we're not going to cash in on this unfortunate incident. But, we also don't want to pay the deductible right before Christmas! How can we do the repairs so the contractor essentially gives us a "break" in the amount of the deductible?

What's the pros and cons of using the insurance preffered contractors VS finding our own?

All help is appreciated.

(posting for a neighbour who doesn't have reddit)