Paying for home owners insurance in Florida

[supersnoop]

So I think you just made my point. You'd be spending $1,200 a month less if you owned it.

Only if you have a time machine. In California, you're dealing with prop 13, which keeps the tax-assessed value at the original purchase price. Someone who purchased in 1985 is going to pay a whole lot less in taxes than someone who buys now.

 

[tvguy]

Only if you have a time machine. In California, you're dealing with prop 13, which keeps the tax-assessed value at the original purchase price. Someone who purchased in 1985 is going to pay a whole lot less in taxes than someone who buys now.

Yup. Which is why my mom stayed in her house 53 years and I've been in mine 40.

 

[Anthony1971]

In general house insurance companies will not insure a house with an older roof when you switch if you are at the same company for 15 years it is unlikely you will drop you but maybe in some areas with a lot of claims they will. My Home insurance went up when i had my roof replaced as they said it is now more expensive to replace........
There was a model years ago that showed renting is cheaper than owning through a lifetime ONLY if you were to save the 10% estimated upkeep of a houses value every year. After owning a house for 20 years I can tell you spending 10% of the houses value on upkeep is BS unless you have everything and more dwon for you and have everything new at the first sign of dirt much less wear. Some times markets are crazy but that just does not last. I bought a CO-OP (similar to a condo but was exclusive to the NY area) in my mide-late 20's sold it 3 years later for more than double what I paid then it dropped and recovered..... I can tell you my current house I will make a profit on after being there 20 years all in with replacing almost everything through the years and even adding central AC even when the market drops It will not be big because we bought --and sold-- in the last boom. If I factor in what i made from the first sale we will make a nice profit.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

My Home insurance went up when i had my roof replaced as they said it is now more expensive to replace........

When I worked at the insurance company generally roofs 20+ years were undesirable as wear and tear starts to set in. Of course this depends on roofing materials (slate, metal and higher strength architectural shingle especially fiberglass were usually not something to worry about).

As far as the above quote you'd want to pay attention to the replacement cost value. A couple of things such as an upgrade in the material (like going from a 20 year asphalt shingle roof to a 40 years architectural shingle roof for example) and the current market can mean it will cost more money to replace than before. On the other hand a brand new roof (especially a higher quality one) will be less likely to need repairs or a full replacement. Usually companies have a discount for new roofs due to this but it can impact the replacement cost of your home and you're going to want that included in the insurance value of the home.

 

[tvguy]

When I worked at the insurance company generally roofs 20+ years were undesirable as wear and tear starts to set in. Of course this depends on roofing materials (slate, metal and higher strength architectural shingle especially fiberglass were usually not something to worry about).

Quoting you because you have some insurance experience. Am I misunderstanding the situation? I am assuming people are NOT expecting their insurance to pay to replace a worn out roof, just the damage from a leak?
It would seem if you are responsible and replace your roof when a leak is first detected that the damage probably wouldn't even be as much as the deductible most people have. I can see the insurance refusing to pay for interior damage if the homeowner waiting and let a leak continue say for months or years.
Again, in 40 years I have owned my home, other than when I purchased the house, my insurance has never asked anything about it. Now, I don't know that they haven't had someone do a drive by of the property from time to time, and that they could be checking with the building department to see when permits were issued over the years for a new roof.

 

[DLgal]

In general house insurance companies will not insure a house with an older roof when you switch if you are at the same company for 15 years it is unlikely you will drop you but maybe in some areas with a lot of claims they will. My Home insurance went up when i had my roof replaced as they said it is now more expensive to replace........
There was a model years ago that showed renting is cheaper than owning through a lifetime ONLY if you were to save the 10% estimated upkeep of a houses value every year. After owning a house for 20 years I can tell you spending 10% of the houses value on upkeep is BS unless you have everything and more dwon for you and have everything new at the first sign of dirt much less wear. Some times markets are crazy but that just does not last. I bought a CO-OP (similar to a condo but was exclusive to the NY area) in my mide-late 20's sold it 3 years later for more than double what I paid then it dropped and recovered..... I can tell you my current house I will make a profit on after being there 20 years all in with replacing almost everything through the years and even adding central AC even when the market drops It will not be big because we bought --and sold-- in the last boom. If I factor in what i made from the first sale we will make a nice profit.

Your numbers are a bit off.

The estimated amount of annual maintenence for a house is between 1% and 3% of the cost of the house, not 10%.

10% would be WAY too high. No one would buy houses if they were expected to spend 10% of its cost on annual maintenance.

 

[dclpluto]

The hurricane deductible on our house (in Florida) is $27,000.00; we pay over $16,000.00 for our homeowners insurance and have never had a claim (we had damage from Irma, around $21,000.00 but paid OOP since the deductible was higher). Last year our insurer stopped writing in Florida so our broker had to shop the policy and all quotes were in the same ballpark. The cost of homeowners insurance in Florida is crazy. The broker said some companies wouldn't write our house because there is a sinkhole within 5 miles.

You’re not telling us everything. Cost of your house or mansion.

 

[Genie+]

There’s alot to unpack with happened in FL. Development of expensive yet vulnerable coastline homes. The rest of the state helping with higher premiums. Predatory roofing companies running amok… people who are overpaying insurance more likely to go along to get some value out of their disproportionately high insurance costs. FL sticking it to insurance legally - where they need to always cover legal costs whether on the winning or losing side. Some people were/are making millions and millions while others get left holding the bag.




This is old news but it shows some of why it’s unsustainable and only getting worse.

In my lifetime I’ve watched the shift from New Jersey. Used to be 90% of the over 40yr olds I knew relocating out of state went to Florida. Insanely popular move. Over the last ten years or so, it’s well under 50%. Better options exist now, like the Carolinas and upper New England when people compare costs and quality of life.

 

[MrsPete]

How much longer can Florida residents sustain the skyrocketing cost of home owners insurance? Will other customers in the southeast states eventually be forced to cough up more money to help cover the sunshine state?

I'm in North Carolina, and I've been dealing with insurance today. We pay once a year in July, so it's time for us to "re-up". Our homeowners is insane -- it's up more than 25% since last year! (Same house, no changes.) And our car insurance is literally doubled from last year (no changes, no tickets or accidents).

This is a very real problem.

 

[SL6827]

I'm in North Carolina, and I've been dealing with insurance today. We pay once a year in July, so it's time for us to "re-up". Our homeowners is insane -- it's up more than 25% since last year! (Same house, no changes.) And our car insurance is literally doubled from last year (no changes, no tickets or accidents).

This is a very real problem.

Yes, yes it is.

 

[A Mickeyfan]

What got my attention too was that in Florida they can add onto your car insurance rates to pay for home owners claims if they need too. That's insane! What state will be the next to do such?

And FL already has the highest auto insurance rates in the Country.

 

[tvguy]

I'm in North Carolina, and I've been dealing with insurance today. We pay once a year in July, so it's time for us to "re-up". Our homeowners is insane -- it's up more than 25% since last year! (Same house, no changes.) And our car insurance is literally doubled from last year (no changes, no tickets or accidents).

This is a very real problem.

25% is hefty,but what are the actual premiums? I have family in Texas ........with tickets......complaining that their auto insurance jumped to $1,000 a year. Pretty cheap by California standards.

 

[A Mickeyfan]

We currently have progressive with a very reasonable rate but our house isn’t even a year old yet.
I keep hearing about people on our community having to replace their 30 year roofs after 10 to 15 years to stay insured. This whole thing makes me very nervous.

I had to replace my 17 yr old roof, absolutely nothing wrong with it, to keep my policy. I saved $400 a year. I'm still paying over $4,000. That's not with the new Ian increase. I understand we are now looking at a 40% increase in premiums. I'm in Lee County where Ian hit. I opted to pay out of my pocket for my damages. I was very lucky and they were under $12,000. I figured between my deductible and having a claim against me, it wasn't worth putting in.

 

[cvjw]

I am in metro atlanta and have had State Farm for years and years and years. Our home insurance went up about $100 to $1500 a year. Our car insurance went up a small amount from last year. No changes and no claims. Maybe having the same policy for many years helps to keep the premiums down, and having zero claims.

 

[A Mickeyfan]

Let me tell you I live in Jacksonville still and did in 2018-2020 also. My HO has tripled in the last two years and my car insurance doubled in the same time period.

It’s bad here currently

Fl insurance rates have nearly doubled and tripled in the last 3 years! My car insurance went from $1200 for 2 cars to over $2,000. My homeowners went from $1900 to over $4,000 and had to replace my roof at my expense. Prior to replacing the roof (saved 400) and upping my regular deductible (saved just over 300), it was over $4,700.
It's very bad here in FL

 

[Genie+]

I had to replace my 17 yr old roof, absolutely nothing wrong with it, to keep my policy. I saved $400 a year. I'm still paying over $4,000. That's not with the new Ian increase. I understand we are now looking at a 40% increase in premiums. I'm in Lee County where Ian hit. I opted to pay out of my pocket for my damages. I was very lucky and they were under $12,000. I figured between my deductible and having a claim against me, it wasn't worth putting in.

This is the kind of story I keep hearing from New Jersey where $10k+ property taxes are the norm. It used to be a nice move to sell your 3BR 2Ba house, buy another in FL for under half the amount and leave behind the crazy tax bill. Not anymore. FL property is much more expensive in recent years and you pick up a new hefty homeowners insurance bill.

 

[A Mickeyfan]

I am in metro atlanta and have had State Farm for years and years and years. Our home insurance went up about $100 to $1500 a year. Our car insurance went up a small amount from last year. No changes and no claims. Maybe having the same policy for many years helps to keep the premiums down, and having zero claims.

Doesn't matter here in FL. I haven't had an auto claim since 2017 and have been with Allstate since 1986. I had Allstate for homeowners in FL since Jan 1991 but after Charley hit us here they dropped me ( did have 1 claim). I was picked up by St. John's. That company went belly up and Slide took us over.

 

[A Mickeyfan]

This is the kind of story I keep hearing from New Jersey where $10k+ property taxes are the norm. It used to be a nice move to sell your 3BR 2Ba house, buy another in FL for under half the amount and leave behind the crazy tax bill. Not anymore. FL property is much more expensive in recent years and you pick up a new hefty homeowners insurance bill.

I have family who live in NY. They can't believe what we pay for insurance. My home is only insured for $258,000 too.. it's a small home. Market value is more now but I'm not touching my insurance

 

[cvjw]

Doesn't matter here in FL. I haven't had an auto claim since 2017 and have been with Allstate since 1986. I had Allstate for homeowners in FL since Jan 1991 but after Charley hit us here they dropped me ( did have 1 claim). I was picked up by St. John's. That company went belly up and Slide took us over.

Yep Florida is different for sure with all the hurricane damage. We have many different insurance companies in Georgia, and I don’t think Florida does.

 

[tvguy]

Fl insurance rates have nearly doubled and tripled in the last 3 years! My car insurance went from $1200 for 2 cars to over $2,000. My homeowners went from $1900 to over $4,000 and had to replace my roof at my expense. Prior to replacing the roof (saved 400) and upping my regular deductible (saved just over 300), it was over $4,700.
It's very bad here in FL

I asked this before, but you expected your insurance to replace your roof? To me that's a normal wear item, other than a hurricane damaging a fairly new room.