Florida property insurance rates expected to jump 40% to 50% in June (Jacksonville: homeowners insurance, broker)

[tinytrump]

Originally Posted by joshan

I am sure DeSantis will be on it, as it would not be good for his presidential run.

He just signed the keys to the city to them lol.

[Sunshine Rules]

I'm actually looking for insurance coverage on my home because the current company is dumping a large number of policies along FL's west coast due to "hurricane exposure." So I know the frustration people are going through (1) trying to find insurance and (2) trying to find affordable insurance.

What I am seeing is that the non-hurricane premium is basically unchanged. The whopper is the hurricane premium -- it has more than doubled from our old policy. What's interesting is that the quotes I am getting for a replacement policy are all within a few hundred dollars of each other for that hurricane premium portion of the policy.

A couple of things worth mentioning.

If you are seeking a new policy for covering your home, you will need to have available a Wind Mitigation Inspection Report and, if the home is more than a few years old, a 4-Point Home Inspection Report that are current.

Be sure to check the financial stability of the companies you are considering as well because not all insurance companies offering coverage in FL right now are sitting in a good place financially, so to speak. You want a company that's not going to fold if you need to file a hurricane damage claim down the road.

[beach43ofus]

Just got our quote for renewal. It would go from $1,300 to $1,950...a 50% increase, if we decide to renew. $1,950 on a $1.2M property is still reasonable imho.

We are deciding if we should cancel it, or not. I need to speak to our insurance broker, & our lawyer before we decide.

I'd have to dig up last years quote to see if the Hurricane portion went up a lot, or not. I'm guessing it did because that part is >1/2 our current quote....Hurricane is $1,000 the rest is just $950.

I'm leaning towards canceling, unless I learn something new about our legal exposures. We'd put $1,950 into a CD ladder, then do the same each year for what we think our bill might have been if we kept our insurance. That wouldn't make us whole, but it would help defray the cost to repair/rebuild just in case. We'd do that for the next 20 years, so it should be $1M+ by then. In 10 years, it will be ~$400k, maybe $500k depending upon interest rates.

We just came out of a CAT 4 (Ian) unscathed, & a total loss wouldn't be devastating to us financially, so I'm willing to self-insure.

[beach43ofus]

Update...we are now closer to canceling our homeowners policy.

discaimer...I'm not a lawyer, and am only relaying information I learned today...so do your own homework, & do NOT take this as legal advice.

The Homestead laws are so strong here in Florida, those who file a Liability lawsuit against a homesteaded residence, cannot force a sale of the home, or place claims against the value of the home when sold upon death. The home must be your primary place of residence...not an investment property, or a home you live in part time...like Snowbirds do.

Even if the home is in a Revocable Trust, the homestead still protects its owners as if it were not in a Trust, provided that the County was provided a copy of the Trust at the time of filing for homestead exemptions, hold free & clear Title, & you live in the home full time as your primary residence...check, check, & check.

Florida has very strong asset protection from creditors, like those who may sue you in a personal liability case, which makes homeowners insurance easier for us to cancel.

Next, I need to find out if I can buy Homeowners, but split off the Hurricane coverage that I do not want. I'm doubtful, but I'll get that info tomorrow, and report back.

[wondermint2]

I mentioined this before but it's worth mentioning again (for those that missed it). According to the new FL property insurance legislation if you have insurance with Citizens - and even if you don't live in a flood zone eventually you will be required to add flood insurance for your property.


Got hurricane insurance from Citizens? Here’s a new reason your bill may rise in Florida


https://wusfnews.wusf.usf.edu/econom...y-rise-florida


A little-noticed line in the Florida Legislature’s latest attempt to fix the state’s fractured home insurance market promises to have big impacts on more than a million Floridians. It will force them to also buy flood insurance — even if their homes aren’t in designated flood zones.


The provision, included in a sweeping insurance bill passed late last year, will make flood insurance mandatory for any homeowners with hurricane wind policies from Citizens Insurance, the state-run insurer of last resort. At minimum, that’s likely to add hundreds of dollars a year to the insurance bill.


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When will you need flood insurance?


The policy doesn’t affect Citizens policyholders who aren’t insured for wind coverage, about 300,000 customers statewide. But for everyone else, the mandate will roll out over the next four years.


“It’s gonna kick in in a phased approach,” said Citizens spokesman Michael Peltier.


On April 1, it applies to all new policyholders with properties in a flood zone. On July 1, current policyholders who live in designated flood zones will be required to have flood insurance — a switch that will affect about 295,000 policies, according to Citizens.


Practically speaking, those first two moves may have only a small impact since flood insurance is already required for anyone with a mortgage on a property inside a flood zone. So most of those nearly 300,000 policyholders could already be required to have flood insurance.


But research shows that not all homeowners comply with the rules. A 2020 review of mortgages backed by the federal government in Florida showed that only about 65% of homeowners required to buy flood insurance had a policy.


“This will add a layer of enforcement to policyholders that are already required to have it and don’t,” Lightbody said.


But what will make the new Citizens policy so groundbreaking is when it starts to apply to folks outside flood zones.


Starting Jan. 1, 2024, anyone with home coverage over $600,000 is required to have flood insurance. That’s about 15,000 policies, according to Citizens. The next year, 2025, the policy applies to all homes with coverage over $500,000 — about 27,000 more policies.


By 2026, another 71,000 policies for homes $400,000 and up are included. On January 1, 2027, every single policy will be required to have flood insurance, another 720,000 policies — no matter where they live.


* These numbers, estimates based on current totals, are also likely to rise. They don’t account for anyone else who signs up with Citizens in the coming months if their insurance companies drop them or hike their rates. It also doesn’t reflect new flood maps for places like Miami-Dade, which could increase the number of properties in mandatory flood insurance spots.

[tinytrump]

Originally Posted by beach43ofus

Just got our quote for renewal. It would go from $1,300 to $1,950...a 50% increase, if we decide to renew. $1,950 on a $1.2M property is still reasonable imho.

We are deciding if we should cancel it, or not. I need to speak to our insurance broker, & our lawyer before we decide.

I'd have to dig up last years quote to see if the Hurricane portion went up a lot, or not. I'm guessing it did because that part is >1/2 our current quote....Hurricane is $1,000 the rest is just $950.

I'm leaning towards canceling, unless I learn something new about our legal exposures. We'd put $1,950 into a CD ladder, then do the same each year for what we think our bill might have been if we kept our insurance. That wouldn't make us whole, but it would help defray the cost to repair/rebuild just in case. We'd do that for the next 20 years, so it should be $1M+ by then. In 10 years, it will be ~$400k, maybe $500k depending upon interest rates.

We just came out of a CAT 4 (Ian) unscathed, & a total loss wouldn't be devastating to us financially, so I'm willing to self-insure.

Nice for you can afford those decisions,,, sux for the rest - oh well right.

[Eda_Pimentel]

Originally Posted by tinytrump

Nice for you can afford those decisions,,, sux for the rest - oh well right.

I agree lol...it's a bit funny (odd, and stupidly dangerous) to broadcast what your house is allegedly worth, personal data, budget and personal financial decisions on the web LOL.


Strange to me - I mean, to what end?? as if strangers on the web are personally interested? uh, probably not so much. (writing about how much money to be put in a laddered CD, instead?? Lord Have Mercy lol)

[MOforthewin]

Originally Posted by beach43ofus

Just got our quote for renewal. It would go from $1,300 to $1,950...a 50% increase, if we decide to renew. $1,950 on a $1.2M property is still reasonable imho.

We are deciding if we should cancel it, or not. I need to speak to our insurance broker, & our lawyer before we decide.

I'd have to dig up last years quote to see if the Hurricane portion went up a lot, or not. I'm guessing it did because that part is >1/2 our current quote....Hurricane is $1,000 the rest is just $950.

I'm leaning towards canceling, unless I learn something new about our legal exposures. We'd put $1,950 into a CD ladder, then do the same each year for what we think our bill might have been if we kept our insurance. That wouldn't make us whole, but it would help defray the cost to repair/rebuild just in case. We'd do that for the next 20 years, so it should be $1M+ by then. In 10 years, it will be ~$400k, maybe $500k depending upon interest rates.

We just came out of a CAT 4 (Ian) unscathed, & a total loss wouldn't be devastating to us financially, so I'm willing to self-insure.

If the house is worth a million, why would you cancel over just 2k to pinch a few pennies. Then watch a strong cat4 hits this summer.

[beach43ofus]

Originally Posted by tinytrump

Nice for you can afford those decisions,,, sux for the rest - oh well right.

The best decisions we made is when we bought 8 miles inland, built new on an "X" lot, & built a cinder block home with hip roof line, & flat cement tiles...rated at 160 mph.

In our area, most power lines are underground, so power outages are less likely and shorter is duration, so mold is less likely.

Our paying cash was mostly just rolling equity, & gains forward. After 25 years, we should own our home outright. If you dont after 25 years, you made some mistakes. Our mistakes were minor looking back, but at the time they appeared bigger.

[beach43ofus]

Originally Posted by MOforthewin

If the house is worth a million, why would you cancel over just 2k to pinch a few pennies. Then watch a strong cat4 hits this summer.

We are not pinching 1 penny. We take all the money not being sent to insurance companies, & put it into a bank CD ladder. We still don't consider any of it accessible to us...unless we have a loss. We are self-insuring.

We're comfortable with that amount of risk. It would not devastate us to have a total loss, & the land is almost as valuable as the structure, & our land is not going anywhere 8 miles inland.

I'm also confident our home would do fine in a stronger CAT 4. We didn't even have our shutters deployed during Ian.

We cancelled our flood insurance 2 yrs ago when it went up 30%. Those savings were also placed into a CD ladder.

When a policy premium goes up by 50%, I think its wise to re-assess your risk, & risk tolerence, & the coverage limits you have, & the company. I don't think blindly paying it is wise, unless you have a lender twisting your arm...we don't....many in this area don't either, so we are not unique.

If we didn't have a newer home on a "X" lot, rated at 160 mph that just did great in a CAT 4, that would change things.

The Irrevocable trust also added some questions for us, & there's quite a few properties that lie in trust in this area, so that's worth sharing.

I've been discussing these details everyday w/ our broker, & she is seeing what alternatives may exist to reduce the increase.

I do feel bad for those with mortgages that are totally vulnerable to these steep rate increases.