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Astronomical rises in mortgage rates and skyrocketing home prices over the past year have pushed key tenets of the American Dream out of reach for millions of families.
Now, there is another obstacle to homeownership. That is the rise in home insurance premiums.
The average cost is home insurance The price of a $300,000 property in the U.S. rose 12% in 2023 to about $1,770 a year, according to a new report released by Massachusetts-based insurance comparison website Insurify.
But in states plagued by severe weather and other climate-related catastrophes, home insurance can be even more expensive. In fact, as the frequency and severity of destructive weather events increases, more regions are being considered high-risk and unprofitable for insurance companies, the report said.
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More insurance companies are leaving states like California and Florida, making insurance premiums even more expensive for homeowners.
Here’s a look at the areas where you can pay the highest premiums for home insurance.
florida
Florida is the most expensive place Average annual costs rose $9,213 last year. This is 421% higher than the national average.
Waterfront homes near Naples Pier on February 13, 2024 in Naples, Florida. (Lisette Morales McCabe/Bloomberg via Getty Images/Getty Images)
Premium rates rose 14% in 2023 as several major insurance companies stopped renewing certain policies or withdrew from the state altogether, citing concerns about hurricane risk. Severe weather damage in Florida exceeded $15 billion last year.
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oklahoma
Home insurance in Oklahoma costs an average of about $4,782, which is 170% more than what the average American pays. Premiums rose 24% in the state last year. Oklahoma Insurance Commissioner Glenn Mulready blamed the increase on the rising cost of construction materials due to weather and inflation.
Sky begins to clear after a thunderstorm on May 27, 2021 in Tulsa, Oklahoma. (Photo by Brandon Bell/Getty Images/Getty Images)
“According to U.S. Census Bureau data, the median home price in Oklahoma is nearly 50% lower than the national average,” Insurify wrote in its report. “However, with rising insurance premiums, homeownership in Oklahoma is not as achievable as property values indicate.”
mississippi
The average insurance rate for Mississippi homeowners last year was 23%, and the annual cost amounted to $4,017. This is approximately 127% higher than the national average.
Insurify said the increase was likely a result of what the National Weather Service called “an unprecedented and historically devastating severe weather event” that hit the Deep South over the summer.
In-state insurance rates increased 433% more than state revenues in 2023.
texas
Texas insurance rates It rose by 18% in 2023, 452% above the state wage growth rate and 124% above the national insurance rate.
Frozen ground at Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge Park after a storm in Dallas, Thursday, February 2, 2023. (Photographer: Koral Carballo/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)
The number of well-paying jobs is decreasing
The Lone Star State was hit by a number of severe weather events last year, 16 of which caused more than $1 billion in damage each.
Home insurance in Texas currently costs about $3,969 on average.
Kansas
Home insurance premiums in Kansas rose 19% last year to an average of $3,245. This is 83% higher than the national average.
Do you have children?I am lucky to be able to buy a house this year.
The increase was also due to severe weather in July, including storms, strong winds, tornadoes, and flooding. Kansas is also prone to wildfires.
georgia
Premium rates in Georgia will reach $2,173 in 2023, an increase of 17% from the previous year. By comparison, the state’s median household income rose just 2.3% last year, according to Labor Department data.
The Owens family assesses damage to their home and property after a tornado touched down in West Point, Georgia on March 26, 2023. (Photo by Megan Varner/Getty Images/Getty Images)
Georgia experienced 12 natural disasters last year, costing the state approximately $38 billion.
nebraska
Homeowners insurance in Nebraska is nearly twice as expensive as the national average. In 2023, the problem got even worse, with his average annual rate rising 14% to $3,519.
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Last year, Nebraska experienced a number of severe weather events, including winter snowstorms, summer flash floods and tornadoes.
Massachusetts
In fact, home insurance rates in Massachusetts are lower than the national average. But the study found that spending in the state grew faster than revenue by 582%, making it the largest difference between premium hikes and wage increases in the country last year.
The state’s average annual premium is about $1,649, 7% lower than the national average.
new york
insurance premium rate new york In 2023, it will reach approximately $1,942, 10% above the national average.
On December 25, 2022, heavy snow covers the yard and surrounding area of a home in Amherst, Erie County, New York. (Photo credit: Xuehong Lyu/Xinhua News Agency, Getty Images/Getty Images)
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The overall cost of living is one of the factors driving prices up, as is severe weather such as floods and storms that will close parts of New York City in 2023. Upstate New York has also been plagued by blizzards that can cause thousands of dollars in damage, sometimes deadly. In property damage.
colorado
The average annual home insurance cost in Colorado is $3,308, a significant increase from the previous year.
An aerial view of the Denver skyline. (Joe Soum/Visions of America/Universal Images Group via Getty Images/Getty Images)
This is 87% higher than the national average.
