According to the Insurance Information Institute, however, 12% of homeowners have no coverage. Many can no longer afford it these days, and so go without coverage and just hope they don't have a major claim.
Across the country, 13.4% of homeowners — about 1 in 8 — are unprotected by homeowners insurance, according to an NBC News analysis of new Census Bureau data.
As of 2023, data show that 88 percent of homeowners have an active home insurance policy. Unlike auto insurance, home insurance is not required by law. However, many mortgage lenders require customers to obtain coverage.
Increasingly, Californians struggle to find private insurance to rebuild, in large part because no one wants to insure homes in the wildland urban interface zones — fire-prone areas where development abuts wildlands. How urgent is the insurance crisis and the wildfire risks that are driving it?
Homeowners insurance is essential for protecting your property, finances, and peace of mind. Without it, you expose yourself to a range of serious risks that could have devastating consequences.
Legally, you can own a home without homeowners insurance. However, in most cases, those who have a financial interest in your home—such as a mortgage or home equity loan holder—will require that it be insured.
The 80% rule means that an insurance company will pay the replacement cost of damage to a home as long as the owner has purchased coverage equal to at least 80% of the home's total replacement value.
Home insurance isn't optional if you have a mortgage.
When you purchase a house, lenders require you to have homeowner's insurance. If you own your home outright, it isn't required. However, having home insurance is a good way to keep you financially safe in the event of a costly repair.
Theresa Simes, a Farmers Insurance® agent in Fountain Valley, California, discusses the need for home insurance. A: Home insurance isn't required by law, but there are other reasons to insure your home. If you have a mortgage on it, your lender will require you to have insurance until the loan is paid off.
The Share of Americans Without Health Insurance in 2023 Remained Low. In 2023, 26 million people — or 8 percent of the population — were uninsured, according to a report in September 2024 from the Census Bureau.
Bundling insurance policies also can simplify your bill paying and record-keeping, according to the Insurance Information Institute. Keep your deductible high. Higher deductibles equal lower premiums. Going to a $1,000 deductible from $500, for instance, can shave your premium by 25 percent, the institute says.
The table below shows the percentage of homes without a mortgage compared to the total number of available homes on record from 2010 to 2022. 2 These figures show that the percentage of mortgage-free homes has increased steadily, from 32.78% in 2010 to 39.28% in 2022.
While mortgage insurance protects the lender, homeowners insurance protects your home, the contents of your home and you as the homeowner. Once your mortgage is paid off, you have 100% equity in your home, so homeowners insurance may become even more crucial to your financial well-being.
Nationwide, Amica and USAA have some of the lowest rates for homeowners insurance. Homeowners insurance has become more expensive in recent years, especially in states hit with increasingly severe storms, flooding or wildfires.
The average home insurance cost by state varies with the nationwide average coming in at $2,601 a year. The cheapest state for home insurance is Hawaii at $613 a year, and the most expensive state is Oklahoma at $5,858 a year.
Home insurance for older properties tends to be more expensive because: Structures and systems that have seen decades (or even centuries) of wear and tear are more likely to cause problems.
Of those who go without insurance, nearly half make less than $40,000 a year. And with coverage getting a lot more expensive — especially in disaster-prone states like Florida and California — people are struggling to afford it.
Filing a home insurance claim is an unfortunate part of homeownership, and it can sometimes cause your premiums to jump. However, it's important to know that not all insurance claims are created equal. How much your premium will jump (if at all) is dependent on the type of claim and how often you file.
One in 13 American homeowners are uninsured – approximately 7.4% – living in about 6.1 million homes. Homeowners earning less than $50,000 per year are twice as likely to lack insurance compared with homeowners in general. Among lower-income homeowners, 15% are without coverage.
While a brief lapse in coverage might not seem like a huge deal, going without homeowners insurance for even a day or two puts you at financial risk. Additionally, many insurance companies won't accept late premium payments. So if you continually miss payments, your policy could be canceled automatically.
If you're unable to get a policy through the standard market, you may be able to obtain coverage through your state's FAIR (Fair Access to Insurance Requirements) plan. A FAIR plan is a state-run program designed to provide home insurance to homeowners that may be too risky for standard home insurance companies.