Silicon valley home insurance increase from $1400->$2200, sounds right?!

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lightheir
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Silicon valley home insurance increase from $1400->$2200, sounds right?!

Post by lightheir »

I have an autopay on home insurance (Travelers) in Silicon Valley CA (around Mountain view), that for the past 10 years has increased gradually from around 1100 -> 1400, and then this past year jumped to $2200 (!)

I didn't notice it until it was autobilled and deducted from my account.

There have been no changes or claims made in my house, ever. I'm assuming this rate increase was due to the prior year CA wildfires, but wow, that's a monster 50% jump in increase, which makes me wonder if this is an outlier, or if others in CA are seeing similar increases with theirs.

I may end up getting new quotes from other companies but figured I'd asked here first because the amount of spam you get from a home insurance request is staggering (yes, I've done it in the past.)

Thx
jack.bauer
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Re: Silicon valley home insurance increase from $1400->$2200, sounds right?!

Post by jack.bauer »

Our home insurance premium also went up ~33% (State Farm) due to the forest fires. I also missed the auto renewal notice. Lol.

Its a regular market and they have to file intent to raise with some state agency a year or so out. And agent mentioned that was in process for another raise. So agent said to expect another raise next year.
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Kagord
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Re: Silicon valley home insurance increase from $1400->$2200, sounds right?!

Post by Kagord »

The cost to build is up, lumber is currently 4.5X where it was pre pandemic. Seems to me, on properties we own, insurance companies price the cost to rebuild over the price to buy an equivalent home.
rascott
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Re: Silicon valley home insurance increase from $1400->$2200, sounds right?!

Post by rascott »

Mine has gone up a lot in recent years..... I've had good luck getting much lower quotes using some independent agents. But haven't made the switch yet.... the most recent one was like $1300....compared to my current $2100 with Allstate. The savings was so much actually made me hesitate and do more research on the insurer.
rjbraun
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Re: Silicon valley home insurance increase from $1400->$2200, sounds right?!

Post by rjbraun »

rascott wrote: Mon May 03, 2021 9:44 am Mine has gone up a lot in recent years..... I've had good luck getting much lower quotes using some independent agents. But haven't made the switch yet.... the most recent one was like $1300....compared to my current $2100 with Allstate. The savings was so much actually made me hesitate and do more research on the insurer.
I also shopped around last year. I found a considerably lower quote but held off. After allaying concerns (enough) that the service and claims coverage would be comparable my fear was that the new carrier would just jack up the rate the next time around (or so) and leave us on par with what we would have been paying with our original carrier. As we had a preference for the original company we never made the switch (so far).
curmudgeon
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Re: Silicon valley home insurance increase from $1400->$2200, sounds right?!

Post by curmudgeon »

We almost doubled this year for our SV house. Most of the increase was from the general CA fire loss hike; a smaller part was specific to our policy. We are in a somewhat higher risk zone, so quite a few companies won't even offer a policy for our address which limits our options.
RightGuard
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Re: Silicon valley home insurance increase from $1400->$2200, sounds right?!

Post by RightGuard »

Now we can all cry together, except I'm paying $2200 on one third of the value of a SV home here in FL, flood is another $650-$800.

I'm dreading renewals this year. There was recent WSJ article about swelling numbers in the state's Citizen's Protective Insurance Group (Insurer of last resort) due to deep structural problems in the private market.
jarjarM
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Re: Silicon valley home insurance increase from $1400->$2200, sounds right?!

Post by jarjarM »

My bayarea homeowner insurance also went up ~30% as well (Mercury). :x
bmelikia
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Re: Silicon valley home insurance increase from $1400->$2200, sounds right?!

Post by bmelikia »

The replacement cost of your home has likely increase considerably since lumber, steel, concrete, and building hardware have all seen significant increases.

The cost of a sheet of plywood has more than quadrupled since February/March 2020
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DoubleComma
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Re: Silicon valley home insurance increase from $1400->$2200, sounds right?!

Post by DoubleComma »

I have two CA homes, one is only 5 years old and that premium has been flat each year. It's not in a high risk or high brush area and considering the type of construction (stucco, tile roof, with sprinkler system, etc) Nationwide hasn't done much to the premium.

The second house however; is smaller a little older (12 Years) has composition roof and is in a high brush area. Nationwide refused to write it when we bought it, another carrier I don't recall wrote it for one year then dropped us at renewal. For the past two years we have had to use CA Fair Plan, insurance of last resort, and are paying $4k+. CA Fair Plan only covers the structure from fire too, we also have a Difference in Conditions (DIC) to cover liability, contents and other perils. Combined the policies are $5500 w/ a $10k deductible and we exclude theft as we will self-insure that risk.

Crazy how expensive HO insurance has become in CA, largely a result of wild fire.
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quantAndHold
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Re: Silicon valley home insurance increase from $1400->$2200, sounds right?!

Post by quantAndHold »

We live in an urban part of San Diego that’s at minimal danger of wildfires. Our premium stayed flat this year.
z91
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Re: Silicon valley home insurance increase from $1400->$2200, sounds right?!

Post by z91 »

Common. I have an SFH investment property in the same area that has almost doubled. I asked a few folks in the area and all of the rates have gone up. Might not be nationwide, but it's happening in the SF Bay Area.
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Watty
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Re: Silicon valley home insurance increase from $1400->$2200, sounds right?!

Post by Watty »

It makes sense that the cost to insure a home would go up as the price of a home goes up.

How much has your home price gone up over the last year?
tigermilk
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Re: Silicon valley home insurance increase from $1400->$2200, sounds right?!

Post by tigermilk »

RightGuard wrote: Mon May 03, 2021 5:42 pm Now we can all cry together, except I'm paying $2200 on one third of the value of a SV home here in FL, flood is another $650-$800.

I'm dreading renewals this year. There was recent WSJ article about swelling numbers in the state's Citizen's Protective Insurance Group (Insurer of last resort) due to deep structural problems in the private market.
Gulf Coast living sucks, eh? In my neck of the woods in the Houston area, being in a county that touches the Gulf drives our insurance is over $3k on a $275k appraised home.
squirm
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Re: Silicon valley home insurance increase from $1400->$2200, sounds right?!

Post by squirm »

Doesn't seem like anything new. I have a SIL in the foothills, she said years ago her insurance went up due to the fires like Paradise. Last year all those complex fires in the bay area are driving up prices. Some aren't even able to get insurance

If you have insurance, who is do you have?
Wannaretireearly
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Re: Silicon valley home insurance increase from $1400->$2200, sounds right?!

Post by Wannaretireearly »

I think my quote went up 20-30% with state farm to around $1300.
Was able to work with my agent to redo the quote. Slightly less overall coverage for $1000 now.
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billy269
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Re: Silicon valley home insurance increase from $1400->$2200, sounds right?!

Post by billy269 »

I live in the mountains in NE California, very similar. My Travelers just went from $1300 to $1900 for a plan with only $336k of coverage. It sounds like they have revamped how they calculate premiums in California, which I think is part of the jump. Honestly, even with the huge increase I was relieved to get renewed and dodge the bullet for another year. Really dread when I'm stuck with the "FAIR" plan.
https://www.travelers.com/home-insuranc ... ornia-home
billy269
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Re: Silicon valley home insurance increase from $1400->$2200, sounds right?!

Post by billy269 »

Just to post an update. Here is my trajectory for around $430K of dwelling coverage: 2020: $1200 --> 2021: $2100 --> just got my 2022 policy and it almost TRIPLED to $6200. Is this happening to anyone else in NorCal? I acknowledge that I'm in the woods, but a 300% increase this year is even more than I expected.Thinking maybe it's time to sell before home insurance is $30K a year...
Last edited by billy269 on Wed Jun 01, 2022 1:04 pm, edited 1 time in total.
billy269
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Re: Silicon valley home insurance increase from $1400->$2200, sounds right?!

Post by billy269 »

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DoubleComma
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Re: Silicon valley home insurance increase from $1400->$2200, sounds right?!

Post by DoubleComma »

billy269 wrote: Wed Jun 01, 2022 1:02 pm Just to post an update. Here is my trajectory for around $430K of dwelling coverage: 2020: $1200 --> 2021: $2100 --> just got my 2022 policy and it almost TRIPLED to $6200. Is this happening to anyone else in NorCal? I acknowledge that I'm in the woods, but a 300% increase this year is even more than I expected.Thinking maybe it's time to sell before home insurance is $30K a year...
Be happy you have a company writing coverage for you. Our mountain home in the Central Sierra was dropped a couple years ago and we've been on FAIR Plan with DIC coverage since. To get a policy <$10k we had to drop a lot of traditional coverages --- like THEFT. We are stuck self-insuring things I would normally cover with HO Insurance and our deductible is $10k for other perils.

To keep inline with the originally thread from last year, our primary home which isn't in a high brush area, has had 100% increase over the past 4 years to off set wildfire losses incurred in the state. I don't like paying ~$2k for that, buts its still are bargain based on replacement cost of the home.
Maverick3320
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Re: Silicon valley home insurance increase from $1400->$2200, sounds right?!

Post by Maverick3320 »

RightGuard wrote: Mon May 03, 2021 5:42 pm Now we can all cry together, except I'm paying $2200 on one third of the value of a SV home here in FL, flood is another $650-$800.

I'm dreading renewals this year. There was recent WSJ article about swelling numbers in the state's Citizen's Protective Insurance Group (Insurer of last resort) due to deep structural problems in the private market.
By "structural problems in the private market" in FL...

....do you mean it's awfully hard to stay in business providing home insurance to people living below sea level on a coast that experiences a lot of bad weather?
Broken Man 1999
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Re: Silicon valley home insurance increase from $1400->$2200, sounds right?!

Post by Broken Man 1999 »

Maverick3320 wrote: Wed Jun 01, 2022 2:59 pm
RightGuard wrote: Mon May 03, 2021 5:42 pm Now we can all cry together, except I'm paying $2200 on one third of the value of a SV home here in FL, flood is another $650-$800.

I'm dreading renewals this year. There was recent WSJ article about swelling numbers in the state's Citizen's Protective Insurance Group (Insurer of last resort) due to deep structural problems in the private market.
By "structural problems in the private market" in FL...

....do you mean it's awfully hard to stay in business providing home insurance to people living below sea level on a coast that experiences a lot of bad weather?
Or replacing very old roofs with a brand new roof if a few shingles blow off.

Roofs should be covered in decreasing terms as the roof ages.

Broken Man 1999
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Broken Man 1999
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Re: Silicon valley home insurance increase from $1400->$2200, sounds right?!

Post by Broken Man 1999 »

Last year I went with Farmers, got a better rate from them than anyone. I suppose they are increasing their book in Florida. They haven't been here but a few years.

My coverage is right at $2000/year. $460,000 for home, $500,000 liability, $5,000 deductible.

Roof is 40 year architectural shingles 21 years old. We are well inland on the east side of Tampa Bay, no way we can flood. I expect those close to the bay or Gulf are going to get hammered from here on out as they renew their coverage.

I have never had such a thorough inspection ever. Wind mitigation + four point inspection. After the report was complete, Farmers sent out a person to take pictures. After all that I was half expecting to see someone at my door, come in and start putting on surgical gloves to inspect me!

Our home is always in top shape, so I wasn't worried about any issues.

I renew in August so I'll see what happens. I am glad the insurance companies are tightening up, it is about time they did.

Broken Man 1999
“If I cannot drink Bourbon and smoke cigars in Heaven then I shall not go." - Mark Twain
talzara
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Re: Silicon valley home insurance increase from $1400->$2200, sounds right?!

Post by talzara »

Maverick3320 wrote: Wed Jun 01, 2022 2:59 pm By "structural problems in the private market" in FL...

....do you mean it's awfully hard to stay in business providing home insurance to people living below sea level on a coast that experiences a lot of bad weather?
The crisis in Florida homeowners insurance has been building for 15 years. Most of the large national insurers exited Florida in 2006-2010. The market is dominated by single-state insurers that rely on reinsurance to pay for hurricanes. Even State Farm Florida is a single-state insurer that is not in a pool with State Farm Fire.

The state was lulled into a sense of complacency by 10 years of good weather. No major hurricanes hit Florida, and the single-state insurers were very profitable. Then Hurricane Irma hit in 2017, and homeowners insurance has been unprofitable ever since.

The homeowners insurance industry in Florida is built on sand. Hurricane Agatha just became the largest hurricane to make landfall in May. It didn't hit Florida, but it could've hit Florida. This is the new normal: more hurricanes, stronger hurricanes, over an extended hurricane season.
talzara
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Re: Silicon valley home insurance increase from $1400->$2200, sounds right?!

Post by talzara »

Broken Man 1999 wrote: Wed Jun 01, 2022 3:09 pm Or replacing very old roofs with a brand new roof if a few shingles blow off.

Roofs should be covered in decreasing terms as the roof ages.
Scheduled roof coverage is illegal in Florida. It would've been legalized by the original version of the 2021 insurance reform bill, but the Florida legislature removed that clause during the debate.

It still hasn't sunk in yet. The state is still fiddling at the edges while its homeowners insurance market is failing. Other states allow scheduled roofs, but Florida doesn't.
talzara
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Re: Silicon valley home insurance increase from $1400->$2200, sounds right?!

Post by talzara »

Broken Man 1999 wrote: Wed Jun 01, 2022 3:54 pm Last year I went with Farmers, got a better rate from them than anyone. I suppose they are increasing their book in Florida. They haven't been here but a few years.
Farmers has 25% of its homeowners business in California. It wants more hurricane risk, tornado risk, and hail risk -- anything but wildfires.
DXG1987
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Re: Silicon valley home insurance increase from $1400->$2200, sounds right?!

Post by DXG1987 »

Kagord wrote: Mon May 03, 2021 9:44 am The cost to build is up, lumber is currently 4.5X where it was pre pandemic. Seems to me, on properties we own, insurance companies price the cost to rebuild over the price to buy an equivalent home.
Not to take this topic too far off the rails, but actual 'lumber' makes up a surprisingly small percentage of a new home's cost. A 2,500 sq. ft. house uses in around 15 mbf of lumber. Even at very elevated prices (say $1,000/mbf), it is easy to see that the cost of building a home isn't impacted all that much by changes in the cost of lumber.
Broken Man 1999
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Re: Silicon valley home insurance increase from $1400->$2200, sounds right?!

Post by Broken Man 1999 »

talzara wrote: Wed Jun 01, 2022 5:23 pm
Broken Man 1999 wrote: Wed Jun 01, 2022 3:54 pm Last year I went with Farmers, got a better rate from them than anyone. I suppose they are increasing their book in Florida. They haven't been here but a few years.
Farmers has 25% of its homeowners business in California. It wants more hurricane risk, tornado risk, and hail risk -- anything but wildfires.
Yeah, I'm sure California is killing some insurers with all the wildfires. Interesting to see Farmer's moving into Florida, considefing our hurricane risks. Diversified book for them.

Broken Man 1999
“If I cannot drink Bourbon and smoke cigars in Heaven then I shall not go." - Mark Twain
billy269
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Re: Silicon valley home insurance increase from $1400->$2200, sounds right?!

Post by billy269 »

DoubleComma wrote: Wed Jun 01, 2022 2:00 pm
billy269 wrote: Wed Jun 01, 2022 1:02 pm Just to post an update. Here is my trajectory for around $430K of dwelling coverage: 2020: $1200 --> 2021: $2100 --> just got my 2022 policy and it almost TRIPLED to $6200. Is this happening to anyone else in NorCal? I acknowledge that I'm in the woods, but a 300% increase this year is even more than I expected.Thinking maybe it's time to sell before home insurance is $30K a year...
Be happy you have a company writing coverage for you. Our mountain home in the Central Sierra was dropped a couple years ago and we've been on FAIR Plan with DIC coverage since. To get a policy <$10k we had to drop a lot of traditional coverages --- like THEFT. We are stuck self-insuring things I would normally cover with HO Insurance and our deductible is $10k for other perils.

To keep inline with the originally thread from last year, our primary home which isn't in a high brush area, has had 100% increase over the past 4 years to off set wildfire losses incurred in the state. I don't like paying ~$2k for that, buts its still are bargain based on replacement cost of the home.
I am happy, but they had to renew me this year due to the moratorium in my zip code from a fire in my area last year. I view the tripling of coverage as an indication they may drop me as soon as they can... We'll see. For your mountain home, how much dwelling coverage are you getting under FAIR for the $10,000 policy?
DoubleComma
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Re: Silicon valley home insurance increase from $1400->$2200, sounds right?!

Post by DoubleComma »

billy269 wrote: Wed Jun 01, 2022 7:29 pm
DoubleComma wrote: Wed Jun 01, 2022 2:00 pm
billy269 wrote: Wed Jun 01, 2022 1:02 pm Just to post an update. Here is my trajectory for around $430K of dwelling coverage: 2020: $1200 --> 2021: $2100 --> just got my 2022 policy and it almost TRIPLED to $6200. Is this happening to anyone else in NorCal? I acknowledge that I'm in the woods, but a 300% increase this year is even more than I expected.Thinking maybe it's time to sell before home insurance is $30K a year...
Be happy you have a company writing coverage for you. Our mountain home in the Central Sierra was dropped a couple years ago and we've been on FAIR Plan with DIC coverage since. To get a policy <$10k we had to drop a lot of traditional coverages --- like THEFT. We are stuck self-insuring things I would normally cover with HO Insurance and our deductible is $10k for other perils.

To keep inline with the originally thread from last year, our primary home which isn't in a high brush area, has had 100% increase over the past 4 years to off set wildfire losses incurred in the state. I don't like paying ~$2k for that, buts its still are bargain based on replacement cost of the home.
I am happy, but they had to renew me this year due to the moratorium in my zip code from a fire in my area last year. I view the tripling of coverage as an indication they may drop me as soon as they can... We'll see. For your mountain home, how much dwelling coverage are you getting under FAIR for the $10,000 policy?
To be clear, our premium (combined FAIR & DIC) is NOT $10k, we did have a quote that high initially but our agent was able to find a different DIC option and we manipulated coverages to drive the cost lower.

As it stands we pay…$6500

FAIR Plan $3900/annually for $653k dwelling, $100k contents, $65k ordinates of Law & $33k site clearing. As you likely already know this is basically just fire coverage.

Difference in Conditions (DIC) is written by AEGIS - $2600 annually for $2200 to cover other perils. However we excluded “loss of use” since it’s a second home. We also excluded theft and a couple other minor things.

FAIR Plan deductible is $10k…I don’t recall for the DIC, it’s probably harmonized.

What we found going through this was the DIC is where the cost varies so much. Not all agents have access to all companies offering DIC is California. If you face this, there are agencies who have forced to become specialized in high brush areas using FAIR plan and DIC.

Hopefully we never have to call on this coverage. The Creek Fire in 2020 came within 200 yards of my house. Most of the brush risk has been mitigate temporarily due to this.
fareastwarriors
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Re: Silicon valley home insurance increase from $1400->$2200, sounds right?!

Post by fareastwarriors »

I have a 9.75% increase for my home in the East Bay but still "only" $1,181.15. Lucky me.
Arlington2019
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Re: Silicon valley home insurance increase from $1400->$2200, sounds right?!

Post by Arlington2019 »

45 miles north of Seattle, my premium went from $1800 last year to $2900 this year for a $950,000 home on a rural acre. Safeco said it was due to fire risk and no longer being able to use credit scores in underwriting. Shopping the policy to other carriers yielded similar results.
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