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Shop
around.
Check with many different insurance companies to get
homeowners insurance quotes. Do your friends or family members like their insurance company?
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Raise
your deductible.
The deductible is the amount of money you have to pay toward a
loss before your insurance kicks in. Typically, deductibles
start at $250.
Increase your deductible to:
$500 and save up to 12% on your premiums
$1,000 and save up to 24%
$2,500 and save up to 30%
$5,000 and save up to 37%.
Just make sure you can afford to pay the higher deductible out
of pocket if something should happen.
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Buy your
home and auto policies from the same insurance company.
Many insurance companies will give a multiline discount if you
buy both homeowner's and auto insurance coverage from them.
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Consider
insurance when buying a home.
If you're looking at buying a home, think about the cost of
insuring the home. A newer home's electrical, heating and
plumbing systems and overall structure are likely to be in
better condition than those of an older home. This can lead to
a discount on your insurance premiums. You'll also want to
consider the construction of the home and where you live. If
you live on the East Coast, you'll want the house to be able
to stand up to wind damage, while on the West Coast, you need
to keep earthquakes in mind.
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Insure
your home, not the land.
While your home and its contents are at risk from fire, theft,
windstorms and other perils, the land your home sits on is
not. Don't include the value of the land in deciding how much
homeowner's insurance you need to buy.
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Improve
security and safety.
Items such as deadbolt locks, burglar alarms and smoke
detectors usually can bring discounts of 5% each, depending on
the insurance company. Your insurance company may also offer a
significant discount of 15% or 20% if you install a
sophisticated home-security system. If you're thinking about
buying such a system, check with your insurer to see which
systems they recommend and which will earn you a discount.
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Stop
smoking.
Smoking accidents account for more than 23,000 residential
fires every year. Some insurers offer to reduce premiums if no
one in the home smokes.
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Senior
discounts.
Insurance companies have found that retired people stay at
home more and spot fires sooner than working people. Older
people also have more time for maintaining their homes. If
you're at least 55 years old and retired, you might qualify
for a discount of as much as 10%.
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Group
insurance coverage.
Alumni and business associations often work out insurance
deals with an insurance company, which includes a discount for
association members. Ask your association's director about any
such deals.
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Stay with
an insurer.
If you've kept your coverage with an insurance company for
several years, you may receive special consideration. Several
insurers will reduce their premiums by 5% after staying with
them for three to five years; and some companies will discount
you as much as 10% after six years.
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Check
your insurance policy annually.
You want your insurance policy to reflect the value of your
home and belongings. If you review your insurance policy every
year, you will be able to make the necessary adjustments. If,
for example, you just sold a valuable painting, you won't need
the same amount of coverage. But if you added a garage, you'll
need to increase your insurance coverage.
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Look for
private insurance first.
If you live in a high-risk area (one that is especially
vulnerable to coastal storms, fires or crime) and think you'll
be forced to buy homeowner's insurance coverage from your
state's high-risk insurance pool, check first with an
insurance agent. You may find that you can still buy insurance
at a lower price in the private insurance market than from the
insurer of last resort.
