Top 5 Ways to Reduce Home Insurance Premiums in 2023
A home is typically the largest purchase the majority of us will make and it is an absolute necessity to protect it with homeowners insurance. Unfortunately, homeowners insurance coverage can be expensive but there are ways to lower your premium.
Insurance rates take a wide variety of factors into consideration, including the size and construction type of the home, the homes’ location, nearby perils as well as the frequency of severe weather and the claims history associated with the home.
There are a number of ways you can lower your premium if your insurance is unaffordable, here are five ways to reduce homeowners insurance premiums in 2023:
Bundling your coverages
Bundling your coverages, particularly your home and auto insurance coverages is a great way to lower your premium. If you have your auto and home insurance with the same insurer, they will typically offer a bundling discount that can shave up to 25% off your rate.
Bundling is not the only discount that insurers offer, most offer dozens of discounts and you should make sure you are taking advantage of all the discounts you are qualified to receive. Insurers offer discounts for impact resistant roofing materials, paying your premium in full and even receiving your policy and bills via email. Have your agent do a discount review to make sure all available discounts are being applied to your premium.
Upgrading your roofing materials
Most insurers offer discounts for wind or hail resistant roofing materials. Why it rarely makes financial sense to replace a new roof with a new wind resistant one, if you are in the process of replacing your old roof, it is almost always worth the extra cost to upgrade to wind or hail resistant materials.
Storm resistant roofs often result in a major discount on your homeowners insurance and this savings will help offset the additional cost of the storm resistant roof. In addition, these roofing materials can help protect your home in the event a major storm comes through town, which means you won’t have to file a claim on your policy.
Installing a sprinkler system
A sprinkler system will result in a major discount to your homeowner insurance premium. Unfortunately, these systems come with a huge upfront cost, depending on size of the home, these systems can easily cost $5,000 to over $10,000.
In addition to lowering your insurance rates, a sprinkler system can prevent your home from burning to the ground and taking all your personal possessions with it. While a sprinkler system can be a costly upgrade, just for an insurance discount, if you are currently looking to install one to keep your home and family safe, one additional benefit will be a major insurance discount.
Monitored fire or burglar alarm
Installing a monitored fire and burglar alarm is another way to lower your homeowner insurance costs. Insurers love anything that lowers the chance of a claim or fire, so they are happy to reward homeowners who take steps to prevent fires and break-ins.
Once you have a system installed, notify your insurer and ask that all appropriate discounts are being applied to your policy.
Upgrading mechanicals
Old heating, electrical and plumbing systems can cause fires, and water damage so insurers offer discounts for upgrading your mechanical systems. If you are in the process of replacing the major systems in your home, notify your insurer and make sure you are getting any discounts that your new systems qualify for, and they are being applied to your policy.
Leak detection systems can also result in a discount so if you install these smart home devices, notify your insurer.