How to Lower Home Insurance Rates 

By COUNTRY Financial

Home insurance is a necessity to protect you financially should you experience significant, costly damage to your home. And, as with many household expenses, you may be looking for ways to save on home insurance. Here are some ways you can cut costs without skimping on your coverage. 

How much is home insurance?

First, let's look at what factors influence the cost of home insurance. The truth is, there's a lot that goes into it, including:

• Location, age, size and condition of your home
• How many and what types of claims you’ve had in the past
• How much of the risk you take (your deductible)
• The limits you select for liability and medical coverage

Most insurers offer home insurance discounts for having more than one type of insurance with one company and other safety and loyalty factors. 

How to save on homeowners insurance

1. Look for home insurance discounts

Many home insurers offer discounts. You may be eligible if you made improvements to your home such as replacing your roof, installing a home security system or smart home technology like water leak detectors. You may also be eligible to save if you pay on time or avoid claims for a specified amount of time. COUNTRY offers the following home insurance discounts:

• Age of Roof Discount 
• Claim Free Discount
• Good Payer Discount
• Protective Devices Discount 
• Smart Home Discount
• Welcome Discount 

COUNTRY Financial offers several other home insurance discounts beyond those listed above. Explore our options and see if we can help you save.

2. Bundle your home and auto insurance

Many home insurers offer discounts if you bundle your home and auto insurance, along with any other insurance products you might need. If you buy other types of insurance (like life insurance, for example) from the same company, you'll typically be offered a discount on all of them.

COUNTRY Financial offers a Multi-Policy Discount for clients who bundle home, auto and life insurance policies with us. You can always talk to an agent to see if you qualify for a home and auto insurance bundle.

3. Ask your insurance agent  for a proper home valuation

Make sure you review your home valuation with a representative. A verified valuation is key and may save you money on premium or at the time of a claim.  If you have concerns with your level of coverage, talk to a representative.  There may be additional coverage options available to help provide you with peace of mind.

4. Install a home security system

If you really want to lower your home insurance cost, lower the risk of damage to your home. A quick way to do this: install a home security system. Security systems reduce the chance of you filing a claim for theft or vandalism, and many insurance companies offer discounts for having them.

5. Build your credit

According to NerdWallet1, a person with poor credit could pay 73% more for home insurance than someone with good credit. That's because the lower your credit score, the "riskier" you appear to your insurance providers. Insurance companies use your credit score to assess your financial wellbeing, and a low score is seen as an indication that you could have trouble making your payments. Additionally, lower scores tend to correlate to poorer loss histories.,

6. Change your home insurance deductible

If you want to lower monthly premium costs, you can choose to increase your deductible. 

It’s important to understand that opting for a policy with lower coverage and a higher deductible may provide some savings in the beginning, but it could mean paying more money out of pocket when you file a claim. If you have a home insurance claim and the coverage isn’t sufficient, or the deductible is high, you may have to cover more out of pocket  than expected.  

It's also important to understand the type of deductible you have – whether it’s a set dollar amount or a percentage.  With percentage deductibles, as the cost to rebuild your home increases so will the level of your deductible. 

Final thoughts

These are just some ways to lower your home insurance rates. Contact an insurance agent to find out more. 

Learn more about COUNTRY Financial home insurance and get a home insurance quote.

Updated 8-14-24