hurricane season and sinkholes

Finding the right homeowners insurance for your home can be tricky. Finding it in Florida adds some extra trickiness. Because of the constancy of hurricane season and sinkholes some companies have decided not to insure homes in Florida, but that still leaves a lot of insurers who do. Taking the time to contact each and get quotes is time consuming. How can you be sure that comparing the policy quotes are comparing apples to apples? Now, there is a tool for Florida homeowners that can help.

Different factors involved

The cost of homeowner’s insurance can and will vary depending on a few different factors. One factor is the type of home construction. Not only the style, but the materials. An all wood home will cost more to insure than an all brick or stucco. Another factor is the value of your home. Obviously if your home cost more to buy, it will cost more to insure. Why? Because it will cost more to replace if it is destroyed.

Factors that mitigate the cost

There are ways to lower your bill too. There are factors that will mitigate the cost, such as sprinkler systems, home alarm systems, multi policy discounts and the like. You can also lower your policy by agreeing to higher deductibles. Asking your agent about discounts is smart. The problem is, how many agents are you going to ask?

There is a way to narrow the field

The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation has a website where you can start getting information on homeowner’s insurance cost. The site allows you to choose the age range and closest value of your home, and county where your home is, and it will provide you with a list of companies and their rates. Then you can choose from the list and call an agent to further narrow the cost with mitigating factors and deductibles.