Miami, FL Homeowners Insurance

Miami, Florida is home to nearly half a million people. Though warm, beautiful, and vibrant, Miami is at the mercy of hurricanes, tropical storms, and tornadoes. If you own a house in this bustling and diverse city, you can protect the investment you have made in it with homeowners insurance.

Local independent agents are available to help you find the best and most affordable policy to cover your Miami home. Because they are not tied to a particular insurance company, these agents can shop around to find you suitable coverage at a competitive price.

Contact an independent insurance agent near you to start comparing customized quotes from some of the best insurance companies in Miami, Florida.

How Much Does Homeowners Insurance Cost in Miami, FL?

Given the high chance of severe weather in this state, it is little wonder that homeowners insurance rates in Florida are higher than they are nationally. In the coastal city of Miami, they tend to be even higher.

• National average yearly premium: $1,211
• Florida average yearly premium: $1,951
• Miami average yearly premium: $2,531

Of course, actual rates can vary from one homeowner to the next. Your quoted costs will be based on several factors such as:

• Your home’s age, value, and size in square feet
• The type of home you are insuring (e.g., single-family detached, condominium, vacation home, manufactured home, rental property, etc.)
• The crime rate and weather risks in your ZIP code
• Whether your home is equipped with safety devices like burglar alarms, smoke detectors, and deadbolt locks.
• Your claims history and credit score
• Whether you are bundling your home insurance with other policies like car insurance or life insurance

Some Miami neighborhoods will have higher average insurance costs than others. For instance, the mansions in Coconut Grove can cost more than $50,000 a year to insure, while insurance for homes in Miami’s Model City neighborhood, which is a more affordable location, costs much less.

Whatever Miami neighborhood you live in, comparing quotes from a few different homeowners insurance providers lets you be sure you are getting your policy at a reasonable price.

Miami Homeowners Insurance Covers Your Property

Homeowners insurance is designed to cover the cost to rebuild, repair, or replace your property if it is damaged or lost due to a covered event. Unless you have purchased a named-peril policy, you can expect that your homeowners insurance policy will cover against:

• Fires, including accidental fires, brush fires, and wildfires
• Property crimes, including burglary and vandalism
• Severe weather, including hurricanes, tropical storms, thunderstorms, windstorms, tornadoes, and hail.

The property coverage in your home policy will include:

• Dwelling insurance: This is coverage for the structure of your home.
• Contents insurance: This is coverage for your personal property.

You will want to be sure that your coverage limits in both categories are high enough to enable you to fully replace all of your property if you experience a total loss, such as if your house is completely destroyed by a tornado or burns down.

A Word about Flood Insurance in Miami, FL

Homeowners insurance does not cover flood damage. It is particularly important that you are aware of this fact if you live in Miami, where flooding poses a serious risk, due in large part to heavy rains, hurricanes, and storm surges.

In fact, an estimated 38% of all properties in Miami have a 26% or greater chance of sustaining significant flood damage in the next 50 years.

According to FEMA, just one inch of rainwater in your home can cause as much as $25,000 in property damage, so floods can be very problematic. This may leave you wondering what you can do to protect yourself against this risk.

The answer is simple. You can supplement your home insurance with a flood insurance policy through the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), a government program that is administered by FEMA.

NFIP flood insurance policies enable homeowners to affordably cover their property with up to $250,000 in dwelling coverage and up to $100,000 in contents coverage. Flood insurance takes 30 days to go into effect, so do not wait until a storm is approaching to purchase a policy.

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How Can Loss of Use Insurance Help Miami Homeowners?

Homeowners in the Miami area are vulnerable to a number of severe weather events that can cause significant damage to homes. Hurricane force winds can uproot trees, causing them to crash into houses, and tornadoes can rip roofs right off of buildings.

If serious damage from a covered disaster like a hurricane, tornado, or structure fire leaves your home unsafe to live in, loss of use insurance can help. This coverage, which is included in every home insurance policy, is designed to pay for your temporary living expenses while your house is being repaired.

In addition to paying for a hotel or temporary rental accommodation, it can cover a wide range of associated expenses such as meals, moving costs, storage fees, extra mileage, and pet boarding.

Why Do Homeowners in Miami Need Liability Insurance?

Everyone makes mistakes. There are times when accidents, negligence, and errors in judgement can cause harm to others, and, in turn, lead to extremely expensive lawsuits. That is why homeowners insurance also includes a significant amount of personal liability coverage.

Homeowners liability insurance is designed to cover expenses like court costs, legal fees, settlements, and judgements if you or someone in your household unintentionally cause someone else to experience injuries, property damage, financial losses, or other harm.

Examples of situations when your homeowners liability coverage can help you include: if a guest is injured on your property and it can be attributed to negligence of upkeep on your part, if your dog gets off its leash and bites a neighbor, or if you are accused of libel or slander.

If you have a lot to lose and would like to have more liability coverage than your home insurance policy can provide, you may want to also consider purchasing umbrella insurance. This is an affordable way to boost all of your personal liability coverage.

What Is the Burglary Rate in Miami, Florida?

The burglary rate in Florida, and in Miami in particular, is lower than the national average. This was not always the case. Burglaries in Miami have been steadily declining since 2009, when the rate was more than double what it is today. Residents of this city currently report about 2,000 burglaries a year.

• Number of burglaries per 1,000 people in the US: 3.76
• Number of burglaries per 1,000 people in Florida: 3.38
• Number of burglaries per 1,000 people in Miami: 3.69 

As with any metropolitan areas, some neighborhoods in Miami have higher crime rates than others. Because burglary rates affect homeowners insurance costs, your insurance company will take your ZIP code into account when calculating your premiums.

If your house is broken into and your valuables are taken, you may gain some comfort in knowing that your homeowners insurance can compensate you for your lost property as well as any damage the burglars may have done to your home. You will need a copy of the police report when you file your claim.

How Can an Independent Agent in Miami, FL Help?

Independent agents in Miami are available to help you find the best and most affordable homeowners insurance policy. These experienced agents can answer your insurance-related questions and can help you find a reliable, yet competitively priced, policy that meets all of your coverage needs.

Arrange an obligation-free consultation with an independent insurance agent near you to learn more. You will soon discover how easy it can be to review customized quotes from some of the best homeowners insurance companies in Florida.