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        • Menomonie
        • 420 Main Street E
          Menomonie, WI 54751
          Phone: 715-235-6479
          Fax: 715-235-8860
          Email: info@burstadinsurance.com

           

        • Medford
        • 1154 W Broadway Ave
          Medford WI 54451
          Phone: 715-748-6262
          Fax: 715-748-4730
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        • 1225 N Knowles Ave
          New Richmond, WI 54017
          Phone:  715-246-6988
          Fax: 715-246-6965
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        • 2396 Hallie Road Ste 5
          Chippewa Falls, WI 54729
          Phone: 715-723-0600
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          River Falls, WI 54022
          Phone: 715-425-1382
          Fax: 715-425-6341
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The Rising Cost of Home Insurance

May 9, 2022 By Monte Burstad

home construction

According to III (the Insurance Information Institute), the average cost of home insurance increased to a record high of $1,398 last year. This, of course, placed an added burden on homeowners who were already struggling with inflation. Below we analyze the reasons for the situation and explain what a homeowner can do about it.

Why Are Home Insurance Premiums Increasing So Fast? 

To understand why home insurance premiums are rising faster than before, one has to know how insurance companies calculate the cost of insurance.

The majority of homes are insured for replacement value, i.e., how much it will cost the insurer to replace your home if it is completely destroyed. This amount depends to a large extent on the cost of labor and materials that go into constructing a home. Therefore, if there is a sharp increase in, e.g., the price of lumber or wages go up significantly, it will cost much more to repair or replace your home, and insurance companies will have to increase their premiums.

This is exactly what happened over the last couple of years. When COVID-19 hit the United States, lumber producers were afraid that the Great Recession would repeat itself. So they unloaded inventory and slashed production. But instead of dropping, demand went up dramatically. This mix of reduced supply and increased demand caused lumber prices to spike by 400% in a single year. The situation has worsened by the decision to increase the tariff on Canadian lumber from 9% to 18%.

Apart from that, the price of labor also increased sharply during the COVID-19 pandemic. Workers feared catching the disease, and many of them, particularly women, decided to rather stay at home. The pandemic also caused many people to look for jobs where their chances of contracting COVID-19 were less, while others chose to opt for early retirement.

Unusually severe natural disasters also affect the cost of home insurance. A home insurer is a business like any other, and if its actual expenses far exceed the projected amount, it could easily cause huge losses for insurance companies. The only way to recover those losses is by passing them on to policyholders and increasing insurance premiums. Last year’s hurricane season, for example, caused record losses in coastal states such as Florida and Louisiana. And the Colorado wildfires and the Texas freeze also caused massive losses for home insurers. All of these pushed up the cost of home insurance even further.

Do you Have Enough Coverage?

Because of the increased cost to replace or repair your home, it may be an excellent time to review the amount of coverage you have on your home. It could be that the increased cost of replacing or repairing your home now exceeds the amount of coverage you have in place.

There is also the consideration that if you were displaced due to a loss, the time it will take to repair or replace your home will exceed the amount of coverage you have to pay for a hotel or house rental while your home Is being rebuilt or repaired.

How Can Homeowners Keep the Cost of Home Insurance Low? 

Fortunately, there are quite a few things that homeowners can do to keep their home insurance premiums in check.

Ask us to look for a more competitive rate. We represent many of the top insurance firms. If your home insurance premiums are going up too fast, we can review your policy to determine what factors may be causing the increase.  We may also be able to recommend alternatives, that can better protect your home for a lower premium.

Increase your deductible. The deductible refers to the amount the homeowner has to pay when they submit a claim. Increasing this amount may help reduce your insurance premium.

Make your home more disaster-proof. You might be able to reduce your homeowners insurance cost by retrofitting things like more robust roofing materials and storm shutters. Updating your home’s plumbing, heating, and electrical systems can also cut the risk of fire and water damage. And having a better sprinkler system or burglar alarm installed could significantly reduce your home insurance premiums.

Final Thoughts on Home Insurance

Home insurance is a more complex topic than many people realize. The typical home insurance contract is filled with technical terms, and it’s easy to misunderstand some of the clauses. Making use of an independent insurance agent like us will help you to avoid many of the potential pitfalls and to get the best possible home insurance premiums. Feel free to contact us if you have any questions.

Filed Under: Home

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Refer a Friend!
Good service they work at finding you the best insurance
Jason W.
Jason W.
19:14 01 May 22
Easy to work with
Dale B.
Dale B.
00:39 08 Apr 22
Good insurance company
Carla O.
Carla O.
18:49 31 Mar 22
Easy to work with and great rates. Sent a lot of friends here. All are happy with it!
Happy Home I.
Happy Home I.
16:05 29 Mar 22
Melissa and her staff have always treated me right! Often finding better rates for me! Thanks
Dave T.
Dave T.
22:06 11 Jan 22
Great place
Peter T.
Peter T.
20:32 10 Oct 21
Monte and his team are great to work with. They were extremely helpful in getting our business up off the ground and getting the needed items to be successful. I would highly recommend them for your business!
Jeremy M.
Jeremy M.
13:57 29 Apr 21
Great to work with!
Denise V.
Denise V.
18:57 12 Mar 21
Everyone here has been very helpful, knowledgeable and friendly! Whenever I contact them, they get back to me quickly and are sure to get me the best rates possible. Thank you! The Baldwins
Dawn B
Dawn B
23:02 30 Jan 21
I was losing my home insurance with American Family and Burstad worked their magic and found insurance even cheaper than what I was paying. They are very responsive when adding or changing things to a policy and they stick up for their customers when a bank may try to manipulate the home insurance for no apparent reason. Well done Burstad. I highly recommend.
Mindy A.
Mindy A.
00:56 21 Oct 20
Have had my insurance for different vehicles and homes for many years, always friendly and am very satisfied.
Randy Chico J.
Randy Chico J.
16:48 25 Aug 20
Great response time, #1 in the area
ride W.
ride W.
15:50 22 Jul 20
good business and friendly service. highly recommend giving them a call to see what they can do for you.
Dustin W.
Dustin W.
14:51 21 Jul 20
Very responsive all around good business and friendly service. Highly recommend.
Brooklyn S.
Brooklyn S.
14:49 21 Jul 20
Excellent customer serviceKent Elkin goes above and beyondAlso the rest of the staff is very accommodating
Lee B.
Lee B.
23:08 20 Jul 20
Prompt and courteous service. The good people at New Richmond have always replied to my queries and helped solve my problems. Thanks for seven years of good service.
Gordon D.
Gordon D.
18:25 20 Jul 20
They are professional and responsive
Barbara B.
Barbara B.
00:14 11 Jul 20
EXCELLENT customer service!! Missy Kraemer at the Medford office takes care of absolutely everything for me! No worries and best rates to be found. Highly recommend.
Mary Ellen W.
Mary Ellen W.
15:37 12 May 20
EXCELLENT insurance company! I have my personal and business insurance with Monte and have for over 20 years. When we had the tornado in Colfax in 2014, Monte called me and was at my restaurant door within an hour after it hit. Amazing service.... Thank you Monte, Penny and the whole staff at Burstad Insurance.
Rich J.
Rich J.
11:55 16 Apr 20
New Richmond Insurance consistently saves me money on my policies year after year. Excellent customer service with most of my questions answered the same day.
Valerie C.
Valerie C.
01:57 16 Apr 20
great place and nice service
Li K.
Li K.
20:20 15 Apr 20
Great place. Emily is very helpful as well as all the rest of the people I have encountered there.
Stacy C.
Stacy C.
03:06 04 Jan 20
Best prices. Best customer service!
Bill I.
Bill I.
12:49 16 Nov 19
Top notch service. Will recommend to all.
Steven G.
Steven G.
13:19 01 Nov 19
Yes! I want to tell you something. If you need a car insurance - this is the place where you will find the best offer.Have done car insurance for two trucks. The price was so good, even less than I expected.My agent was Angie. I want to say thank you for caring! She is the nicest and kindest person ever!Definitely will return for the nest year insurance
Ana B.
Ana B.
00:39 29 Aug 19
Excellent rates and service. Friendly staff and helped in a timely manner
Jason L.
Jason L.
03:56 13 Jun 19
Neil is awesome!
Alicia B.
Alicia B.
15:05 23 May 19
Very helpful agents and staff. They got me a great deal on homeowners and auto insurance.
John A.
John A.
12:01 12 May 19
I have had policies thru the Agents, at the Menomonie office.Their prompt response, patience, amazing customer service and thoroughness, is the greatest I have ever had with an agency!
Jody L.
Jody L.
01:29 10 Apr 19
This is my insurance agency. I have been treated very well and my premiums are responsible.
Mitzi M.
Mitzi M.
11:25 25 Jan 19
They are the best I have ever used. Any time you need something, they have your back. Never had an issue with the company , and I would recommend Kent Elkin to any one and everyone. Thank you for all your services New Richmond insurance agency. Been with them for 3 years now.
Natasha R.
Natasha R.
04:28 30 Nov 18
Great staff!
Valorie M.
Valorie M.
20:54 13 May 18
I have been a customer for many years and love the personal customer service experience that they provide. I know that when I call, I will get a real live person! I also know that the person I am working with will have an understanding of my history and my policy. Highly recommend! Thanks and keep up the good work!
Brian H.
Brian H.
18:21 21 Sep 17
I have been a customer for a long time and love the personal customer service experience they provide. I can reach out anytime and know that I will get to talk to a real person that has the background on my policy and will be able to help me. Thanks and keep up the good work!
Brian H.
Brian H.
18:13 21 Sep 17
Corey Burstsad Insurance is great!! Neil always goes out of way for his clients, very trustworthy and efficient.
marcy M.
marcy M.
20:19 13 Jan 17
Very friendly and helpful. Got is a great deal and we were refered there by a good friend after not being able to find what we wanted elsewhere. They made the process very easy and didn't mind us popping by last minute to get the details figured out.
Soleil
Soleil
20:52 05 Jun 16
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home construction

The Rising Cost of Home Insurance

According to III (the Insurance Information Institute), the average cost of home insurance increased to a record high of $1,398 last year. This, of course, placed an added burden on homeowners who were already struggling with inflation. Below we analyze the reasons for the situation and explain what a homeowner can do about it. Why …Read More

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