Mortgage rates moderated and affordability improved at the margins, supporting real pent-up buyer demand in the spring housing market. Rising homeowners insurance costs are quietly limiting what buyers can afford and increasing closing friction. A Pew Research Center survey found 71% of homeowners reported insurance cost increases, with 42% reporting large increases. Homeowners paid about 24% more for insurance in 2024 than in 2021, and premiums rose in 95% of U.S. ZIP codes. Builders face buyer hesitation and budget recalculations. AM Best projected stabilization in 2026 due to moderating premium growth, better catastrophe risk management, and improved reinsurance conditions, aided by a quiet 2025 hurricane season. Florida’s Citizens Property Insurance received approval for an average 8.7% rate decrease, expanding carrier options. New construction can offer underwriting advantages through tighter codes, modern materials, and lower claims histories.
"Mortgage rates had moderated. Affordability was improving at the margins. Pent-up buyer demand was real. And running beneath all of it, quietly reshaping what buyers could actually afford, was the continued rise of homeowners insurance costs."
"A Pew Research Center survey conducted in March 2026 found that 71% of U.S. homeowners say their insurance costs have gone up in recent years, and 42% say it has gone up a lot. Homeowners paid an average of 24% more for insurance in 2024 than in 2021, and premiums increased in 95% of U.S. ZIP codes."
"AM Best's 2026 Market Segment Outlook Report projected stabilization across the U.S. homeowners insurance segment, citing moderating premium growth, enhanced catastrophe risk management and improving reinsurance market conditions. A quiet Atlantic hurricane season in 2025 helped. Regulatory reforms in Florida are producing concrete results: The state's insurer of last resort, Citizens Property Insurance, received approval for an average rate decrease of 8.7%"
"New construction in particular carries distinct underwriting advantages over older homes. Tighter building codes, modern materials and lower claims histories all make newly built homes more attractive to carriers. Westwood is built specifically to surface those advantages, finding the most competitive, appropriate coverage for each buyer in each market, including markets where carriers have scaled back."
Read at www.housingwire.com
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]