Annual property insurance expenses for mortgaged single-family homes jumped by a record-breaking $276, or 14%, to $2,290 in 2024. This data comes from the most recent Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) Mortgage Monitor Report, released on Monday. The report also highlighted that average premiums have increased by a significant 61% over the past five years.
Locations experiencing the largest percentage increases in 2024 were Seattle and Salt Lake City, both up 22%, and Los Angeles, with a 20% increase. Dallas saw the most substantial increase by dollar amount, at +$606, followed by Houston at $515. Despite already having some of the highest property insurance rates in the country, Florida’s premium increases were less than half the national average when considered as a percentage.
“While it’s no surprise that insurance costs are rising, we’re beginning to see emerging trends in terms of how homeowners are responding to the higher cost environment,” said Andy Walden, ICE’s head of mortgage and housing market research.
Walden noted that a rising number of borrowers are switching insurance policies or opting for higher deductibles to combat rising premiums. ICE loan-level data reveals a record 11.4% of borrowers switched insurance providers in 2024, up from 9.4% in 2023 and significantly higher than the historical average of less than 8%. “While this has undoubtedly been driven by rising non-renewal rates, it may also be a sign of borrowers switching providers in search of lower premiums,” Walden added.
Markets with the highest insurance costs and high nonrenewal activity are driving the highest percentage of borrowers to switch providers. In Miami, almost 25% of mortgage holders switched insurance providers in 2024, followed by New Orleans and Orlando, each at 23%.
While borrowers who switched providers generally saved money, California is an exception. Borrowers who switched providers in San Diego, Sacramento, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and San Jose paid at least 15% more, on average, than those who stayed with their original providers.
“The average borrower switching policies in Miami paid slightly more, but in most markets with higher-than-average turnover, borrowers who switched are paying less than those that stayed put,” Walden explained. “For example, in Jacksonville, Dallas, San Antonio and Denver, homeowners who switched paid at least 10% less, on average, than borrowers who remained with their old carrier.”
Homeowners who took out mortgages in 2024 had a 19% higher deductible ($390) than the average single-family mortgage holder. This aligns with separate research from the ICE climate team, which suggests borrowers taking out mortgages in recent years are also taking on higher deductibles to offset rising premiums.
Wildfire Victims Face Risks
In light of the Los Angeles fires in January, ICE reported that an estimated 680 homeowners located in or near the Eaton and Palisades wildfire zones fell behind on their January mortgage payments. This represents 3.5% of homeowners in the Eaton fire perimeter and 3.2% in the Palisades perimeter. Because the fires began after many mortgage payments had already been made, larger impacts are anticipated in February mortgage payment activities.
Through February 20, approximately one in six borrowers in the Eaton perimeter and nearly one in four in Palisades were slower to pay than in December. This suggests as many as 3,200 homeowners could be at risk of missing their February mortgage payments.
