Interest rates and the high price of housing used to be the leading issues impacting home ownership in California. But realtors say the focus is now shifting to homeowners’ insurance as well.
The numbers released by the California Realtors Association show a concerning trend. Hundreds of homes were dropped in the middle of escrow this year because the buyers were unable to find home insurance — and that number has almost doubled since last year.
“Insurance was never really thought of to be one of the first things to think of,” said Michelle Perry, the president of the Santa Clara County Association of Realtors. “Sometimes it’s even better to look for insurance prior to even making the offer.”
The California Association of Realtors received survey responses from some 3,000 realtors across the state.
About 450 of them, 13%, said they had a transaction fall out of escrow because a buyer could not find insurance. That’s nearly twice as much of the 7% who reported it happening last year.
The great majority were denied, while some 18% said the premium was just too expensive.
“When you wait the last 10 days of escrow, and you find out that it's double or triple, it affects the affordability, and it puts you into a crisis mode where you're not going to be able to afford the home,” Perry said.
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Even many of the people who did find insurance had trouble finding it.
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Realtors said about 31% of clients had difficulty getting insurance, up from the 16% reported last year.
The data show’s location is a factor, with rural or vacation homes being difficult to insure about half the time, because of potential fire hazards and flooding risks, according to Perry.
But homes being sold in the city also faced challenges.
Almost half said the policies were too expensive and another 30% faced issues obtaining a quote at all.
“Most people that live on hillsides, rural areas, the insurance companies are looking at all of that. So if you have trees hovering over your roof, they're looking at your roof. They're looking at what's going on around your property,” Perry said.
In addition to the dropped sales, Perry said insurance issues also create delays in closing, and sometimes force sellers to make pricey renovations.
She added that they’re encouraging their clients to try bundling their home insurance with their car or life policies to make it more affordable, or look for out-of-state options as a possible solution.
