Cheapest homeowners insurance in Pennsylvania

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Own a home in the Keystone State? You want to safeguard that dwelling with appropriate homeowners insurance coverage. But you don’t want to go broke doing so, either.

Rest assured that it’s definitely possible to secure sufficient home insurance protection without putting a major dent in your finances. You just need to know where to look, how to shop around and methods for maximizing your dollars.

We’ve got your back in this endeavor. Insure.com has scrutinized home insurance companies across the state and narrowed down our list of the most affordable providers. Nationwide is the cheapest home insurance in Pennsylvania, with an average annual premium of $1,307.

We’ve also asked experts to chime in with their money-saving suggestions and strategies. They concur: Shopping around and comparing coverages and policies from various insurance carriers carefully is a wise move. Read on for more details and recommendations.

Cheapest homeowners insurance companies in Pennsylvania

If you’re looking for the cheapest homeowners insurance in Pennsylvania, there are a few companies that stand out as your best bets.

Nationwide, Allstate and Safeco have the lowest average rates for $300,000 dwelling and $300,000 liability coverage with a $1,000 deductible.

Here are average homeowners insurance costs in Pennsylvania for that level of coverage:

Best homeowners insurance companies in Pennsylvania

If you’re looking for cheap homeowners insurance in Pennsylvania, a few home insurance companies stand out in Pennsylvania.

Average home insurance costs in Pennsylvania don’t differ as much as other states. That said, you could still save hundreds of dollars each year by shopping around.

Now, let’s take a look at the three cheapest Pennsylvania homeowners insurance companies with the lowest insurance rates in Pennsylvania on average.

Nationwide

• Headquarters: Columbus, Ohio
• Founded: 1926
• Contact: (877) 669-6877, Nationwide.com/personal/insurance/homeowners, agency.nationwide.com/pa
• Available: In all states except Alaska, Hawaii, Louisiana, Massachusetts, New Jersey and New Mexico
• Discounts available: Multi-policy, protective device, claims-free, home renovation credit, roof rating, gated community
• Other types of insurance offered: Auto, motorcycle, life, umbrella, dental, identity theft, travel, business
• Insure.com score: 4 out of 5 stars
• Better Business Bureau rating: A+
• A.M. Best rating: A+
• J.D. Power score: Slightly below average (808 out of 1,000)

Nationwide’s standard homeowners insurance policies cover your dwelling, personal property, additional living expenses, liability and medical payments to others. Count on this carrier to rebuild your home at current building code requirements as an included coverage in standard policies.

We found that Nationwide’s average bundle rate yielded a 25% savings on coverage for customers; that’s higher than other major insurers evaluated in our rate analysis. Additionally, 85% of customers we surveyed indicated they plan to renew their policies with Nationwide, while 73% said they’d recommend Nationwide to a friend.

Liberty Mutual

• Headquarters: Boston
• Founded: 1912
• Contact: (800) 295-2820, Libertymutual.com, Libertymutual.com/property-insurance/homeowners/coverage/pennsylvania
• Available: In all 50 states
• Discounts available: Multi-policy, claims-free, early shopper, new/renovated home, preferred payment, paperless, insured to value
• Other types of insurance offered: Auto, motorcycle, watercraft, renters, condo, landlord, umbrella, flood, business, identity theft, life, accident, critical illness
• Insure.com score: 4 out of 5 stars
• Better Business Bureau rating: A+
• A.M. Best rating: A
• J.D. Power rating: Below average (score — 792 out of 1,000)

Protection for your dwelling, personal property, liability, medical payments to others, wind and hail damage and additional living expenses are all included as standard coverage in Liberty Mutual homeowners insurance policies.

The insurance carrier commanded a top-five ranking in our annual Best Home Insurance Companies review, garnering a score of four out of five stars overall and in claims, customer service, price and website/apps. More than nine out of 10 Liberty Mutual policyholders we surveyed said they expected to renew their policies with this insurer; 82% would refer the insurer to a friend.

Allstate

• Headquarters: Northbrook, Illinois
• Founded: 1931
• Contact: (877) 366-1607, Allstate.com
• Available: In all 50 states
• Discounts available: Loyalty (up to 10%), multi-policy (up to 25%), claims-free (up to 20%), fire/burglar alarm, Easy Pay Plan (up to 5%), early signing (up to 10%)
• Other types of insurance offered: Auto, renters, condo, life, identity theft, business, home-sharing
• Insure.com score: 4 out of 5 stars
• Better Business Bureau rating: A+
• A.M. Best rating: A+
• J.D. Power rating: Above average (score — 829 out of 1,000)

Looking for an insurance carrier that offers an assortment of homeowners insurance coverages and options? Allstate’s got you covered.

Typically included in standard policies are coverages for your dwelling plus other structures, personal property, loss of use/additional living expenses, liability and medical payments to guests.

In our annual Best Home Insurance Companies review, this insurer ranked in the top five, receiving a score of four out of five stars. And when it comes to claims, customer service and website/apps, Allstate earned four stars, as well. An impressive 79% of customers we polled indicated they would recommend Allstate to a friend, while 89% revealed that they expect to renew their Allstate policies.

Cheapest homeowners insurance by city in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania home insurance costs vary partly based on where you live. For instance, the average rates in Lancaster and Harrisburg are more than $1,000 cheaper than the average Philadelphia and Scranton costs.

Zip codes with more home insurance claims will usually have higher rates than another ZIP code.

Here are the average home insurance rates by city in Pennsylvania:

How much is homeowners insurance in Pennsylvania?

The average cost of homeowners insurance in Pennsylvania is $1,720 for $300,000 dwelling and $300,000 liability coverage with a $1,000 deductible. Experts recommend you have at least $300,000 liability coverage to protect your home against a lawsuit.

The average home insurance rates in Pennsylvania are $585 lower than the national average.

There’s more that goes into home insurance costs than location. Insurers also factor in claims history for you, your home and the area. So, if your neighbors file many claims, you may see increased rates.

Claims that you file are one of the biggest rate increase drivers. Here are the top average home insurance percentage premium increases based on claims:

• Filing a second fire claim — 60%
• Filing a second theft claim — 55%
• Filing a second liability claim — 52%
• Filing a second water damage claim — 50%
• Filing a second medical claim — 34%
• Filing a second weather claim — 29%
• Filing a fire claim — 29%
• Filing a theft claim — 27%
• Filing a liability claim — 25%
• Filing a water claim — 25%
• Filing a medical claim — 18%
• Filing a weather claim — 17%

Home insurance is in place to protect your home and your finances against disaster. However, that doesn’t mean you should file a claim every time there is any type of loss.

Homeowners insurance companies base rates partially on claims. If your home suffers minor damage, it’s sometimes wise to pay for the repairs yourself rather than go through a homeowners insurance company.

If you file a claim, you pick up part of the amount. That’s the deductible. You pay that amount, often $500, $1,000 or $2,000, and the policy picks up the rest of the approved claim.

As we mentioned, a claim also increases your rates. So, you want to make sure filing a claim is worth it financially for you. If the damage is around the same amount as your deductible, handling the repairs yourself will allow you to avoid both the deductible and likely rate hike.

How much does flood insurance cost in Pennsylvania?

The average annual flood insurance premium in Pennsylvania is $1,148, which is the sixth-highest average rate. That figure is based on dividing the number of policies and the total policy cost from the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP).

Those are the average costs, but much like homeowners insurance, you can pay much lower or higher rates depending on your home’s risk.

• If you live in a flood zone or along the coast, you’ll likely pay more than average.
• If your home isn’t in those areas, you’ll probably pay well below the average costs.

If your home isn’t in a flood area, that doesn’t mean your home has no risk of flooding. About 20% of flood insurance claims come from homes considered low or moderate risk.

If you want flood coverage, you’ll likely need a separate flood insurance policy. Homeowners insurance doesn’t typically cover flood damage that comes from outside of the home. NFIP and private insurers that work with NFIP offer flood insurance policies.

NFIP policies provide $250,000 structural coverage and $100,000 personal property. If you want higher coverage, check with private insurers to see if they can offer you more coverage. If they don’t offer that expanded coverage, you can get a quote from one of the 60 or so private insurers offering flood coverage.

You need a flood insurance policy for 30 days before it takes effect. That means you can’t get a policy when you know a major storm is going to hit your area.

How to get the cheapest homeowners insurance in Pennsylvania

As the age-old adage goes, the more darts you throw, the more likely you are to hit a bullseye. And the same holds true for homeowners insurance shopping.

“If you are searching for a deal on property insurance, make sure to seek offers from various sources,” advises Edward Briggs, editor of HomeReviews.com. “Every agent or website will try to set the pace and push you to sign up as quickly as possible. Don’t let yourself get pushed into making a decision and take your time to compare.”

Briggs cautions that even similar-priced offers can have different coverages and leave you hanging when you need it more. That’s why it’s important to look closely at the standard protections included — not just the lowest price you can find.

Also, determine the amounts or limits of coverage you need, at minimum, to protect your home, and remember that you typically get what you pay for: A cheaper homeowners insurance policy may not provide sufficient coverage.

“The amounts or limits for coverages on a home policy include dwelling coverage, replacement cost, personal liability coverage, medical payments per person, personal contents, other structures and additional living expenses,” explains Katie Sopko, an insurance broker with Liberty, South Carolina-based A Plus Insurance. “These are all very important to select the correct limit of coverage.”

Mark Friedlander, director of Corporate Communications for the Insurance Information Institute in St. Johns, Florida, offers several tips designed to preserve more of your dollars.

“While it can be beneficial to shop around, if you have kept coverage with the same insurer for several years, you may receive a special discount for being a long-term policyholder,” he notes.

“Some insurers will reduce their premiums by 5% if you stay with them for 3 to 5 years and by 10% if you remain a policyholder for six years or more. But make certain to periodically compare this price with that of other policies.”

Work on improving your credit, too. That can result in home insurance savings.

“Establishing a solid credit history can help cut your insurance costs. Your credit history is among the factors insurers use to price homeowners insurance policies,” adds Friedlander.

“To improve and protect your credit standing, pay your bills on time, don’t obtain more credit than you need and keep your credit balances as low as possible. Check your credit record regularly, as well and have any errors corrected properly so that your record remains accurate.”

An easy way to reduce your premium is to increase your deductible.

“The higher the deductible you choose for any peril and wind/hail, the lower your monthly or yearly premium will be,” says Sopko.

Last, seek out any other home insurance discounts. One common discount that can save you money is bundling your home and auto insurance policies. Having insurance coverage from the same insurance company is an easy way to save.

“Insurers offer several types of discounts, but they don’t all offer the same type or amount of discount in all states,” Friedlander says. “For example, you may be eligible for a discount with a carrier if they partner with your employer or a professional association you belong to that administers group insurance programs.”

Also, people who are at least 55 years old and retired may qualify for a discount of up to 10% from some insurers.

“That’s because retired people typically stay at home more than working people, which means they are less likely to be burglarized and may spot fires sooner, too. Plus, they have more time for maintaining their homes. Your insurance professional can provide you with the discounts available for your policy,” Friedlander says.

Explore other insurance options in Pennsylvania

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Average car insurance cost in Pennsylvania

Non-owner car insurance in Pennsylvania

Home insurance rates vary from one city to another. But with Insure.com, finding the right home insurance policy is easy. Learn more about homeowners insurance costs for different cities below.

Les Masterson

Contributor

 

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Les, a former managing editor, insurance, at QuinStreet, has more than 20 years of experience in journalism. In his career, he has covered everything from health insurance to presidential politics.

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