Homeowners Insurance in Charleston, South Carolina

Charleston, the largest city in South Carolina, is a hub of the southeastern United States. It’s a beacon of the Lowcountry that’s not only a trendy place to visit every year, but also a historic landmark in the history of the nation.

It’s not a surprise, then, that it’s one of the fastest-growing cities in the country. More and more people are moving to Charleston and the surrounding suburbs. As homes get gobbled up, the importance of quality homeowners insurance is ever-present.

The average cost of homeowners insurance in Charleston is about $2,570 yearly, which is 57% higher than the state average, making it one of the more expensive places in South Carolina for home insurance.

Charleston’s location means it’s susceptible to severe weather often, too. The threat of hurricanes, floods, and even tornadoes underlines the importance of protecting your property further.

 The cost of homeowners insurance isn’t uniform for every person, and, unfortunately, rates have risen for many in the past few years.

Rates vary due to a plethora of factors, an important one being the replacement cost of your home. Larger, more expensive properties cost more to build, which in turn costs more to insure due to their greater needed coverage amounts.

Also, the older a house is, the more expensive it is to insure, generally. Older homes are more likely not to be up to modern building or safety codes, which means they are inherently riskier and more prone to damage from severe weather.

Older houses may also have features that aren’t easy to replace because they’re not made anymore or are just harder to find today. As a result, insurance companies generally charge higher rates to cover older homes. 

The construction style of the house also affects premiums, as masonry homes cost less to insure than frame homes. Generally, masonry homes, which are houses built out of brick or concrete, have lower insurance premiums because masonry homes can withstand the elements better. They are also much less likely to suffer from termites and wood rot.

The best insurance company in Charleston is subjective – it depends on your needs and which carrier offers the right coverage at a price that works. The best rates are important, but ustomer service and claims handling are critical, too. 

To guarantee you’re getting the best coverage, it’s important to know what insurance policies contain. The best policies don’t skimp in any major areas of coverage. You should always compare quotes from multiple providers to know you’re getting the right deal.

Homeowners insurance policies are usually divided into different aspects of coverage. Each area protects your property or financial situation in different ways. A typical home insurance plan in Charleston, known as an HO3 policy, should have the following coverages:

Dwelling: Also known as coverage A, dwelling coverage financially safeguards the main structure of your home. This includes your floor, windows, walls, roof, and patio. The amount of dwelling coverage you have is based on either the replacement cost of your home or the market value of your home.

Other Structures: Also known as coverage B, other structures coverage protects the structures on your property that aren’t attached to your main house. These include sheds, fences, decks, gazebos, and more. Usually, the amount of other structures coverage you have is a percentage of your dwelling coverage.

For instance, if you have $300,000 of dwelling coverage, a normal amount of other structures coverage would be $30,000, or 10% of your dwelling coverage.

Personal Property: Also known as coverage C, personal property coverage is designated for your belongings inside your house. Your furniture, electronics, clothes, valuables, and more are included in personal property coverage. You decide the personal property limit in your policy by deciding how much stuff you have and how much it’s worth. A good way to do this is by performing a home inventory.

For instance, in a simplified example, if you think you have $100,000 worth of belongings, you should choose at least $100,000 of personal property coverage.

Loss of Use: Also sometimes called additional living expenses, loss of use coverage is a part of your plan designed to cover expenses that you can incur if you’re forced to move out of your house due to a covered peril like a fire or a hurricane. Your loss of use coverage enables your provider to reimburse you for things like a hotel stay, food, gas, and more when you have to relocate while your house is being repaired.

Liability: Liability coverage protects your financial well-being in case someone gets injured on your property and decides to sue you for damages. Your insurance can cover the related medical expenses, property damage, and legal fees if you’re found liable. Standard home insurance policies typically come with $100,000 in liability coverage, but many people opt for $500,000 or more.

Medical Payments: Medical payments covers smaller injuries and medical expenses if you’re found liable for someone’s injury on your property. It’s like liability coverage, but specifically designed for more minor injuries.

In addition to hurricanes and tornadoes, the city of Charleston is no stranger to another form of severe weather that can wreck your property: floods. The city’s location at the intersection of the Atlantic coast and several major tributaries means flooding from storm surges and high tides are likely. On top of that, the area receives a lot of rain and has a history of drainage problems.

Unfortunately, home insurance will do very little to help with damage from flooding. To be properly protected from the many flooding risks in Charleston, you’d need a separate flood insurance policy.

Many city areas are in federally designated flood zones, too, where you may be required to have flood insurance by your mortgage lender. For example, some Charleston and North Charleston properties along the Ashley River and Cooper River are in an AE flood zone. Also, some properties along Noisette Creek in North Charleston are in AE flood zones.

As determined by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), AE flood zones are high-risk zones. FEMA monitors flooding risk for every area of the country and runs the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP).

To be sure whether your property is in a flood zone, you can look online at FEMA flood maps or reach out to us. We’re happy to help with any questions you may have, and we’d love to pair you with a flood insurance policy that works for you. 

We partner with the NFIP and many other flood insurers to offer you public and private flood insurance.

In addition to the replacement cost of your home, the age of your home, and the construction style of your home, insurance companies consider many more factors when determining your insurance premiums. We mentioned that location is important. Your susceptibility to severe weather, the crime rates in your neighborhood, and even the amount of insurance claims in your area are factored in.

Also, personal considerations like your credit score and claims history can have an influence. People with lower credit scores have a spotty record of making timely payments. This worries your insurer, as they might feel that you could miss your premium payments. Thus, you may have to pay higher rates to offset your risk of missing a payment.

Your history of filing insurance claims is taken into account, too. If you’ve filed multiple claims in the recent past, even with a different insurance carrier, you may pay more for coverage since a provider believes that you’re more likely to file again.

Decisions you make about your policy itself also impact your premiums. For example, the amount of coverage you want directly affects how much you’ll pay. Generally, the more insurance you want, the more you’ll pay.

The deductible you choose also plays a role. An easy way to lower your premium is to select a higher deductible. Opting for a higher deductible means the insurance company would have to pay less in case of a claim since you would be taking on more out-of-pocket costs yourself. Unsurprisingly, the insurer likes this, so choosing a higher home insurance deductible often results in a lower rate.

In Charleston specifically, the threat of hurricanes plays a role in determining premiums, too. Insurance agencies have to factor in the possibility that a destructive hurricane can strike your property. Usually, people in areas that suffer hurricanes pay more than people who are never in danger of hurricanes.

If you’re looking for a home insurance quote in Charleston, we’re here to help. Clovered is a full-service Charleston independent insurance agency partnering with some of the top providers in the country. We serve 19 states, including South Carolina.

We’d love to help you get a quote. You can get one entirely online. Or, if you want to speak to a licensed agent on the phone, just call 833-255-4117 Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. You can also email us anytime at agent@clovered.com with any questions, and an agent will get back to you soon.

North Charleston was incorporated in 1972, and it’s distinct from Charleston in some ways. We have separate home insurance data from North Charleston, and the average rate below should be fairly reflective of what to expect in that area.

Home insurance in North Charleston is affected by some of the same factors as policies in Charleston, but it’s more inland, which can help reduce wind damage susceptibility and may explain the slightly lower premiums when compared to Charleston.

Home insurance is always a worthwhile safety net to protect your property and financial well-being in case of disaster. And, If you have a mortgage, you’re required to have a homeowners insurance policy.

If you have a mobile home in Charleston, it’s important to note that your premium will differ from the ones we talked about above. We discussed the average rates for HO3 policies, and HO3 policies don’t cover mobile homes.

Providers offer HO7 policies for mobile homes. Although many of the coverage areas are the same on both policies, some of the companies mentioned above may not cover mobile homes. And, the rates will be different. Mobile home policies generally don’t include ordinance and law coverage also.