Homeowners Insurance in Irmo, South Carolina (2024)

If you’re looking for a house in Irmo, you’re inevitably looking for home insurance in Irmo, too. As long as you have a mortgage, there’s no way around getting home insurance.

Since you’re likely required to have it, you should take your time to choose the right policy. We break down everything you need to know about homeowners insurance in Irmo, including average rates and typical coverages. We also go over some factors specific to Irmo that can influence your home insurance rate.

The average rate for home insurance on a $200,000 house in Irmo is about $1,875. It increases to $2,965 on a $350,000 home. There are many reputable providers in the area, and getting home insurance in Irmo shouldn’t be too hard. Getting it at a good price, though, is a different story.

Below, we’ll go over average rates from some well-known Irmo insurance companies. At a glance, you’ll see that premiums vary by company and home value. As you go on, though, you’ll find an in-depth breakdown of rates in the Irmo area with several factors taken into account.

You’re required to have homeowners insurance as long as you have a mortgage. If you leave the choice of coverage up to your lender, you’ll be force-placed suboptimal home insurance with high premiums. But, if you choose the provider you want, you’ll find that homeowners insurance can be a great benefit at a reasonable cost. Here are what you can expect from some major providers in Irmo: 

The rates in this article are sourced from the South Carolina Department of Insurance. The top 25 insurer groups by national premium volume were required to submit their annual rates, while other companies opted to do so voluntarily. The sample rates are for a homeowner with no insurance claims in the past five years and an average credit score.

Based on the numbers above, Universal Property & Casualty seems like the most affordable home insurance option at both home price points. Something interesting to note, though, is that State Farm’s rate decreased on a $350,000 house compared to a $200,000 one. This is unusual, since generally, the larger and more expensive your house is, the more it costs to insure.

Foremost was the most expensive in both instances, too. But, that doesn’t mean it would be the most costly choice for you. Home insurance premiums vary based on many factors beyond home value that we’ll go into further later on. But, just know that there may be certain things about you and certain actions you can take to lower your premiums. And, know that Foremost could have some coverages that could make it well worth it.

Two factors that influence home insurance rates in Irmo are the construction type of your house and the age of your house. Let’s see what kind of impact they have:

For $200,000 homes, Allstate had the smallest average increase between the two price points. Allstate average premiums only increased about 8%, comparing the older homes to the younger homes. However, UPCIC remained the most affordable provider on average despite an increase of 25%.

As you can see, some rates vary quite a bit between frame houses and masonry houses from the same provider. To get a more complete picture of home insurance in Irmo, we’ve included numbers for more valuable homes, too:

Allstate is one of the largest insurance companies in the country. They offer coverage in Irmo, and as you can see, they tend to have some of the lowest average premiums in the area. On average, they were the third-least expensive for both $200,000 and $350,000 at all price points. Only premiums from Travelers and UPCIC were lower. 

Nationwide is another extremely large provider in the United States. In Irmo, their premiums hovered around the middle of the pack on our list. They had the second-highest premiums for $200,000 homes and $350,000 homes, on average, but stayed far closer to the average rate in every category than the most expensive insurer on the list, Foremost.

Homeowners insurance is a type of property insurance designed for personal residences, specifically single-family homes. The home insurance rates in Irmo we discussed above are for HO3 policies, the most common type of homeowners insurance. People who live in condos, duplexes, or mobile homes would need a different type of policy – not an HO3.

HO3 policies have different areas of coverage, meaning different parts of the plan protect you and your property in different ways. A typical HO3 policy should have the following areas of protection:

Dwelling coverage: Dwelling coverage financially safeguards the main structure of your home. This structure includes the floor, windows, walls, roof, balcony, and porch. 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: Other structures coverage protects the features on your property that aren’t attached to the main house. These could 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 $350,000 of dwelling coverage, a normal amount of other structures coverage would be $35,000, or 10% of your dwelling coverage.

Personal Property: Personal property coverage protects your belongings inside your house. This includes furniture, electronics, clothes, art, jewelry, and more. There are some limits involved, but you generally decide how much personal property coverage you want based on the value and quantity of your items. 

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

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

An offshoot of your liability coverage, called medical payments coverage, is specifically designed to cover the costs that could arise from minor injuries. Your liability protection can come in for more serious issues, like if someone gets laid up in the hospital from a slip and fall or costly litigation after a dog bite.

We’ve gone over some major factors that affect home insurance rates, like ages, sizes, and construction styles of houses. But, there are a few more risks to know about. Some are related to the weather, while some are more personal.

Location: The location of your house affects premiums in a few ways. Your home’s susceptibility to natural disasters is a major one. If your house is in an area that’s prone to severe weather that can cause serious property damage, then an insurer takes this into account and often charges more for home insurance. 

In Irmo, the threat of hurricanes is low, but South Carolina is at risk every season overall, so it may not be something insurance companies in the area overlook completely. Tornadoes in the Midlands are also a possibility, with a few spawning just last year from the remnants of Tropical Storm Fred. Sinkholes are also known to form in South Carolina, and insurers may factor in the possibility of these, too, when determining your home insurance rate.

Attractive Nuisances: Attractive nuisances in and around your house can impact your premium, too. Insurance companies consider certain features that can increase your home’s value can also increase your insurance risk, such as pools, playgrounds, treehouses, and trampolines. Homes with attractive nuisances tend to have higher premiums.

Claims history: When you’re looking for a home insurance policy, providers usually ask you if you’ve filed any recent home insurance claims. If you’ve filed a claim in the past 3-5 years, insurers believe you’re more likely to file again than someone who has never filed one. You may pay a higher rate for insurance as a result.

Home insurance doesn’t cover damage from flooding. Irmo residents don’t have to worry about coastal flooding, but the area does experience heavy rains, and flash floods aren’t uncommon. Even if you don’t think you’re at risk, you’re required to get flood insurance by your mortgage provider if your house is in a federally designated flood zone.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has determined the flooding risk of nearly every area in the United States. They maintain and update flood zone maps, and lenders and local governments use these maps for safety, building codes, and more. If you’re in a high-risk flood zone, you’ll need flood insurance.

Historically, flood insurance was only available from the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) through FEMA. But, the private flood insurance market is growing steadily, and many companies are beginning to offer better flood coverage than the NFIP at competitive rates.

If you’re looking for flood insurance in Irmo, we can help with that, too. We partner with the NFIP and several private flood insurers. Our flood quote form is easy to fill out, and once you submit it, an agent will get back to you with your options.

Most of Irmo is in an X flood zone, the lowest risk designation FEMA has for flooding. Some properties along Rawls Creek and Kinley Creek are in AE flood zones, which are high-risk, and homeowners here may be required to get a policy in these areas.

However, you’re not completely out of danger in a low-risk flood zone. FEMA reports that over 25% of their NFIP claims come from houses outside of high-risk flood zones. Floods are one of the most costly forms of property damage you can endure, so you always want to think about flood insurance.

If you’re looking for a homeowners insurance quote in Irmo, we’d love to help. Clovered is an independent insurance agency that operates in 19 states. We partner with many of the country’s top insurance providers to offer people the coverage they’re looking for.

We want to help you find the coverage you need at the price you want. 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. Or, you can email us anytime at [email protected] with questions, and an agent will get back to you soon.