Homeowners Insurance in Summerville, South Carolina

Residents in Summerville, a northwest suburb of Charleston, enjoy the best of beach life, colonial architecture, outdoor spaces and all else the Palmetto State has to offer.

Since the town sits close to the coast, which is prone to hurricanes, homeowners insurance in Summerville, South Carolina, is much higher than the state’s average — although it’s a bit cheaper than what Charleston residents pay.

On average, home insurance in Summerville, South Carolina, costs about $2,274 annually. Due to its coastal location and risk of suffering storm damage, this city’s average premium is about 39% above the state average of $1,641 annually. 

The premium outlined in this article is an average, so you could potentially pay less or more, depending on a variety of factors. Some of the most important factors to consider are the age of your home and your home’s construction type.

The older a home, the more susceptible it becomes to damage from a severe-weather storm like a hurricane or tornado. Your home’s construction type, frame or masonry, also plays a big role in the average cost of premiums.

Frame houses are crafted from wood, while masonry houses are crafted from either concrete or brick. As you can probably imagine, masonry homes typically hold up better to natural disasters than their frame counterparts.

Each of these factors, and many of the others your insurer considers when calculating your rates, helps your insurer determine your risk of filing a claim. If you’re at an above-average risk of filing a claim, you may see above-average premiums to make up for that risk. 

Home insurance in Summerville, South Carolina, covers much more than just your house. It’s also responsible for protecting your personal belongings, property and wallet from a multitude of different perils.

The most commonly covered perils are things like wind damage, water damage, house fires and vandalism or theft. But the perils your policy covers you from depend entirely on the type of homeowners insurance policy you have.

An HO-1 is the most basic homeowners policy, which covers homeowners from 10 perils. An HO-3 is the most common policy and it covers homeowners from 16 perils. But the list goes on from there, ending with an HO-5, which is widely considered to be the most extensive policy.

It’s important that your home’s dwelling coverage matches, at the very least, your home’s value. So houses worth $350,000 should have at least $350,000 worth of coverage. However, since housing prices increase throughout the year, it’s recommended to insure your home for 3% over the value.

Standard policies usually come equipped with other structures coverage that’s 10% of your dwelling coverage. That means homeowners with a $350,000 house may have up to $35,000 in coverage per claim filed.

Liability coverage typically comes standard at $100,000 or $250,000 per claim. You get to choose your coverage amounts, usually up to $500,000 or $1 million. High-net-worth individuals are encouraged to purchase supplementary umbrella coverage to extend their maximums beyond the $500,000 or $1 million mark.

Flood damage isn’t covered by homeowners insurance, so you’ll need a separate flood insurance policy to protect your home, belongings and finances from the devastating effects of flooding.

Since Summerville is in the lowland South Carolina country teeming with water, including the Ashley River and Dorchester Creek, most of the city sits in an A-designated flood zone, as designated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). You can check your flood zone on the city of Summerville’s website.

With the average flood claim resulting in $25,000 worth of losses, it’s extremely wise to invest in flood insurance. Plus, it costs a fraction of the price of homeowners insurance and may only cost a few hundred dollars per year.

Many factors are at play when calculating the average cost of homeowners insurance in Summerville, South Carolina. However, the most common factors that go into rate calculations are the following:

Getting a home insurance quote in Summerville, South Carolina is quick and easy when you use Clovered’s online quoting tool. All you need to do is answer a few questions about your house and living situation. Then our proprietary tool will compare policies and rates and pick the best one for you so you can go back to the funner things in life.

We’re always here to help. If you’d rather 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 agent@clovered.com.