Has anyone ever knocked on your door and tried to sell you “house insurance?” No. That’d be ridiculous. Because where you live is more than 4 walls and a roof. It might be where your kids took their first steps. It might be where you and your spouse started a new life together. It’s a place of memories, and it’s home, with all the weight that word carries. And that home is worth protecting. That’s where homeowners insurance comes in, and to help you in your search here are our selections for the best homeowners insurance in New Orleans.
The Best Home Insurance in New Orleans:
- Best Overall in New Orleans: Amica Mutual
- Cheapest Home Insurance in New Orleans: United Property and Casualty
- Best for Range of Discounts: Allstate
- Best for Insurer of Last Resort: Louisiana Citizens Property Insurance Corporation
- Best for Local Agents: State Farm
Home Insurance in New Orleans: An Overview
Living in New Orleans means you have about 390,000 neighbors, which is an increase of just under 14% from 2010, though the population is still below pre-Hurricane Katrina levels. Katrina destroyed 32% of the housing stock in New Orleans, and there is still a strong demand for new homes, with an average home price of $262,100. It’s a vibrant and diverse city, but its location offers special challenges when it comes to buying homeowners insurance.
Average Annual Home Insurance Premium in New Orleans
The average annual premium in New Orleans is $3,872. This is based on an 1,800 square foot, 10-year-old brick veneer home with $200,000 coverage on the structure and $100,000 coverage on the contents. But everyone’s situation is different and many unique factors determine your insurance rates. The average premium excludes any of the many discounts that are available such as bundling multiple types of insurance, installing home protection devices such as security systems or hurricane shutters and updating your home’s mechanical systems.
Home Insurance Coverage Explained
Fires. Storms. Explosions. Stolen family treasures. A script for an action movie? No. Just a few of the things homeowners insurance covers. It should be exciting. It’s not. But it’s necessary and important. And homeowners insurance covers more than just the structure you live in. Beyond that it covers liability should you or a family member, or even a pet, injure someone or damage their property.
It also covers your personal belongings, such as furniture and clothes, if they’re stolen or if they’re damaged as the result of an insured disaster. Finally, it covers additional expenses related to an insured event. For example, if your house is damaged due to fire and you have to live elsewhere during repairs, the hotel and meal expenses will be covered.
Inclement Weather and Nature-Related Risks in New Orleans
If you want to see an insurance agent scream and run out of the room, tell them you’d like to insure your home but you live below sea level in a state that ranks 4th in the nation for hurricane activity. Welcome to New Orleans. More than half of the city lies at or below sea level, and it lies in an area prone to hurricanes. Those risk factors greatly impact the cost of homeowners insurance and the primary issues of concern are wind and water damage.
Homeowners insurance covers wind damage, even from hurricanes. But high winds are only half the problem. Flooding, either from heavy rains or storm surge, is the other half. And water damage from flooding is NOT covered. Flood insurance is underwritten by the National Flood Insurance Program and must be purchased separately from a participating agent. And you can’t wait until you see a hurricane warning on the news to run out and get it. There’s a 30-day waiting period before the policy goes into effect. So don't wait until the last minute. Understand the risks you face and make sure you’re covered.
Best Home Insurance Providers in New Orleans
There are dozens of insurers offering homeowners coverage in New Orleans, and that’s a lot of information to wade through. To make your search easier, we’ve put together this list of the best homeowners insurance providers in New Orleans.
- First time policyholders
1. Best Overall in New Orleans: Amica Mutual
Coverage is important, but the real test of an insurance company comes when you suffer a disaster and need to file a claim. The best coverage in the world means nothing if the claims process is cumbersome, unfriendly and exhausting. And this is where Amica Mutual shines and why we think it’s the best overall choice. Winner of the J.D. Power award for customer satisfaction with the claims experience for 8 years in a row, it has proven its commitment to making the claims process less stressful.
And it offers a wide range of coverages, multiple discounts, and even dividend policies that pay you back up to 20% of your premium. Finally, it carries an AM Best rating of A+, demonstrating its financial stability. We think Amica exhibits strengths across all areas when it comes to homeowners insurance, and that it’s the best overall for coverage in New Orleans.
2. Cheapest Home Insurance in New Orleans: United Property and Casualty
With comprehensive coverage options at a very affordable price, United Property and Casualty offers excellent value. Its commitment to being “the premier provider of property insurance in catastrophe-exposed areas,” makes it ideally suited for the New Orleans insurance market. It does not have a mandatory hurricane deductible, and its policies do not contain any coastal restrictions.
United Property offers a home self-inspection program that removes the need to get an outside inspection before coverage. You simply photograph the areas of your home that were outlined and then upload them to its site for review.
- No Recent Claims
3. Best for Range of Discounts: Allstate
New homeowner? Allstate offers a discount for that. Over 55? Allstate offers a discount for that. No recent claims? Switch to Allstate and it’s got a discount for that. With nearly 90 years of experience in the insurance industry and an AM Best rating of A+, Allstate is a solid, dependable choice, and its wide range of discounts only enhances that.
Finally, it combines a strong online presence with an extensive network of local agents, making its products readily available and explainable to the consumer.
4. Best for Insurer of Last Resort: Louisiana Citizens Property Insurance Corporation
Though homeowners insurance is necessary, it is possible to be denied coverage. Factors such as credit score, age and condition of the property, and location can lead a company to determine that the level of risk is greater than they’re willing to insure. If you find yourself in this position and are unable to get homeowners insurance on the private market, Louisiana Citizens Property Insurance is a state-funded entity whose sole purpose is to provide that insurance.
Though mandated to keep rates 10% above what private insurers charge, it offers a valuable service for those who need it. And it is an insurance company whose ultimate goal is to be out of business. Every year it opens its portfolio to private insurers who are given the opportunity to take over the policies that LCPI is carrying, moving once uninsurable homeowners into the private market.
- Customers who have existing policies with State Farm
5. Best for Local Agents: State Farm
We are all used to handling our business online, but sometimes there’s no substitute for sitting down and talking with someone face to face. State Farm has an extensive brick-and-mortar presence in New Orleans, and with over 25% of the market share for homeowners insurance, it ranks as the largest insurer in the state.
It’s a well-established company offering a comprehensive range of coverages and has been awarded an AM Best rating of A++ (superior), and a “Better Than Most” rating by J.D. Power. While not the least expensive option, there’s value in knowing that when you have a problem, you can sit down with someone who lives in your area and who shares many of your experiences.
Start Your Search
A homeowners insurance policy may be one of the least exciting things you’ll ever read. But that mind-numbing jumble of insurance-speak outlines the protection of everything you call home. Walk through your house and imagine all those things you’ve worked for damaged or gone and what it would take to replace them. Living in New Orleans offers its set of challenges when it comes to insuring your home, but the peace of mind you’ll find when you know you’ve made the right purchase will be worth the extra effort.
Want to explore further? You can find more great information on the best homeowners insurance here.
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