The Cost of Home Insurance on Kiawah Island & Seabrook Island

How much does home insurance cost on Kiawah Island and Seabrook Island?

I get this question weekly from prospective clients. Home Insurance rates for these islands are based on several factors including age of home, roof age, and distance from the ocean, just to name a few. We have over forty companies to quote home insurance and have hundreds of these homes insured. Therefore, we have insured homes of all sizes and ages over the years.

The homes (overall) with the highest rates per coverage amount, are usually the homes built in late 80’s or early 90’s with the original roof. Companies, now more than ever, are basing a higher percentage of the rate on the age of the roof. Most companies will not even consider insuring a home if the roof is over 20-25 years. For the homes that have roofs 20+ years old, the number of available companies is reduced from 40+ to less than five. With not as many available companies competing for your business, the rates tend to increase.

To use an example of two homes we recently insured: a home built in 1980 with a ten-year-old roof was $1,500 less than a house built in 1998 with an original roof. Although the age of the home was more on the first house, the premium was actually much less based on the age of the roof.

Another key factor is the usage (primary, secondary, rental) of the home. We have found secondary and rental homes are usually lower in premium due to the personal property coverage amount. For primary homes, most homeowners want, and need, high personal property limits. For secondary homeowners, the amount of personal property is usually a fraction of a primary homeowners. When reducing the personal property levels by tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars, the premium can be reduced $500-$2,500 per year. We build policies to match your needs, not the general public’s needs.

As you can see, the roof age and usage are two of many factors than can affect the annual premium. However, below are a few recent examples on Kiawah Island and Seabrook Island that we have insured to give you a better estimate:

House #1:
Year Built: 2002
Roof Age: Original
Replacement Cost: $440,000
Usage: Secondary
Annual Premium: $2,132

House #2:
Year Built: 1997
Roof Age: 2018
Replacement Cost: $500,000
Usage: Primary
Annual Premium: $2,546

House #3:
Year Built: 2017
Roof Age: Original
Replacement Cost: $950,000
Usage: Secondary
Annual Premium: $3,480

All of these policies include Wind/Hurricane coverage. In addition, all three came to our agency after saving an average of $2,200 per year at other agencies. We don’t have secret sauce that makes our premiums less. What we do have are 40+ companies competing for your business. Other agencies may have 10-15 companies and some even place business with the company that pays the highest commission. We always give you the best policy with the best premium. We treat you like we would want to be treated. We aren’t hoping to get your business for 1-2 years. We want you to stay with Dunes Insurance forever. That’s why it’s important to always provide you with the best policy for your needs, at the best rate available.

Give us a call at 843-737-6236 and let us see what we can save you on your home insurance at Kiawah Island or Seabrook Island.

Matt Turbeville
Partner

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