New Hampshire Homeowners Insurance Guide

From Jaffre to Berlin, the terrain and weather conditions of New Hampshire present their own special considerations for insurance companies when offering insurance to homeowners in the state. While New Hampshire may not be subject to many earthquakes as California, or run the risk of Hurricanes like Florida and the southern states, there are other factors such as the yearly possibility of blizzards and electrical storms that are rarer (or unheard of) in the south. It is the job of insurance underwriters to evaluate the conditions of risk for a given area and given home and given homeowner to determine what an insurance premium will need to be set at in order to maximize the insurance company’s profits. It is your job as a homeowner to present yourself in the best profile possible to lower your risk and therefore your insurance premiums. Here are some things to keep in mind when shopping for a homeowner’s insurance policy in New Hampshire:

• The size of your home will affect your policy: Larger homes are more expensive to insure. If you are going through the process of shopping for and buying your first home, be sure to keep this in mind. In addition, multiple-story dwellings are also more expensive than single story homes - this is due to the height exposure and risk that is presented in various ways such as higher wind speeds at greater heights, or when someone has to work on your roof or 2nd story windows, the damage from a fall is significantly greater - all of which will be paid for out of your policy if something happens.
• The age of your home will affect your policy: Older homes are more expensive to insure. They may be less expensive to buy, but your policy over time may eat up that savings if your home is old enough to bypass certain recent building standards or criteria.
• Your credit record may affect your policy: If you have a poor credit score, you might want to consider what steps you can take to improve it before looking for your home insurance policy. Insurance technically isn’t offered on credit, rather than a ‘pay as you go’ format, so some insurers don’t pay much (if any) attention to your credit score when deciding your premiums, but others will.

Also, it is important of keep in mind when shopping for insurance, the importance of making sure you purchase enough insurance. Your mortgage lender may require certain minimum levels of coverage, but consider carefully whether those minimums will be enough for your needs. If there is a fire and all of the items in your home are destroyed, is the minimum personal effects coverage enough for you to replace everything? If someone falls off the roof of your home and injures themselves, will the minimums be enough to pay for a potentially long-term hospital stay? Keep these factors in mind when deciding your insurance coverage levels.