If you own a home, you’ve already had to deal with finding the best home insurance rates.  Home insurance is a must-have if you own your home, but when you’re being hit with all the other details and paperwork involved in buying a house, you may be so overwhelmed that you simply go with whatever first home insurance quote you get.

Before you select a home insurance company, or if you’re looking to find a cheap home insurance, here are some things to keep in mind.

Before You Begin

Before you start looking for cheap home insurance, do the following:

• Gather all the information about your home, including mortgage information, the type of property, age of the home, and current insurance policy.

• If you’ve made claims, visit choicetrust.com and check your insurance report to be sure it is accurate.  Sometimes, errors are made, and these can cost you.  Insurance agencies will check these reports, so you want them to be correct!  Note that the report will cost a small fee unless you’ve been denied coverage.

• Ask around.  Find out who your friends and family members have their home insurance with and if they’re happy with that company.  Word of mouth is often the best research you can do.

• If you’re buying a house and aren’t sure about insurance, ask your realtor.  He or she has dealt with insurance companies and can be a great resource for the new home buyer.

• How much coverage do you need?  You should have enough insurance to cover your home, your belongings, liability if others are injured, and living expenses if your home is destroyed.  The goal is to have enough insurance to be able to replace your home and everything in it plus protect you in case of an injury lawsuit.
• Find out if you need flood insurance.  It’s not required (or even available) in some areas, but other places it is a necessity.
• If you live in California, you may be eligible to purchase earthquake insurance through the California Earthquake Authority.

Now that you have all of this information needed to get home insurance quotes, it’s time to start looking for insurance!

It’s OK to Shop Around and Change Insurance Companies

Even though it means a lot of research on your end, take the time to compare home insurance companies.  Some insurance companies raise their rates every year, while others only do so if they see their profit margins slip.  However, insurance agencies are also always trying to bring in new customers, so they’re often willing to cut deals for new policy holders.  If you see your rate has increased or if you think it was too high to start with, shop around.

Bundle Your Insurance Policies

Insurance companies often give discounts if you have more than one policy with them.  Having your home insurance, auto insurance, and even life insurance with the same company can save you 5% or more.  The more policies you have bundled, the bigger discount.

Check How Much Coverage You Have Verses How Much You Actually Need

To get you to pay more money, an insurance agent may give write a policy that has inflation-protection provisions written into it.  This can be a good thing, of course, but with the present state of the economy and construction costs, it really means you’re paying more for coverage you don’t really need.  Again, this is not always the case.  Before you lower your coverage to what seems like a realistic figure, do some research.  If it looks like construction costs are on the rise and that inflation is high, keep the extra coverage!  You don’t want to lose your home and not have enough to rebuild.  On the other hand, you could save 10% or more by lowering your coverage.  It’s a gamble, but it can pay off.

Increase Your Deductible

Again, this can be a bit of a gamble, but it can be a great way of lowering your insurance premiums.  If you don’t believe you’ll need to make a claim, raise your annual deductible a bit.  Going from $500 to $1,000, for example, can actually lower your home insurance by 25% or more.  That’s a huge savings!  Of course, this means you’re going to have to pay $1,000 before your insurance kicks in.

Don’t Make Small Claims If Possible

Every claim you make goes on your insurance report.  It doesn’t matter if it was for a broken window or a destroyed roof—both will count against you about equally.  Even just asking about a claim can actually mark your record, according to some!  If you want to lower your costs, try to pay out-of-pocket for small damages.

Other Things to Keep in Mind

Here are a few other bits of trivia related to home insurance rates:

• Take an inventory of your possessions.  You’ll need this if you ever have to make a claim.  Take pictures or video; make a list of all big ticket items (televisions, computers, etc.) and their worth.  Make copies of all this and place in a safety deposit box or with a trusted friend.

• Some items, like private art collections or large jewelry collections, may actually not be completely covered.  If you have a collection of any sort, find out what your home insurance will cover and what it won’t.

• Home office equipment may be excluded, too.  Find out if you need a separate insurance policy for this.  Also, you may need liability insurance if you see clients in your home.  If you don’t have this and a client somehow gets injured in your home, you may have to cover all of their medical expenses.

• Contact your insurance agent after major events—a change in your marital status, your children moving in or out, joining the military—because these events can actually impact your insurance rates in some areas.

Keep all of these facts in mind when searching for the best home insurance quotes and you’ll easily find the best rate for you.