As climate change continues to worsen the severity of extreme weather and expensive property damage, home insurance companies in Florida, California, Louisiana, and other high-risk states have adopted stricter underwriting rules or are choosing to no longer sell policies in these states. [1] Meanwhile, homeowners are left scrambling to find coverage after their policies are canceled or nonrenewed.
Younger homeowners are feeling the effects more than others, according to the 2024 Policygenius Climate Change & Homebuying Survey.
In fact, of younger U.S. homeowners (age 18 to 34), 16% said that their policy was dropped because their insurer stopped offering coverage where they live, and 18% had their policy dropped due to living in an area at high risk of wildfires, hurricanes, and other natural disasters.
Home insurance policy cancellations or nonrenewals hit younger adults hardest
Between 2021 and 2024, 16% of U.S. homeowners had their home insurance policy nonrenewed or canceled by their insurance company. Of those, 34% were dropped because the company no longer offers home insurance where they live, and 35% lost their coverage because they live in an area with a high risk of wildfires, hurricanes, or other natural disasters.
Younger homeowners are 10 times more likely to have their home insurance nonrenewed or canceled compared to older homeowners
Fifty-one percent of younger homeowners (age 18 to 34) had their home insurance nonrenewed or canceled in the last three years, compared to 15% of homeowners age 35 to 54 and 5% of homeowners age 55 or older.
Among younger homeowners, the most commonly cited reasons for cancellation or nonrenewal were a failed home inspection (22%) and filing a claim or multiple claims (22%). Meanwhile, only 4% of all homeowners 35 and older said they had their policies canceled due to a failed home inspection, and just 6% for filing a claim or multiple claims.
“Insurance companies conduct home inspections less often on properties that have had a policy in force for several years,” said Angelé Doakes, a licensed home insurance expert and property & casualty operations manager at Policygenius. “This could account for the disparity between younger and older homeowners when it comes to inspection-related nonrenewals or cancellations.”
Younger homeowners were also four times more likely than older homeowners to have their policies dropped due to their insurance company no longer offering home insurance where they live or from living in an area at high risk of hurricanes, wildfires, or other natural disasters. Sixteen percent of younger homeowners said their insurer no longer offered coverage in their area, compared to 3% of homeowners 35 and older; and 18% of younger homeowners said that they lost their coverage because of their home’s natural disaster risk, again compared to just 3% of homeowners 35 and older who had their policy canceled or nonrenewed for the same reason.
Climate change & higher premiums aren’t deterring homeowners from moving to high-risk states
When asked if they’d consider moving to Florida, California, Texas, or Louisiana — four states that are either in the midst of a home insurance crisis or nearing one due to natural disasters brought on by climate change — around one in five homeowners (18%) said they would not move to any of these states because of rising insurance rates.
From 2022 to 2023, premiums increased 35% in Florida, 27% in Texas and Louisiana, and 11% in California, according to the Policygenius 2023 Home Insurance Pricing Report. And premiums are expected to get more expensive as insurers continue to limit or no longer offer coverage in high-risk areas.
Homeowners aren’t afraid to make sacrifices in order to find more affordable housing — including moving cities or states
When asked if they’d be willing to make sacrifices, such as moving to a different city or buying a home that needs extensive renovations, in order to find an affordable home, 63% of homeowners said they would. Of those, nearly half (48%) are willing to move to a different city or state where home prices are less expensive, and 42% are willing to purchase a home that doesn’t check all of their boxes.
Younger homeowners are more willing to make sacrifices than older ones
There’s a generational divide between which homeowners are willing to give up the most to find an affordable home. Eighty-two percent of younger homeowners would be willing to make sacrifices, versus 68% of homeowners age 35 to 54 and 53% of homeowners age 55 or older.
Methodology
Policygenius commissioned YouGov Surveys to poll a nationally representative sample of 2,324 adults age 18 and older, with 1,286 being homeowners. The average margin of error for responses was +/- 2%. For more details, see YouGov’s methodology. Respondents could select multiple answers for questions, so some totals may not add up to 100.
About Policygenius
Policygenius, a Zinnia company, is a one-stop insurance platform that makes it easy to compare and buy policies, get unbiased expert advice, and manage an insurance portfolio in one seamless digital experience. Alongside the intuitive enterprise technology solutions and insights offered by parent company Zinnia, an Eldridge business, Policygenius is helping create better end-to-end insurance experiences for shoppers, advisors, and insurers alike — and enabling more people to protect their financial futures along the way.
