Best Home Insurance Rates In Massachusetts

Compare Home Insurance In Massachusetts

Tuesday, April 3 2018 By Jennifer Cramer

Massachusetts has the oldest university in the country and the site of the Pilgrim’s landing. It also has the roots of the American Revolution. But the Bay State is also home to extreme weather conditions that pose insurance risks for homeowners.

Average Massachusetts Homeowners Insurance Rates

How much is home insurance in Massachusetts? Homeowners insurance premiums in Massachusetts are higher than the national average. The average cost of home insurance in the state of Massachusetts was $1,379, a bit higher than the national average of $1,173. Only nine states that have higher average home insurance rates than Massachusetts.

Massachusetts Average Annual Homeowners Insurance Rates

	2013	2014	2015
Massachusetts Annual Average	$1,263	$1,314	$1,379
Massachusetts Price Per Month	$105	$109	$115
US Annual Average	$1,096	$1,132	$1,173
US Cost Per Month	$91	$94	$98
National Rank	10	10	10
Source: Facts + Statistics: Homeowners and renters insurance

The graph below shows the change in average Massachusetts home insurance rates from 2011 to 2015. Massachusetts homeowners insurance rates increased from $1,072 in 2011 to $1,379 in 2015, a jump of $307 dollars, or 28.64 percent.

Choosing a homeowners insurance company in Massachusetts should be easier. Actually, it’s already easy. The key to finding the best rates is to compare homeowners insurance quotes in Massachusetts from multiple companies.

Best Home Insurance Companies in Massachusetts

Most Popular Insurance Companies

Last year, these were the 10 most common home insurance companies reported by QuoteWizard users living in the state of Massachusetts. Out of the 6,879 Massachusetts homeowners that used QuoteWizard to request insurance quotes last year, 526 had no home insurance.

Best Insurance Companies

The above list shows the most popular home insurers in Massachusetts according to our users. But popular doesn’t always mean best.

Our study on the Best Homeowners Insurance Companies focuses on top of the line companies. In no particular order, these companies stand out among the rest:

Top Massachusetts Home Insurance Company Market Share

Source: Insurance Information Institute

Rank	Company	Financial Rating	Market Share
1	MAPFRE Insurance	A	12.9%
2	Liberty Mutual	A	11.0%
3	Arbella Mutual Insurance	A-	7.4%
4	Safety Insurance	A	6.9%
5	Chubb Corp.	A++	6.2%
6	Andover Cos.	A+	5.9%
7	Travelers Companies	A+	5.3%
8	Mutual Insurance	A++	3.6%
9	Vermont Mutual Insurance	A+	3.6%
10	USAA Insurance	A++	3.5%

Home Insurance Rate Factors

Many different factors come into play when insurance companies calculate the cost of homeowners insurance. Some, like the age of your home, are within your control. Others, like crime rates or natural disasters, are beyond your control. Here are some of the factors that affect the cost of homeowners insurance in Massachusetts.

Average Home Listing Prices

Home prices can greatly affect the cost of insurance in any given state. A higher average home price generally means higher premiums in that state. For Massachusetts, the average listing price is $464,387 as of July 2015, roughly twice the national average of $284,748.

Average Burglary Rates

Burglary is a serious and sometimes violent property crime. States with higher average burglary rates generally have higher average home insurance premiums. That's because the likelihood that someone will need to file a claim is higher. In 2013, Massachusetts’ average burglary rate was 459.2 per 100,000 people, which is a lot lower than the national average of 610.0 per 100,000.

States with more police per capita tend to be safer than states with fewer policemen and women. In Massachusetts, there are 42.7 law enforcement personnel per 100,000 total citizens.

Home Insurance Hazards

As is typical of the New England region, Massachusetts’s weather is marked by occasionally severe summer and winter weather. This, combined with more extreme weather events, represent the major homeowners insurance hazards in Massachusetts.

Cold and snowy winters: Massachusetts averages about 23 days and 44 inches of snow each year. Winter temperatures can be quite cold, especially as you move from east to west. The western and central regions have temperatures 5 – 10 degrees lower than their eastern, coastal counterparts. Intense, winter storms known as “Nor’easters” cause heavy snowfall to occur early in the season, mostly in October and November. Winter is also when the state receives much of its annual rainfall. But though precipitation is mostly evenly distributed during the year. Western and central Massachusetts receive much more snow than eastern regions and Cape Cod. For example, the western city of Lanesboro receives about 27 days of snow and about 62 inches per year. But Edgartown on Martha’s Vineyard, gets about 10 days of snow and 24 inches in a year, on average.

Hot and humid summers: The hottest month in Massachusetts is July. Massachusetts averages about 70% humidity and daytime highs above 80 degrees. But heatwaves can push both of these numbers quite a bit higher. According to the Boston Globe, a particularly rough heat wave hit most recently in July 2013.

Thunderstorms and other extreme weather: Because Massachusetts sits on the eastern seaboard, it is vulnerable to tropical storms and hurricanes. And, because the state juts further east than other East Coast states, it is especially susceptible to a direct hit. Massachusetts has been directly hit by three major hurricanes, and sees on average three tornadoes per year. Tornadoes and hurricanes are the most violent kinds of weather around and can seriously damage property.

Massachusetts also has severe thunderstorms, usually in the summer. They're much less severe than tornadoes and hurricanes. But they're still an extreme weather event that homeowners should be on guard for. Massachusetts averages about 30 days per year with thunderstorms. These storms occasionally cause severe flooding. Preparation is the only way to combat such severe weather. The only way to obtain flood insurance is through the National Flood Insurance Program.

Massachusetts Division of Insurance

Website:

Homepage

Insurance Commissioner:

Gary Anderson

Insurance Hotline:

(877) 563 – 4467

Office Hours:

Monday - Friday
8:45 am to 5:00 pm

File a Consumer Insurance Complaint

Insurance Complaint Page

Sources:

• A.M. Best Insurance Carrier Ratings
• Insurance Information Institute – Home Insurance Market Share in Massachusetts
• NAIC--Home Insurance Market Share in Massachusetts
• Average Home Insurance Rates in Massachusetts
• MA State Gov. History of Hurricanes

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