Shopping for mobile home insurance in California can be tricky. Some home insurance companies don’t offer it. Others offer it through separate companies with unfamiliar names, and some only insure certain types of mobile homes. Our guide to insurance for mobile and manufactured homes in California is designed to help you find the best coverage at the cheapest price.

In this article

How much does mobile home insurance cost in California?

The average cost of insurance for a mobile or manufactured home in California typically ranges from about $500 to $1,500 a year. However, the actual amount you pay depends on a number of factors, including:

  • The type of mobile home you need to insure
  • Your home’s age, manufacturer, size and construction features
  • Your ZIP code
  • Whether the home is located in a community or on private land
  • Any discounts you may qualify to receive
  • The types and amounts of coverage you choose

Since insurance companies weigh each factor differently and offer different discounts, you may qualify for a significantly cheaper rate with one company than you do with others. This is why it’s best to compare quotes from multiple companies when you shop.

Is insurance for all mobile homes the same?

If you’re new to mobile and manufactured homes, it’s important to understand the differences in the way insurance companies insure different styles of homes.

  • Mobile home is a generic term for a factory-built home trucked to the owner’s property for installation.
  • Manufactured homes are mobile homes built after 1976, when construction standards established by the Department of Housing and Urban Development took effect.
  • Park models are prefabricated homes with less than 400 square feet of living area and are set on chassis with wheels.

Some companies only insure manufactured homes, but not older mobile homes, while others insure mobiles of any age, but not park models. A few companies insure all factory-built home types of any age.

Compare rates from top California's top mobile home insurers

Who offers the best mobile home insurance in California?

Foremost, State Farm, Assurant and American Modern are among the best mobile home insurance companies in California, but the best company for you depends on your specific needs.

Foremost

Foremost insures the widest range of mobile homes in California and offers the most flexible coverage options.

The company insures mobile homes of all ages, park models and even modular homes. Its standard policies protect your home at replacement cost and your belongings at their actual cash value. However, it also offers a variety of upgrades for additional protection, as well as options to scale back your coverage for a lower rate.

Foremost is part of the Farmers Insurance group, but it also issues mobile and manufactured home insurance on behalf of USAA and AARP.

State Farm

State Farm extends many of its great homeowners insurance policy features to manufactured homes, but not older mobile homes.

In addition to offering competitive rates, State Farm consistently receives high customer service ratings for all its home insurance products. The company offers a generous discount for bundling your manufactured home policy with your car insurance. Customers with newer model-year homes and/or monitored security systems may qualify for additional savings.

Assurant

Although Assurant is not a household name, it is one of the largest manufactured home insurance providers in the nation. Among its many claims to fame is that it provides manufactured home insurance for GEICO, Liberty Mutual and Progressive.

Assurant is best if you are seeking a competitive rate on standard coverage for a manufactured home.

American Modern

American Modern traces its history to the post–World War II mobile home boom and offers flexible coverage options for manufactured homes and older mobile homes. The company offers replacement cost and stated value coverage options and insures homes for any use, including seasonal homes, rental properties and vacant homes, in addition to primary residences.

American Modern’s website does not provide quotes online, but it does provide contact information for insurance agents near you who can help.

Is mobile home insurance required in California?

There is no state law requiring insurance for mobile and manufactured homes in California, but lenders typically require it for a mortgage. Many mobile and manufactured home communities also require it.

Standard mobile home insurance does not cover damage from floods or earthquakes, but you can purchase separate insurance for each of these perils.

If you apply for a mortgage for a mobile home in a high-risk flood zone, your lender is likely to require flood insurance. If your home is outside of a high-risk area, or you don’t have a mortgage, you can purchase flood insurance on an optional basis.

Earthquake insurance is generally not required by state law, lenders or mobile home communities. However, it’s widely available on an optional basis.

Some companies offer it as an endorsement you can add to an existing policy, but it’s also available as stand-alone insurance from the California Earthquake Authority and companies such as GeoVera and Palomar.

If you live in a mobile home that you rent from someone else, your landlord is responsible for insuring the home. However, you should still consider renters insurance to cover your belongings and potential liability, which a landlord’s policy typically does not cover.

Coverages to compare in a CA mobile home insurance quote

The coverages in California mobile home insurance policies often vary by company, so it’s important to pay attention to the amounts and types of coverage included in each quote, in addition to its price.

A typical mobile home insurance policy includes the following coverages:

  • Dwelling: Protection for your home from perils such as fire, wind, hail, falling objects, theft and other risks.
  • Other structures: Any detached structures on your property, such as a garage or shed. Some companies include protection for other structures in your dwelling coverage limit, while others offer a separate limit.
  • Personal property: Your belongings, including furniture, electronics, recreational gear, clothing and other possessions.
  • Loss of use: Temporary housing costs and living expenses you incur if a covered peril leaves your home uninhabitable during repairs.
  • Personal liability: Expenses resulting from injuries or property damage you cause to others.
  • Guest medical protection: Medical treatment for a guest injured on your property, regardless of fault.

In addition to making sure the limits for each coverage match up in your quotes, you should also account for any differences in the coverage types they offer, such as open-peril vs. named peril and replacement cost vs. actual cash value.

Open-peril vs. named-peril insurance

With named-peril insurance, your home is only protected from perils specifically listed in your policy. Named-peril insurance provides less coverage and costs less than open-peril insurance, which protects against any cause that is not specifically excluded. Open-peril coverage is also known as all-risk coverage.

Replacement cost vs. actual cash value

Replacement cost coverage generally pays to replace an item with a new one with the same specifications and quality grade. This generally provides more protection and costs more than actual cash value coverage.

When you have actual cash value coverage, the insurance company deducts depreciation from the amount you receive for damage to your home or possessions.

How insurance coverage types affect price quotes

A standard policy covers your home at its replacement value on an open-peril basis and your belongings on a named-peril basis at their actual cash value. However, insurance companies often adjust these coverage types to either give you a lower rate or more protection.

Some companies keep their rates low by offering named-peril coverage for your home. On the flip side, some give you the option to pay a little more to upgrade to replacement cost coverage on your personal property.

For most mortgages, lenders require replacement cost coverage for the home, but they usually accept named-peril policies that protect against the 16 most-common home insurance risks.

If you have a low loan balance or no mortgage at all, you may be able to get a lower rate by choosing a named-peril policy with actual cash value coverage for your home. A third, potentially cheaper option is stated value coverage, which insures your home for an amount that you and the insurance company agree upon.

The downside of actual cash value and stated value coverage for your home is that these coverage types leave with you with less insurance money to rebuild your home if it sustains major damage.

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