Best Homeowners Insurance in Texas

By Ross Martin

Updated September 30, 2022

Edited By Kristine Lee

Texas homeowners insurance: what you need to know

The average cost for home insurance in Texas is $2,207 per year or $184 per month. This means Texans pay 37% more for home insurance than the national average. The easiest way to acquire cheap homeowners insurance in Texas is to get quotes from a variety of insurance companies.

Unlike car insurance, homeowners insurance isn't controlled by state legislation. Even so, major gaps exist in home insurance rates on a state-by-state basis. Policy prices in states may vary based on the total number and value of homeowners claims filed in that particular state, and depend on the value of the belongings and structures covered by the policy.

Learn typical homeowners insurance rates in Texas by referencing the below data. Remember: your rates may vary, depending on your coverage details.

Table of contents:

1. Rates by company
2. Rates by coverage amount
3. Rates by deductible amount
4. Rates by city
5. Bundling savings
6. Frequently asked questions
7. Texas-specific homeowners coverages
8. Natural disaster coverage

The cheapest home insurance companies in Texas

Homeowners insurance rates in Texas depend on the insurance company you choose. Texas Farm Bureau sells the cheapest homeowners policies in Texas —  $1,646 per year. This compares favorably to the state's average rate of $2,207, offering a $561 discount on the state's average rate.

Begin your search for cheap homeowners insurance by reviewing the most affordable Texas companies, listed below. Then, see our list of home insurance carriers consumers rated the best for customer satisfaction. 

AFFORDABLE HOME INSURERS IN TEXAS

Texas home insurance prices by coverage levels

Your chosen level of homeowners coverage impacts the insurance premiums you pay. In Texas, maintaining $100K dwelling coverage costs an average of $1,362 per year, while carrying dwelling coverage up to $400K costs $3,758/year.

POPULAR COVERAGE LIMITS IN TEXAS

Homeowners insurance deductibles in Texas

Texas homeowners have a lot of decisions to make when purchasing a homeowners insurance policy, including how much their deductible should be. A deductible is an amount for which a homeowner is responsible before the insurer will cover a claim. The deductible that you decide on can impact your insurance rates directly.

When selecting a deductible, remember that the higher your deductible is, the lower your premiums will be. Therefore, if you need your home insurance rates to be lower, it pays to increase your deductible. Remember that your deductible should only be as high as you can reasonably pay in the event of a covered loss.

Take a look at some of the normal deductibles offered by home insurance companies and an estimate of what you can expect your premiums to be.

HOME INSURANCE PREMIUMS BY DEDUCTIBLE IN TEXAS

Texas homeowners insurance costs by city

Home insurance rates in Texas vary depending on the city in which you reside. Rates are contingent on city-specific factors, such as the number of local claims filed, giving your ZIP code weight in deciding how much you pay.

The cheapest home insurance rates in Texas are available in Biggs Field. A typical home insurance policy on this military base near El Paso costs just $1,481 each year — $726 less than the state average. The below table shows the best places to live in Texas if you’re looking for cheap homeowners insurance.

CHEAPEST CITIES FOR HOMEOWNERS INSURANCE IN TEXAS

Looking for insights on home insurance in a particular city? Check out our data-driven breakdown of major Texas cities:

• Arlington
• Austin
• Corpus Christi
• Dallas
• El Paso
• Fort Worth
• Garland
• Houston
• Irving
• Laredo
• Lubbock
• Plano
• San Antonio

Home and auto insurance bundling in Texas

If you want to save on home insurance, consider holding your home and auto policies with the same insurance company. Bundling home and auto insurance in Texas can save you a substantial sum each month on auto insurance. Bundling policies in Texas leads to yearly savings of $117.

HOME AND AUTO BUNDLING DISCOUNTS IN TEXAS

Texas homeowners insurance FAQs

Does GEICO offer homeowners insurance in Texas?

Yes — GEICO provides homeowners insurance in the state of Texas.

Why is homeowners insurance so expensive in Texas?

Texas homeowners insurance is more expensive than some other states due to certain perils that Texans face. These include hail and wind storms, flash floods, tornadoes, wildfires, and (in coastal areas) hurricanes. Perils of this nature can cause a lot of damage and are sure to drive up rates.

What homeowners insurance options are available in Texas?

A number of coverage options are available to homeowners in Texas. Tiers of coverage are prescribed by the Insurance Services Office (ISO), an advisory organization that develops insurance programs and helps states meet regulation requirements.

Texas-specific homeowners insurance policy names

Texas is somewhat unique in that insurance providers use different names for these common policies. Below you’ll find corresponding policy names used by some home insurance companies in Texas:

• HO-A (same as HO-1): Provides basic coverage and covers a home and the property therein against named perils.
• HO-A+ (same as HO-2): Expands coverage to include additional named perils.
• HO-B (same as HO-3): Covers a home against open perils and your contents against named perils.
• HO-C (same as HO-5): Covers a home and its contents against all perils unless specifically listed.

Natural disaster coverage in Texas

Does homeowners insurance cover tornadoes in Texas?

A tornado can strike with precious little advance warning. There is often little you can do to prepare, and the effects are often devastating. As such, it's vital to insure your home against tornadoes in Texas, which averages 147 tornado events per year.¹

Tornado damage is usually the result of wind, so you’ll need to make sure your homeowners policy has windstorm coverage, which comes standard as a part of many homeowners policies.

Wind protection covers the exterior and overall structure of the building. However, depending on the type of policy you have, you may find that interior damage is only covered when it's a result of exterior damage, like a tree branch breaking a window. Detached structures are also covered, generally up to 10% of the amount at which the home is insured. Keep in mind that other damages the storm causes may not be covered. For instance, if the storm that produced the tornado also causes flooding that damages your home, those damages won't be covered unless you have previously added flood insurance to your policy.

Does homeowners insurance cover hail damage in Texas?

Depending on where you live, hailstorms can lead to varying levels of damage to personal property. In Texas, homeowners policies typically come with hail coverage to cover the physical structure of your home if it suffers damages in a hail event.

If you reside in a location that is especially prone to hail forecasts — such as Texas, which endured 508 incidents of hail in 2018² — it's smart to check your homeowners policy to see what's covered and what's not — some insurance companies designate higher deductibles in hail-prone areas and make exclusions for cosmetic damage,   meaning that if your battered house is still functional despite aesthetic flaws after a hailstorm, your insurer will likely refuse to pay for its repair.

Does homeowners insurance cover hurricanes in Texas?

Because hurricanes can cause calamitous destruction and completely demolish homes altogether, insurance companies are unwilling to assume the full risk of hurricanes as a whole. If you own a home in Texas, you could be vulnerable to experiencing damage from hurricanes. In fact, 39,109 single-family residences are exceedingly vulnerable to hurricane damage in Texas.³

If you own a home near the coast, it's crucial to check and understand your homeowners insurance policy since a basic policy may not be enough to cover hurricane damage — you would need separate flood and windstorm insurance policies, which would work in tandem to pay for repairs or replacements. Depending on your location, your insurer may make it compulsory to have a separate hurricane deductible if you reside in a region that's especially susceptible to storms. 

Learn more about high-risk homeowners insurance policies.

HURRICANE DEDUCTIBLE RATES IN TEXAS

Does homeowners insurance cover floods in Texas?

Damage via flooding— no matter the circumstances under which it occurs —is not covered by homeowners insurance policies. To protect your home, acquire insurance through FEMA's National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) or via a private insurer. Coverage details from private insurance companies vary.

If you purchase flood insurance through NFIP, you'll receive:

• $250,000 structural coverage
• $100,000 personal property coverage

If the value of your personal property and home exceeds these limits, consider purchasing a flood insurance policy from our partners at Neptune for additional protection.

Flood insurance is especially important in Texas, which paid out $696,028,890 in flood insurance claims in 2016, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency.⁴

Sources:

¹NOAA'S National Weather Service

²Insurance Information Institute 

³Insurance Information Institute

⁴Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)