Latest Homeowners Headlines

All the headlines from our Homeowners Topic Page, ordered by recency.

Farmers’ Filing Would Raise Homeowners Rates in Texas by Nearly 10%

Oct 11 2011 // Farmers Insurance plans to hike homeowner premiums in Texas by nearly 10 percent next year. The increase will apply to about half of the Farmers Insurance customers across Texas, according to a report in The Dallas Morning...

State Farm Raises Rates on Alabama Inland Homes

Oct 7 2011 // For the second time in three years, one of the largest homeowners in Alabama has indicated it will not raises rates along the coastline in lieu of a statewide average five percent increase on inland properties. State Farm...

Mississippi Homeowners Sign Up for Flood Buyouts

Oct 7 2011 // Eighteen north Vicksburg homeowners who suffered damage from the Mississippi River flooding this spring have signed up for the city’s buyout program. The Vicksburg Post reported the voluntary buyout will be conducted...

Homeowners Insurer Contributes to Settlement in Wisconsin Polka Suit

Oct 6 2011 // A Chippewa Falls, Wis., polka musician has won a court battle involving his ex-wife and her new husband, who he accuses of stealing one of his most popular tunes. Ray Rubenzer filed a federal copyright infringement lawsuit...

Few Keep Inventory of Home Property

Oct 6 2011 // It only takes one fire, tornado or hurricane to completely destroy everything you own. Insurance adjusters frequently work with homeowners who have lost everything, but for those who have not taken an inventory of their...

State Farm to Stop Insuring Churches in Florida

Oct 4 2011 // Florida churches are having to seek insurance elsewhere after one of the state’s provider of coverage to houses of worship has decided to leave the market. State Farm Florida recently announced it will exit the...

Some Texas Residents Say Seismic Testing is Damaging Homes

Oct 4 2011 // Some homeowners in southeast Fort Worth, Texas, say they have found damage to their homes that they believe was caused by recent seismic testing in their neighborhoods. The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports that seismic...

Texas AG: Roofing Contractor to Pay Restitution for Misleading Homeowners

Oct 3 2011 // A Rosenberg, Texas-based roofing contractor has agreed to reimburse all homeowners who improperly paid the company’s “liquidated damages” contracts, the Texas Attorney General’s Office reports. In...

Does Florida’s Public Adjuster Law Limit Free Speech?

Oct 3 2011 // Public adjusters would have more access to homeowners in the immediate aftermath of a storm if the Florida Supreme Court rules Florida’s current public adjuster law unconstitutional. The high court recently heard...

How Can Insurance Agents Help Texas Fire Victims?

Oct 3 2011 // Many businesses and homeowners are struggling to determine the extent of their damages from what is shaping up to be the worst year in Texas history for fire losses. In handling the crisis, policyholders must quickly...

California Homeowners’ Suit Against Builders Revived

Oct 3 2011 // A federal appeals court revived a lawsuit by homeowners who accused eight major homebuilders of causing them to overpay for their homes by marketing nearby houses to high-risk borrowers who later went into foreclosure. The...

New Insurance Laws Go Into Effect in Missouri

Oct 3 2011 // Missouri homeowners hit by damaging storms now have stronger protections in place under two new state laws, insurance regulators announced. The laws allow insurance companies to better serve hard-hit areas and protect...

New York Law Requires Risk Reports by Group Homes

Sep 30 2011 // New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo has signed a law requiring that group homes and other private facilities licensed by the state to house juvenile delinquents assess workplace safety, record violent incidents and take preventive...

Insurer Retools Home Value Insurance Coverage

Sep 30 2011 // Home Value Insurance Co. has re-entered the insurance market with a product that promises to protect homeowners from falling home values. Home Value Insurance initially launched the product in 2009. The company has...

Irene Water Damage Worse Than Wind: Ipsos/Reuters Poll

Sep 23 2011 // The number of people in the Northeastern United States who suffered water damage from Hurricane Irene is more than double the number who suffered wind damage, an Ipsos/Reuters poll showed Thursday. Yet two weeks after the...

California Homeowners’ Suit Against Builders Revived

Sep 22 2011 // A federal appeals court revived a lawsuit by homeowners who accused eight major homebuilders of causing them to overpay for their homes by marketing nearby houses to high-risk borrowers who later went into...

Florida Supreme Court Weighs If Public Adjuster Law Limits Free Speech

Sep 22 2011 // Public adjusters would have more access to homeowners in the immediate aftermath of a storm if the Florida Supreme Court rules Florida’s current public adjuster law unconstitutional. The Florida Supreme Court...

Texas Forest Service: Residents Should Clear Debris Around Homes

Sep 21 2011 // With the wildfire in Texas’ Bastrop County mostly contained, the Texas Forest Service is urging residents who live in the area affected by the 34,000-plus-acre wildfire to clear recently fallen pine needles and other...

Bastrop, Texas, Wildfire Nearly Contained, Thousands Left Homeless

Sep 20 2011 // A wildfire that began more than two weeks ago in Bastrop County is 95 percent contained, according to the Texas Forest Service. The area is about 25 miles east of Austin. The TFS reports that the cause of the fire was most...

Florida Regulator Slashes Sinkhole Rate Hike, Lowers Others

Sep 20 2011 // Florida residents who have sinkhole insurance through the state-backed property insurer will not have to pay a proposed statewide average 447 percent increase. Citizens Property Insurance Corp. customers will also be...