Charleston Co. ranks 10th worst in home insurance affordability, study says

MORNING HEADLINES | Charleston County is the 10th least insurable county for homeowners, according to a new study. The culprit: the threat of hurricanes and the area’s low elevation.

Insurify, a digital insurance company, ranked the nation’s counties and found Charleston County’s “home insurance risk index” to be 10th highest in the country with average annual home insurance premiums at $5,491 and median home values at $450,800. Monroe County in Florida has the highest risk score with average annual premiums more than $22,000, the study said.

“Given the destruction hurricanes bring, insurers often charge more in the Southeast,” the report said.

Another report from the Coalition for an Insurable Future said homeowner insurance premiums have gone up 38% since 2021 because of increasing climate disasters. It said insurance rates could rise 102% in the next 10 years in Charleston County – and as much as 233% in Beaufort County.

The report also concluded that homeowners in the county could end up paying more in insurance premiums than property taxes over the next decade.

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