Home Insurance Rates Jumped Nearly 43% in a State You Might Not Expect

Hurricanes and tornadoes don't explain this one. A big part of the answer is the age of the state's homes.

"Massachusetts has a relatively older housing stock, and the Coverage A amounts are adjusted each year by carriers, usually based on third-party indexes (following consumer price index)," said Michele J. Campbell, director of communications for the Massachusetts Division of Insurance. "Houses in Massachusetts also have size and construction characteristics that differ from those in other states, leading to differences in replacement/reconstruction cost, driving differences in premium."

Coverage A is the dwelling portion of a policy, meaning what it would cost to rebuild the house. Older homes tend to cost more to rebuild, and when insurers index those amounts to inflation, premiums go up with them. Massachusetts is also a coastal state, so it isn't entirely shielded from hurricane risk.

Massachusetts led the country by a wide margin in Insurance.com's 2026 analysis. Minnesota came in second, at roughly half the rate.

1. Massachusetts: up 42.9%, from $1,478 to $2,112
2. Minnesota: up 22.1%, from $2,729 to $3,333. Severe storms and hail have pushed up insurer losses in the state.
3. New Mexico: up 21.9%, from $2,869 to $3,497. The U.S. Forest Service's Wildfire Risk to Communities tool rates the state's wildfire risk as high.
4. Nebraska: up 21.1%, from $4,553 to $5,513. That's the largest dollar increase of any state, at $960.
5. Maryland: up 17.6%, from $1,906 to $2,242. Rates are still below average.

Two of those five states (Massachusetts and Maryland) still have premiums below the national average. Fast growth and high prices don't always show up in the same places.

Florida is still the most expensive state for home insurance, at an average of $8,471 a year. That's $5,599 above the national average, even as insurers have pulled back from the state's market.

Five other states average more than $5,000 a year:

• Nebraska: $5,513
• Colorado: $5,511
• Oklahoma: $5,378
• Kansas: $5,289
• Louisiana: $5,185

Homeowners in those five states pay roughly twice the national average.

Nebraska, Colorado, Kentucky, and Texas are the only states on both the 10 most expensive list and the 10 fastest-rising list. Homeowners there are paying a lot and watching the cost keep climbing.

For homeowners with an escrow account, insurance is built into the monthly mortgage payment, so a premium increase raises the housing bill directly.

In Florida, the average mortgage payment is $1,957, and home insurance adds about $706 a month, for a total of $2,633. In Nebraska, a $1,761 average mortgage payment plus $459 in monthly insurance comes to $2,220.

The Massachusetts Division of Insurance encourages residents to review their homeowners policies every year, especially at renewal.

"Consumers should make sure their dwelling limit reflects the cost to rebuild and understand their deductibles and endorsements," Campbell said. She also recommended asking insurers about available discounts and whether mitigation measures could lower premiums, and shopping around for coverage.

A low premium last year doesn't promise a low premium this year, and Massachusetts homeowners found that out in 2026.

Data via Insurance.com and Quadrant Information Services. Rates were fielded in summer 2026 for a single-family HO-3 policy on a 2,000-square-foot frame home built in 1997, with $300,000 in dwelling coverage, $300,000 in liability, a $1,000 deductible, and a 2% hurricane deductible in states where it applies.