Looking for the best Kansas City home insurance? Situated in the middle of Tornado Ally, homeowners in Kansas City, Missouri have some unique concerns when getting insurance coverage on their primary residence. Aside from this potentially damaging act of nature, KCMO residents (who number over 475,000) need to consider the cost of this coverage. By learning about the insurance companies and policies that are available, you have the best chance of finding coverage you can afford that will protect both your home and your family.

How Kansas City Home Insurance Rates Compare

According to the Insurance Information Institute, the Missouri rate for home insurance premiums rose by 2% in 2008. When the National Association of Insurance Commissioners released their 2009 statistics for the year of 2006 it ranked Missouri in the middle, at the 26th highest for cost of home owners insurance in the nation. The average premium paid by a MO homeowner in that year was $707, while the average premium in the country was $804. Texas was ranked number one with an average premium of $1,409. While our rates look good in comparison, it's still safe to say that you don't want to pay more for them than you have to, but you still need to feel secure.

What Kansas City Home Insurance Covers

When you are looking for a Kansas City homeowners policy, you want to know exactly what you are getting. In general, a home insurance policy is purchased to protect your home, and your assets, against any disasters that might occur. These can include weather related incidents like tornados, fire and storms. Or it can cover you for liability and loss of your possessions. Liability coverage is that which pays for damage to another person or their property. So, if someone slips on the ice outside your home or your neighbor's car is hit by your falling tree then your liability coverage is what pays for this damage.

It's important to realize that a basic policy will only cover the replacement value of your home's structure. Unless you customize your policy to cover the replacement value of your possessions and the contents of your home then it will only cover them for the actual value. This means that when your insurer figures out how much money an item is worth, they will take depreciation into account. So the check you receive won't be enough to actually replace the item.

Of course, you can add that coverage to your policy. You need to decide if your priority is to keep premiums low, or to have full coverage when a disaster occurs. Ideally, you will get a policy that offers full coverage at replacement value. However, if your budget requires that you reduce the premium then you will need to decide how to make that happen.

How to Reduce the Cost of a Kansas City Home Insurance Policy

Probably the first piece of advice is to shop around. Insurers are competing for your business and will offer you different rates and benefits. Frankly, it is just silly to go with the first company you get a quote from. Consider getting all your rate quotes at once by using one of the Internet based rating tools like ours at the top of this page. These will let you enter all your data once, they will send it to the companies that insure your area, and those companies will send you their best and most competitive rates. Make sure you find a free rate tool that isn't tied to one insurance company. Revisit this once a year to check out the competitiveness of your current rate.

Another thing you can do is to piggyback insurance policies with the same company. Many companies offer Kansas City home insurance, life insurance and auto insurance. If you get more than one policy with that company you may receive a discount on your premium.

Take a look at your credit rating. Insurers are looking more and more closely at the rates of consumers as they consider extending coverage and setting premiums. If your credit score is above 650 you're in good shape, although above 700 is really the goal. Check this a couple times a year. Companies often report errors that lower your credit score.

Another thing to consider is your deductible. If you can afford to raise the amount you will pay out of pocket when a home based disaster occurs, then your insurer will lower your premium. This is because you are taking over part of the risk for them. Of course, you need to have the funds on hand to cover this higher amount, because your insurer pays nothing until your deductible is satisfied.

Finally, ask what steps you can take to make your home safer and less risky to insure. Things like smoke alarms and burglar alarms can help. Besides, they protect your family as well as lower your rates right here in KCMO.

Compare Kansas City Home Insurance Quotes

Enter your zip above to start comparing Kansas City home insurance quotes today!