The typical home buyer calculating the costs of homeownership doesn’t spend as much time thinking about insurance premiums as they do mortgage rates and home prices. After all, the cost of homeowners insurance is relatively small when compared to the big-ticket items buyers have to consider. Still, after recent storms in the Southeast, homeowners insurance is becoming a hot topic. Mostly, Americans are concerned about the availability and cost of insurance in areas affected by severe weather – which, of course, is everywhere at one time or another. According to a recently conducted survey, 23 percent of respondents believe their insurance premiums will rise as a result of recent storms and 13 percent say they believe it will be harder for them to get insurance at all. Of course, due to the hurricanes, those numbers were higher in the South, where 32 percent said they believe they’ll see higher premiums and 20 percent said they worry they’ll be unable to get insurance. Wherever you are, though, it’s worth thinking about, especially if you’re a soon-to-be buyer calculating the potential costs of owning a home. (source)