US home and auto insurance costs surpass property taxes

An analysis by Bloomberg Intelligence reveals that rising insurance premiums have surpassed average property tax bills in two-thirds of US counties. Over the last decade, inflation-adjusted homeowner policies have increased by an average of 45% at the county level, with some states like Nebraska seeing jumps as high as 79%.

When auto insurance premiums—driven largely by extreme weather and hail damage in the Great Plains and Upper Midwest—are combined with home insurance, the total cost exceeds property taxes in 75% of US counties. In the Southeast, where property taxes are relatively low, insurance premiums can be 2.5 to 4 times the tax levy.

The surge in costs is attributed in part to extreme weather linked to climate change, particularly in the Midwest and Mountain West regions including Colorado, Utah, and Minnesota. This affordability crunch is placing significant pressure on households and impacting local government budgets.