Home Insurance in Texas

What should Texas homeowners know about home insurance?

A standard Texas home policy covers fire, theft and most storm damage. Three catches surprise people. Wind and hail often carry their own deductible, a percentage of your insured value instead of a flat amount. Flood is excluded from most policies. And on the coast, the policy may leave out wind and hail, because a state pool sells those separately.

Texas does not require home insurance, but lenders do. The Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) does not approve home rates in advance, so quotes for the same house can differ a lot. Comparing quotes and reading the deductible line pay off most.

Which hazards shape Texas home insurance?

Texas has no single storm season. North and Central Texas get hail and tornadoes, the coast gets hurricanes, and heavy rain floods streets and creeks far from the Gulf.

FEMA’s National Risk Index rates every county for 18 natural hazards. Using 2020 population as weights, about two in three Texans (67%) live in a county rated High or Very High overall. That figure is our own calculation, because FEMA publishes no state rating. By the same math, Texas hail and tornado scores beat those of about 95 in 100 states.

County ratings are not neighborhood ratings, and an insurer’s model may disagree. Hurricane risk is coastal, yet Dallas and San Antonio rate Very High for inland flooding.

Hail deserves special attention. Texas had 902 hail events with stones an inch or larger in 2025, the most of any state, out of 5,432 nationwide, according to the Insurance Information Institute as reported by Texas Public Radio.

Why is the wind and hail deductible the first number to check?

Because it decides whether a hail claim pays anything. A percentage deductible applies to your dwelling limit, not to the damage. In TDI’s example, a $150,000 home has a 5% deductible, or $7,500. A $6,500 roof repair falls below it, so the insurer pays nothing. A flat $500 deductible would pay $6,000.

How your roof is paid matters as much. TDI shows a $10,000 roof with a $4,000 deductible. Replacement cost pays $6,000 at any age. Actual cash value, which subtracts wear, pays $4,500 for a 5-year-old roof, $3,000 for a 10-year-old roof, and nothing for a 20-year-old one.

Here is an example with invented numbers. Your house is insured for $350,000 and your wind and hail deductible is 2%, so $7,000. Hail wrecks the roof, and replacement costs $16,000. With replacement cost, you receive $9,000, usually in two checks. If the policy pays the roof at actual cash value and values yours at $6,500, the payment is $0.

The state’s last-resort insurers show the range. TWIA offers 1% to 5%, and the FAIR Plan now offers 2% to 5% for wind and hail. Our deductible guide has more math.

Two Texas details help. Each insurer sets its own credit for an impact-resistant roof (Class 4 earns the most), so ask what paperwork it wants before paying a roofer. And a contractor cannot absorb your deductible: state law says you must pay it.

Do you need TWIA if you live on the coast?

You might. The Texas Windstorm Insurance Association (TWIA) sells wind and hail coverage only. It does not cover fire, theft or flood. Its area runs down the coast from Jefferson, Chambers, Galveston and Brazoria counties through Matagorda, Calhoun, Refugio, Aransas, San Patricio, Nueces, Kleberg, Kenedy and Willacy to Cameron. It also takes in Pasadena, Morgan’s Point, Shoreacres, Seabrook and La Porte, east of Highway 146 in Harris County.

To qualify, you need a denial from at least one insurer that writes wind coverage there. The building also needs a windstorm certificate showing it meets coastal building rules, with limited exceptions. In a high-hazard V flood zone, work done after Sept. 1, 2009 also requires flood insurance.

Timing is a trap. TDI says you cannot buy a TWIA policy while a hurricane is in the Gulf of Mexico. When we saved TWIA’s and the FAIR Plan’s pages on Oct. 9, 2026, both showed a notice that new applications were paused. We could not confirm it was live, so call before you plan a purchase date.

TWIA’s share varies by county. In 2025 it wrote 55% of residential wind coverage across its area, 75% in Galveston County, and 14% in Cameron County. A Galveston owner will likely deal with TWIA, while a Cameron owner may find private wind coverage.

On price, sources differ. TWIA’s site says its average residential premium is about $1,700 a year. TDI’s report shows $699.7 million written on 274,897 residential policies at the end of 2025, about $2,500 each by our division. The two may measure different things. The dwelling limit tops out at $1,773,000 in 2026.

Even inland owners have a stake. After a huge storm, TWIA pays from its reserve fund, then state loans of up to $1 billion a year, then charges on insurers, then reinsurance. The loans are repaid through a surcharge on most property policies across Texas, for up to three years. After Hurricane Beryl (July 2024), TWIA drew $462.7 million from the reserve fund, and the fund held about $57.2 million on June 30, 2026.

What if no insurer will cover your house?

The Texas FAIR Plan Association is the fallback for the whole property. You need denials from at least two Texas-licensed insurers, and you cannot qualify if you have a policy, a renewal offer or a comparable offer. Apply through an agent, and re-check the regular market every two years.

Coverage is thinner than standard. The house is paid at actual cash value unless you add replacement cost to a homeowners policy and insure at 100%. The dwelling limit is $1,000,000. It leaves out falling trees, glass breakage, ice weight, frozen pipes, mold and sewer backup. It cannot sell wind and hail inside TWIA territory, so a coastal owner may need both plans.

Costs are moving. The 1% wind and hail option ended on July 1, 2026, and existing policies move to 2% at renewal. TDI approved a 9.3% rate increase for its homeowners form from Aug. 1, 2025, and approved the deductible changes in 2026. Surplus lines insurers, licensed in other states, are the other fallback. Both cost more than standard coverage, TDI says.

Can your insurer drop you after a claim?

It can decline to renew, and TDI’s current guide says it must give 60 days’ notice. One reason on TDI’s list is three nonweather claims in three years, which hail does not count toward. Another is a company limiting coverage in your area, which can still hit you. Ask for the reason in writing.

Does Texas home insurance cover flood?

No. TDI says a flood policy is separate, and that more than half of the homes Harvey flooded sat outside designated flood zones. About 40% of National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) claims come from outside high-risk areas. TDI also names “Flash Flood Alley,” a band through Central and North Texas, and says almost every major city is in a high-risk area.

An NFIP policy covers the house up to $250,000, and belongings need a separate policy up to $100,000. Most policies start after a 30-day wait, so do not shop as a storm approaches. Our flood insurance guide covers zones and options.

What changes your premium in Texas?

TDI lists the factors most insurers use:

• Your roof’s age and material, and your home’s age and condition.
• Rebuild cost. Wood-frame houses cost more to insure than brick or stone.
• Where you live, including storms, crime and distance to a fire station.
• Your claims history, which insurers read from a seven-year CLUE report.
• Your credit. An insurer cannot refuse you or charge more only because of credit, and must make allowances after events such as illness or identity theft.

Discounts vary by company. TDI names alarms, sprinklers, an impact-resistant roof, other policies with the same insurer, and claim-free years. Our bundling guide covers home and auto together, and our Texas car insurance page covers the other half.

What are your rights when you file a claim?

Tell your insurer quickly. Some policies, like TWIA’s, set a one-year deadline. The insurer must acknowledge your claim within 15 days, decide within 15 business days after it has everything, and pay within 5 business days after agreeing. Big disasters can extend these times. Photograph damage first, make only temporary repairs such as a tarp, and keep receipts.

If you disagree on the amount, ask for appraisal. You and the insurer each hire an appraiser, and an umpire settles differences. You can also file a written complaint with TDI (800-252-3439). For a weather claim against most insurers, you must give written notice at least 61 days before suing. TWIA follows its own rules.

TDI’s coastal team, at 855-352-6278, helps with TWIA problems. HelpInsure.com, run by TDI, compares home policies in your area.

About the hazard ratings

This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s National Risk Index dataset API or downloadable datasets but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency’s website(s). Source: FEMA National Risk Index, version 1.20 (December 2025), county table, accessed 2026-10-08. For planning purposes only. County-level ratings; they describe the county, not the city.

What to do next: a Texas checklist

1. Turn each deductible into dollars. Multiply every percentage by your dwelling limit and ask if you could pay that after a storm.
2. Ask how your roof is paid. Is it replacement cost, actual cash value, or a payment schedule? Ask about roof-age limits too.
3. Check your flood status. Look up your flood zone, price an NFIP policy, and buy at least 30 days before you need it.
4. On the coast, confirm where wind lives. Ask whether your homeowners policy includes it. If not, ask about TWIA, the windstorm certificate and flood proof, and start well before storm season peaks.
5. Compare at renewal. Use HelpInsure plus two or three more quotes, and ask what paperwork earns an impact-resistant roof credit.
6. If you get a nonrenewal notice, ask for the reason and start shopping that week.

Bottom line

If you live inland, start with your wind and hail deductible and your roof’s payment terms. If you live on the coast, find out where wind coverage comes from before you worry about price. Either way, price a flood policy now. If insurers turn you down, the FAIR Plan and TWIA do less, so keep shopping the regular market.