 |  | An unfortunate and dire trend has been sweeping across Humboldt County over the past few months, the seeds of which were planted years ago, hundreds of miles away. As you've likely heard, a handful of national insurance providers announced their retreat from the state of California recently. That decision has thrown a Donkey Kong sized wrench into the mix, making it increasingly more difficult for buyers to find home insurance, and even more alarming, local homeowners are getting dropped by their current home insurance providers. Don't get me wrong, I understand big business decisions are typically made without much consideration for the general public, but this one is an exceptionally tough pill to swallow for a lot of Humboldt's inhabitants. For high risk inland areas around Willow Creek etc, the restrictions make since, those are logical areas at very real risk for fires, but those aren't the only areas being affected by our states propensity for catching on fire. I have a client who is purchasing a home in the middle of Eureka (near the water tower) whose only insurance option is California FAIR Plan which doesn't make a ton of sense to me as it is not located within a wildfire high severity zone. My parents who live in Fieldbrook, were dropped from their provider (Kemper) this week, and so far it seems like the California Fair Plan is their only option. If they are forced to go that route, their payment could jump from $1050 a year, up to $3,700 a year! A handful of providers have stated that they do not plan on dropping currently covered customers, but they will also not be taking on any new policies going forward. Suffice it to say, purchasing a home in Humboldt just got a little bit harder. From an agents perspective, it's by no means the end of the world, we just need to ensure buyers understand the landscape of things, and get on the ball quickly once an offer is accepted to make sure our buyers can find coverage in order to close escrow on time.
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