Insurers are getting picky. Here's what that means for you.

Hippo Holdings, a home insurance company that reported a profitable second quarter, told PYMNTS that its growth plan starts with the business it declines. The point its president made is that insurers rarely fail from a shortage of customers. They fail from writing policies after the premium stopped covering the risk.

That thinking is why a carrier can cover your neighbor and pass on your house. Roof age, prior claims, distance to the coast, and the condition of your plumbing and electrical can each move you out of one carrier's appetite and into another's. It also explains non-renewals that arrive with no claim on your record. So give yourself time. Start looking six to eight weeks before your renewal date, not the week it expires, because a carrier that wants your home may need an inspection or a roof document before it will bind.

An independent agent works with several carriers at once and can tell you which ones are writing homes like yours right now.