Insurance now prices most Texans out of the median home

Newsweek covered a study putting a number on something Texas buyers have felt for a while. Once homeowners premiums and the rest of the carrying costs are counted, more than 7 million Texas households, about 64% statewide, cannot afford the median-valued home in their own county. The study also found median household income in Texas reached $65,035 in 2024, roughly $5,365 short of what it takes to afford that median home. The squeeze is uneven: lower and moderate income households drop out of ownership as premiums climb, while households earning well above the median are largely unaffected.

Premium is not a footnote to the mortgage anymore, and treating it as one is how a budget breaks. If you are shopping, quote the exact address before you make an offer. Two houses on the same street can sit thousands apart on roof age, wind mitigation features, distance to the coast, and hail exposure, and none of that shows up in the listing price. If you already own in Texas, your levers are the ones carriers actually price: roof condition, an impact-resistant roof where hail is the driver, deductible structure, and whether your windstorm coverage still comes from TWIA when a private carrier would write it cheaper.

An independent agent can quote a home before you buy it, or re-shop your current policy across carriers to see whether the premium still reflects the house you own.