Happy Wednesday! In this week's Big I Buzz: is your homeowners insurance enough to rebuild your house? Plus, Helene is now ranked among the costliest U.S. hurricanes.

You Have Homeowners Insurance. Is It Enough to Rebuild Your House?

The devastating property damage from Hurricane Helene is casting a spotlight on the question of whether one’s homeowners insurance policy would provide sufficient funds to rebuild after a fire or hurricane. A 2022 survey conducted by the American Property Casualty Insurance Association found that a majority of insured homeowners had not taken steps to ensure their coverage was keeping pace with inflation and increased building costs. According to the survey, only 30% of insured homeowners had increased their coverage to compensate for rising building costs, and less than half updated their insurance after completing renovations or a remodel. Considering that the costs of construction materials and labor increased by 40% and 16%, respectively, between 2019 and 2023, a lot of homeowners are currently underinsured. Read more here.

Helene Now Among Costliest U.S. Hurricanes

Helene is now among the 10 most expensive U.S. hurricanes in history, ahead of Ike and Andrew and behind Katrina, Harvey, Ian, Maria, Ida, Sandy and Irma. Formed on Sept. 24, 2024, the storm inflicted damage across the Southern U.S. and parts of Mexico and Caribbean before dissipating five days later. Hard-hit areas continue to struggle to restore normalcy, and power has not yet been restored to millions of people in North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia. The damage estimate is now between $30.5 billion and $47.5 billion, representing losses from wind and flood damage related to the storm,  with between $10.5 billion and $17.5 billion being insured losses. Read more here.

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