Why Texas Home and Auto Insurance Rates Are Starting to Fall

Insurance News · Texas

On October 8, 2026, the Texas Department of Insurance announced that many of the homeowners and auto insurance rate filings it has received recently are trending downward. That announcement does not mean every Texan’s insurance bill will drop overnight. It does, however, represent a real change in direction after several years of steadily rising premiums, and it is worth understanding what it means for you before your next policy renewal arrives.

What the Texas Department of Insurance announced on October 8, 2026

The Texas Department of Insurance published an update written for everyday consumers under the title “Home and auto insurance rates trending down for many Texans.” The main points of that announcement were straightforward, and each one is explained below:

• Most homeowners insurers asked to lower rates. Of the homeowners insurance companies that filed rate changes with the Texas Department of Insurance since July 1, 2026, most proposed decreases rather than increases.
• The average homeowners decrease was about 4.3%. Taken together, those homeowners filings averaged a 4.3% decrease over the past 90 days, and they affected about 700,000 Texas policyholders.
• Auto decreases reached millions of drivers. For auto insurance, companies filed decreases that affect about 4.4 million policyholders since July 1, 2026.
• Shopping around is encouraged. The Texas Department of Insurance reminded Texans that nearly 160 companies sell home and auto coverage in the state, and that comparing prices among them is one of the best ways to find a better deal.

Governor Greg Abbott and Insurance Commissioner Amanda Crawford both described these filings as early relief after high insurance costs hit Texas families hard. Commissioner Crawford specifically encouraged consumers to take advantage of the competitive Texas insurance market and to make sure they are getting good value for the coverage they actually need, rather than paying for protection that does not fit their situation.

You can read the original announcement on the Texas Department of Insurance news page. The Texas Department of Insurance also points out that insurance companies must file their home and auto rates with the state before they begin using them, and that consumers can look up those rate filings online using the department’s own search tools.

Examples the Texas Department of Insurance highlighted (this is not a ranking)

To make the trend feel concrete, the Texas Department of Insurance named a few examples from companies that insure a large number of Texans. These are filings the department chose to illustrate which way the market is moving. They are not an endorsement of any company, and they are not a promise that every customer of these companies will see the same percentage change on their own bill.

Keep in mind that your own premium is still calculated from many personal factors. Those include the details of your home or vehicle, your claims history, your credit-based insurance score where Texas law allows it to be used, the deductibles and coverage limits you choose, the discounts you qualify for, and how interested a particular company is in insuring homes or drivers in your county. A statewide average from rate filings is a signal about where the market is heading. It is not the same thing as your personal quote.

What “rates trending down” does and does not mean

It does mean filings are leveling off for many groups of policies

A rate filing is the formal way an insurance company tells the state that it wants to change what it charges for a particular group of customers or risks. When many filings start leaning downward after a long stretch of increases, it usually means one of a few things. The companies may believe that their recent claim costs, or the cost of the backup insurance they buy for themselves (called reinsurance), now justify charging less than they previously asked for. Or competition from other companies may be pushing them to lower prices so they do not lose customers.

It does not mean every renewal will drop by 4.3%

Many Texans will still see premiums that stay the same or even go up, for reasons such as these:

• Their insurance company did not file a decrease at all, or filed a smaller decrease than the statewide average.
• Something about their individual risk changed, such as a new claim, an older roof, a change in driving record, or a change in who lives in or uses the home.
• Their coverage was updated, for example a higher dwelling limit after the cost to rebuild the home was recalculated, newly added endorsements (optional coverage add-ons), or a lower deductible.
• They live in a postal code area that has had more storms, hail, or theft than the statewide average.

Why this news matters after years of rising costs

Texas homeowners and drivers have lived through a long period of higher premiums. Those increases were driven by severe weather, rising repair costs, lawsuits and larger claim payouts, and stricter rules from insurance companies about whom they would insure. Our older explainers still provide useful background on how we got here. See factors that increase home insurance costs in Texas and our earlier look at rising costs. The October 8 announcement from the Texas Department of Insurance is different, though: it is specifically about recent filings moving in the other direction for large groups of policies.

The timing of this announcement also lines up with other Texas consumer protection rules that took effect or were clarified during 2025 and 2026. Those include clearer notices when an insurance company declines, cancels, or chooses not to renew coverage; limits on companies forcing customers to buy home and auto insurance together; and ongoing work on roof strengthening and on how claims are handled. The direction of rates and your rights as a consumer are connected: when you understand why a company changed your price, or why a competing company gives you a different quote, you can make a clearer and better-informed decision.

How to use this moment before your next renewal

If your policy renews within the next 30 to 60 days, or if you have not compared quotes from other companies in more than a year, now is a sensible time to take action. Here are the steps we recommend, in order:

1. Read your renewal packet carefully. Confirm your dwelling limit (the amount available to rebuild your home), your deductibles (including any separate deductible for wind and hail damage), your liability limits, and any newly listed endorsements or exclusions. Our Texas home insurance renewal checklist walks you through what to look at first.
2. Ask whether your current company filed a decrease that applies to you. The company’s customer service team or your insurance agent can often tell you whether a recent rate filing is already built into your renewal price or is still waiting to take effect.
3. Get quotes that compare the same coverage. Make sure every quote uses the same liability limits, the same deductibles, and the same assumptions about what it would cost to rebuild your home. A cheaper quote that quietly removes coverage is not actually a better deal.
4. Review discounts you may no longer need, or that you never claimed. Alarm systems, newer roofs, bundling several policies with one company, paperless billing, and completing a defensive driving course (for auto insurance) can all still lower your price. For ideas on storm-proofing upgrades that Texas has been encouraging, see Texas discounts for storm-hardened homes.
5. Decide on bundling on purpose. Buying home and auto insurance from the same company can still save money, but Texas law now limits companies from requiring you to buy both together. Compare prices both bundled and separate using our guide to home and auto insurance bundles in Texas.

Your home coverage still needs a solid foundation

Even when rates are easing, your policy still has to fit your house. Confirm what your policy form covers for fire, wind, hail, theft, liability (your responsibility if someone is hurt or their property is damaged), and additional living expenses (the cost of living elsewhere while your home is repaired). Also know which kinds of damage fall outside a standard homeowners policy, the most important being flood. Start with what Texas homeowners insurance covers and our main Texas homeowners insurance overview if you want to see all of the options in one place.

The age and condition of your roof remain major topics when Texas insurance companies decide whether to insure a home. The Texas Department of Insurance recently clarified that a roof’s age alone is not a lawful sole reason for a company to decline or refuse to renew a policy. That clarification is separate from pricing, however: companies can still charge more based on a roof’s condition. If this issue affects you, read what the Texas Department of Insurance roof age clarification means for Texas homeowners.

Auto coverage: more policyholders affected by decrease filings

The Texas Department of Insurance’s auto figure, with filings affecting about 4.4 million policyholders, reaches a very large share of Texas drivers. Even so, your auto premium still depends on your own vehicles, the postal code where they are parked overnight, how many miles you drive each year, the drivers listed on the policy, and any claims or traffic tickets. If you are comparing companies, keep the same liability limits on every quote, and make a deliberate decision about comprehensive coverage (theft, hail, and other non-collision damage), collision coverage, rental car reimbursement, and roadside assistance.

For a statewide overview of shopping for personal auto insurance in Texas, see our Texas car insurance guide. Drivers who also insure a home often benefit from reviewing both types of coverage together through our home and auto insurance options, rather than looking at each quote on its own.

Ways to lower a premium without giving up important protection

Rate filings set the overall price level, but your own choices still make a big difference. Common ways to lower your premium without gambling on bare-minimum coverage include:

• Raising a deductible to an amount you could truly afford to pay out of pocket after a storm or accident.
• Updating the estimate of what it would cost to rebuild your home, so that you are not underinsured, and not paying to over-insure based on outdated figures.
• Removing vehicles you no longer use, or drivers who no longer live with you, from your auto policy.
• Asking about credits for a newer roof, impact-resistant shingles, or a home built or upgraded to fortified storm-resistant standards, where those credits are available.
• Reviewing your need for an umbrella policy (extra liability coverage on top of your home and auto policies) separately, so that you do not cut your main liability limits too low just to get a cheaper premium.

For a longer list of ways to save on home insurance, read ways to lower your Texas home insurance premium. Pair those ideas with a real conversation about quotes, so the numbers reflect your county and what each company is willing to insure.

How Freedom Insurance Group helps Texans make the most of this moment

Freedom Insurance Group works with Texas families and businesses every day on home, auto, and package coverage. When markets move—up or down—we compare options across many insurance companies, explain what changed in a renewal, and make sure your coverage still matches your property and the drivers on your policy.

If you want to check whether today’s market offers a better fit than last year’s policy, start a conversation through our quote page or visit one of our office locations. Bring your current declarations page (the summary page of your policy that lists your coverages, limits, and deductibles). That single document makes the comparison faster and more accurate.

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