Residents in Ontario’s suburban areas are paying more than twice as much for home insurance as their counterparts in affluent neighbourhoods in the Greater Toronto Area, a new report by RATESDOTCA has revealed.
The insurance comparison website analyzed July data gathered using its interactive online Home Insuramap tool and found an approximately $1,145 difference between the premiums paid by residents in Lasalle – the suburb with the highest home insurance – at $2,098 and those living in Woodbridge – the city with the lowest premiums – at $953. The figure represents a 120% difference.
“Many different factors influence the cost of insurance premiums,” said John Shmuel, managing editor at RATESDOTCA. “Things like credit scores and unemployment rates could be used to determine the cost of insuring a homeowner, which impacts rates. Other factors include crime rates and the number of claims in a particular area.”
Shmuel added that, unlike auto insurance, the home insurance market is unregulated.
The average cost for home insurance premiums in Ontario is $1,342 annually, according to RATESDOTCA’s data. The study only included cities with a population of at least 10,000.
Apart from Lasalle, Windsor, Kingsville, Amherstburg, and Thunder Bay registered the most expensive home insurance. On the other end of the spectrum, Aurora, Oakville, Richmond Hill, and Stratford joined Woodridge as the Ontario cities with the lowest premiums.
The tables below reveal the top 10 most and least expensive neighbourhoods in Ontario for home insurance based on data gathered by RATESDOTCA.
|
City |
Closest urban area |
Estimated annual |
1 |
Lasalle |
Windsor (Essex) |
$2,098 |
2 |
Windsor |
Windsor |
$2,072 |
3 |
Kingsville |
Windsor (Essex) |
$1,889 |
4 |
Amherstburg |
Windsor (Essex) |
$1,864 |
5 |
Thunder Bay |
Thunder Bay |
$1,857 |
6 |
Timmins |
Timmins |
$1,821 |
7 |
Lively (Walden) |
Sudbury |
$1,761 |
8 |
Essex |
Windsor (Essex) |
$1,760 |
9 |
Garson |
Sudbury |
$1,747 |
10 |
Elliot Lake |
Sudbury |
$1,747 |
Source: RATESDOTCA
|
City |
Closest urban area |
Estimated annual |
1 |
Woodbridge |
GTA |
$953 |
2 |
Stratford |
Kitchener-Waterloo |
$979 |
3 |
Richmond Hill |
GTA |
$982 |
4 |
Oakville |
GTA |
$1,011 |
5 |
Aurora |
GTA |
$1,015 |
6 |
Holland Landing |
GTA (York) |
$1,020 |
7 |
Simcoe |
Kitchener-Waterloo |
$1,022 |
8 |
Milton |
GTA |
$1,024 |
9 |
Ajax |
GTA |
$1,027 |
10 |
Kleinburg |
GTA (Vaughan) |
$1,031 |
Source: RATESDOTCA
Shmuel also shared the following tips to help homeowners to lower their insurance costs: