Mortgage broker highly recommended a specific person for lowest homeowner insurance. Why?
I don’t know if my mortgage broker gets anything out of recommending this particular insurance agent. I know that I trust my broker and believe he’s being honest in his recommendation. What I don’t get mostly is why this specific woman can give me the best rate. She is part of the State Farm Insurance agency, so would anyone from that agency give me the same price? I dunno, what do you think of the whole thing? Thanks.
There are probably two different things happening. Either the broker is getting a kickback (finders fee) for the policy being placed, or the woman is a personal friend of hers, or a relative, and she’s trying to steer business her way.
Yes, any State Farm agent will give you the same price for the same coverage. Rates are filed with the state insurance department – agents can’t add to them, or subtract from them.
There are probably two different things happening. Either the broker is getting a kickback (finders fee) for the policy being placed, or the woman is a personal friend of hers, or a relative, and she’s trying to steer business her way.
Yes, any State Farm agent will give you the same price for the same coverage. Rates are filed with the state insurance department – agents can’t add to them, or subtract from them.
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There is likely to be some type of relationship between your mortgage broker and the agent – official or unofficial. A broker could be finding you something good, or something to help himself or someone else out. State Farm is a well known insurer, but is not necessarily the best for your needs. It would be good to go to an independent agency and get quotes from them. They might be able to come up with a policy that fits your needs and budget better. An independent agency has contracts with more than one insurance company and can look at what each company it writes for and see what they can offer you. Bureaus that are overseen by the states set up ranges of rates for the lowest and highest amounts an insurance company can set its prices each year. Each insurance company figures out how much it will charge based on those rates. An insurer that charges the lowest rates is not necessarily the best one for you. Each insurer tries to make their policy stand out in some way so that you will want to purchase it. One may stand out by being the cheapest, but another may stand out because it has a little something extra included in the policy that you might have to pay extra for in another policy. An independent agent has access to more than one company’s plans and can help find what is best for you.
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