USAA Home Insurance Review 2024

USAA offers excellent home insurance rates when compared to other top companies helping it to make the Forbes Advisor list of best home insurance for military and veterans.

You can join USAA only if you are a current military member or veteran, or the spouse of a military member. Children of military members are also eligible.

Started in 1922 by selling insurance policies to 25 Army officers, USAA has been serving military members and their families ever since. USAA is the third-largest home insurance company in the United States.

The homeowners insurance policies from USAA provide the standard types of coverage that you’d expect:

• Dwelling coverage pays for damage to your house and its attached structures, like a garage or deck.
• Other structures coverage pays for damage to detached structures on your property, like a shed or fence.
• Personal property coverage pays for theft or damage to your belongings such as furniture, electronics, clothes and valuables.
• Liability insurance covers accidental property damage and injuries to others, such as a guest who slips on your icy sidewalk. It also pays for your legal defense if you’re sued over an incident that’s covered by your home insurance policy.
• Additional living expenses covers extra costs such as restaurant meals, hotel bills and services (like pet boarding) if you cannot live in your home due to a problem covered by your policy (like a fire).
• Medical payments coverage pays the medical bills of people who blame you for accidental injuries, without regard to fault. Coverage is typically in small amounts, such as $1,000 to $5,000.

Home insurance policy add-ons are available from USAA, such as:

• Extended replacement cost, which provides additional coverage for your dwelling if repair costs exceed your stated dwelling coverage amount. This is especially good in times when there’s widespread damage (such as tornado damage) and construction costs spike. USAA offers extended replacement coverage of 25% or 50%.
• Home sharing coverage offers protection when you rent out your house or just a single room.
• Earthquake insurance pays for repairs to your home if it is damaged in an earthquake.
• Flood insurance covers flood damage to your house structure and/or belongings.
• Valuable personal property insurance pays the replacement cost of your valuables (as opposed to the depreciated value) and does not have a deductible.

In addition to homeowners insurance, USAA sells condo, renters and rental property insurance. USAA also sells umbrella insurance, which provides excess liability insurance.

USAA home insurance discounts can include:

• Bundle and save discount of as much as 10% on USAA home insurance when you have a USAA auto insurance policy.
• Claims-free discount of 15% if you go without a claim for five or more years.
• Protective device credit of 5% when you install an ADT home security system.
• Loyalty discount reduces your home insurance costs if you’ve been a long-time USAA customer.
• Roof age discount can reduce your home insurance premiums based on your roof’s age.
• Early quote discount provides a lower rate if you get quotes before your policy’s effective date.

USAA has a very low complaint level compared to the industry average. The most common reason for a complaint about USAA involves claim handling, including delays and unsatisfactory settlements/offers, according to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners.

To find the best home insurance we scored companies based on these factors:

• Home insurance rates (50% of score): Based on average rates for each insurance company for homes with dwelling coverage of $200,000, $350,000, $500,000 and $750,000.
• Complaints (20% weight): Based on complaints about home insurance that were upheld by state insurance departments. Source: National Association of Insurance Commissioners.
• Availability of extended and/or guaranteed replacement cost coverage (20% of score): Extra dwelling coverage is valuable in the event of large disasters, when construction materials and labor costs tend to spike. We gave points to companies that offer either extended or guaranteed replacement cost coverage. Source: Forbes Advisor research.
• Banned dog lists (10% of score): Banned dog breed lists can make homeowners ineligible for coverage. (A company’s banned dog list might not be applicable in all states.) While any homeowners insurance company could potentially ban any dog with a biting history, not all put a ban on specific breeds. Source: Forbes Advisor research.