How to Cut Your Homeowner’s Insurance in Half
That lousy credit score is costing you more than a good rate on a loan.
Insurance premiums for homeowners with excellent credit are half the price of premiums for homeowners with poor credit, according to a new report by insuranceQuotes.com. Homeowners with median credit pay about a third more than those with excellent credit.
The difference in premiums varies by state, with homeowners with poor credit in 38 states paying at least twice as much those with excellent credit. Homeowners in West Virginia have the biggest premium gap, with those with poor credit paying more than three times what homeowners with excellent credit pay.
Homeowners in Washington, D.C., and Ohio had the next highest gap in premiums (185 percent), followed by Montana (179 percent).
Related; The Easiest Way to Cut Your Home Insurance Premiums
In general, insurers are putting a higher emphasis on credit scores than they did last year, with scores having a bigger impact this year than last in 29 states. “It’s more important than ever to maintain a solid credit rating by paying their bills on time, keeping their balances low, and correcting errors on their credit reports,” Laura Adams, insurangeQuotes.com senior analyst said in a statement.
California, Massachusetts and Maryland do not allow insurers to consider credit in setting prices, and insurers in Florida don’t use it.
The average U.S. homeowner’s insurance premium is around $950. In addition to making an effort to boost their credit, homeowners should shop around every few years to see if they can find a better rate.
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The Taxpayer Advocate Service – an independent organization within the IRS whose roughly 1,800 employees both assist taxpayers in resolving problems with the tax collection agency and recommend changes aimed at improving the system – released a “subway map” that shows the “the stages of a taxpayer’s journey.” The colorful diagram includes the steps a typical taxpayer takes to prepare and file their tax forms, as well as the many “stations” a tax return can pass through, including processing, audits, appeals and litigation. Not surprisingly, the map is quite complicated. Click here to review a larger version on the taxpayer advocate’s site.
A Surprise Government Spending Slowdown
Economists expected federal spending to boost growth in 2019, but some of the fiscal stimulus provided by the 2018 budget deal has failed to show up this year, according to Kate Davidson of The Wall Street Journal.
Defense spending has come in as expected, but nondefense spending has lagged, and it’s unlikely to catch up to projections even if it accelerates in the coming months. Lower spending on disaster relief, the government shutdown earlier this year, and federal agencies spending less than they have been given by Congress all appear to be playing a role in the spending slowdown, Davidson said.
Number of the Day: $203,500
The Wall Street Journal’s Catherine Lucey reports that acting White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney is making a bit more than his predecessors: “The latest annual report to Congress on White House personnel shows that President Trump’s third chief of staff is getting an annual salary of $203,500, compared with Reince Priebus and John Kelly, each of whom earned $179,700.” The difference is the result of Mulvaney still technically occupying the role of director of the White House Office of Management and Budget, where his salary level is set by law.
The White House told the Journal that if Mulvaney is made permanent chief of staff his salary would be adjusted to the current salary for an assistant to the president, $183,000.
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Chart of the Day: Offshore Profits Continue to Rise
Brad Setser, a former U.S. Treasury economist now with the Council on Foreign Relations, added another detail to his assessment of the foreign provisions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act: “A bit more evidence that Trump's tax reform didn't change incentives to offshore profits: the enormous profits that U.S. firms report in low tax jurisdictions continues to rise,” Setser wrote. “In fact, there was a bit of a jump up over the course of 2018.”
