Buying a Home in Florida: An Insurance Checklist

Start the insurance work while you are still inside the inspection period of the contract, not the week of closing. Lenders typically require homeowner's insurance as a condition of the loan, and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau tells buyers to "show your loan officer one or more quotes you are considering" and ask whether they meet the lender's requirements. A policy can start with a binder, which Florida law lets be made "orally or in writing" and which includes the usual terms of the policy, but no statute or state page we found sets a number of days before closing: the lender sets the deadline. The checklist below covers the binder, the 4-point and wind mitigation reports, the flood zone lookup, Citizens eligibility and the age of the roof (CFPB; s. 627.420, Fla. Stat.).

Last updated November 3, 2026. Facts checked November 3, 2026 against the sources at the end of this page.

At a glance

The checklist, in a sensible order

This is a working order, not a legal requirement. Your contract dates, lender and home decide what fits you.

1. Before you make an offer: ask what an insurer will ask. The roof year, the build year and any reports the seller already holds.
2. At contract: tell your agent the closing date. The lender sets when it needs proof of insurance, and the CFPB's list of steps is to get quotes, share them with the loan officer, choose a policy, decide on flood insurance, and then send the final information to the loan officer (CFPB).
3. Reports. Order the 4-point and wind mitigation inspections early in the inspection period (sections 2 and 3 below).
4. Flood zone. Look up the address before you finish due diligence, then ask about flood insurance (sections 4 and 5).
5. Citizens and roof age. Ask whether the home could be eligible for Citizens if private offers are hard to find, and how the roof's age will be counted (sections 6 and 7).
6. Binder and payment. Confirm what the lender needs and when.
7. At closing. The policy documents are in place and the lender has what it asked for.

1. The binder and closing

A binder is a temporary contract of insurance. Section 627.420 says binders "may be made orally or in writing, and shall be deemed to include all the usual terms of the policy as to which the binder was given together with such applicable endorsements as are designated in the binder." It also says no notice of cancellation or nonrenewal otherwise required by chapter 627 "shall be required unless the duration of the binder exceeds 60 days" (s. 627.420, Fla. Stat.).

What we could not find on an official page is a rule for how many days before closing the binder must exist. The CFPB says lenders typically require homeowner's insurance and that the buyer should share quotes with the loan officer; the lender's closing instructions control. Your agent can ask the lender for the exact date and the wording it wants on the proof of insurance.

Worked example: a made-up closing timeline

Made-up dates, for a closing 30 days after the contract is signed:

If a report is late or an insurer asks for a repair, the schedule moves, which is why starting in week one matters.

2. 4-point inspection

A 4-point inspection is a limited report on the roof, the electrical system, the plumbing system and the HVAC system. The Florida CFO's guide says it is "commonly required by homeowners insurance companies in Florida when issuing or renewing a policy" and that, generally, the report must be dated within the 30 days prior to the insurance application submission date, "however, each insurance company determines the acceptable timeframe" (Florida CFO guide). Because the report has to be recent when the application is made for the new policy, an older report from the seller may be out of date. See our 4-point inspection guide for who can perform it and what the state says it may cost.

3. Wind mitigation inspection

The wind mitigation inspection records on form OIR-B1-1802 how the home resists wind: roof covering, roof deck, roof-to-wall connections, roof shape and opening protection. The state says a completed form is valid "up to five (5) years" as long as no material changes are made to the structure (Florida OIR). A seller may already have one; ask for it and check the date and that nothing material has changed. Our wind mitigation guide explains the form and who can sign it.

4. Flood zone lookup

Look up the property address on the FEMA Flood Map Service Center using Address Search, and open the flood map for the area (FEMA Map Service Center). Our guide to flood insurance outside a high-risk flood zone walks through the steps and what the zone labels mean. FEMA says federally regulated or insured lenders must require flood insurance on a building in a Special Flood Hazard Area that secures a federally backed loan (FEMA). The CFPB reminds buyers that homeowner's insurance "typically does not cover damage from floods" (CFPB).

On timing, FloodSmart says flood coverage generally goes into effect 30 days after purchase, with no wait if the flood insurance is bought while making, increasing, extending or renewing a mortgage (FloodSmart). A purchase with a new mortgage is the situation that exception describes. That exception is about buying while making a mortgage, so a purchase without a mortgage would generally face the 30-day wait, which is a reason to decide on flood before closing. See the flood insurance guide for NFIP and private flood.

5. Elevation certificate

An elevation certificate is an NFIP form completed from a survey. FEMA says it "can be used to provide elevation information necessary to ensure compliance with community floodplain management ordinances, to inform the proper insurance premium, and to support a request for a LOMA, CLOMA, LOMR-F, or CLOMR-F," and it may be used for a building in any flood zone (FEMA, NFIP Elevation Certificate and Instructions). Ask the seller whether a current one exists. Whether a certificate would help a particular home is a question for an agent or surveyor.

6. Citizens eligibility

Citizens Property Insurance is the state-created insurer of last resort. Its FAQ says you may be eligible if no comparable private-market offer is received, or if comparable offers are received but "the premiums are more than 20 percent higher than a comparable Citizens policy," and may be ineligible if a private insurer offers comparable coverage "within 20 percent of a comparable Citizens policy"; all applications are subject to Citizens' underwriting guidelines (Citizens FAQ). State law also makes a structure with a dwelling replacement cost of $700,000 or more ineligible, with a different limit in counties where the Office of Insurance Regulation finds there is not a reasonable degree of competition (s. 627.351(6)(a)3., Fla. Stat.). Citizens requires flood coverage on most of its policies on a schedule that ends January 1, 2027 (s. 627.351(6)(aa)). Details are in our Citizens guide.

7. Roof age

Florida law says an insurer may not refuse to issue or renew a homeowner's policy "solely because of the age of the roof" if the roof is less than 15 years old. For a roof at least 15 years old, the insurer "must allow a homeowner to have a roof inspection performed by an authorized inspector at the homeowner's expense before requiring the replacement of the roof," and it may not refuse solely because of roof age if the inspection indicates 5 years or more of useful life. The rule covers policies issued or renewed on or after July 1, 2022, and insurers can still decline a home on other lawful grounds (s. 627.7011(5)-(6), Fla. Stat.). Roof age is counted from the last date on which 100 percent of the roof's surface was built or replaced, so ask the seller for the permit and date. Our roof age guide has worked examples.

Documents to ask the seller for

• The roof permit and the date of the last roof replacement.
• Any 4-point inspection, wind mitigation report and elevation certificate, with their dates.
• The year the electrical, plumbing and HVAC systems were updated, if known.
• A flood history of the property, if the seller will share one.
• The seller's claims history on the home, if the seller will share it.

Buying a home questions

Talk to an agent

Your agent can check the home against what insurance companies ask, request quotes in parallel and tell you what the lender needs. Our homeowners insurance page explains what we place, and our flood insurance page covers flood. A quote from us is free.

More Florida homeowner guides

• All Florida insurance guides
• 4-point inspection
• Wind mitigation inspection
• Roof age and home insurance
• Flood insurance outside a high-risk zone
• Citizens Property Insurance
• Homeowners insurance in Florida

Local pages for buyers: Pembroke Pines, Miramar, Weston, Hollywood, Fort Lauderdale, Kendall, Doral, Hialeah, Homestead, Cape Coral and all areas we serve.

Sources