In 2019, Louisiana apartment properties financed in commercial mortgage-backed securities or Freddie K-Series deals spent about $4.77 on insurance for every $100 of revenue they collected. In 2025, that figure is $9.42, and that’s after premiums dropped last year.
For example, Louisiana emphasizes the form of apartment insurance stories. After five years of continuous increases, the cost of insurance in apartment properties will decrease by 2.2 percent in 2025, according to the same-store analysis of CRED iQ on property operating statements. That follows a 28.5 percent jump in 2023. But the relief comes off a higher base: Apartment insurance costs are still more than double 2019 levels.
The pressure has clearly eased. By 2023, 46 percent of apartment properties will see premiums increase by more than 20 percent. In 2025, 24 percent saw a 20 percent increase, and 36 percent paid less than the previous year.
The Sun Belt turned on first
The fastest growing markets are now getting relief. Florida apartment premiums increased 2.5 times between 2019 and 2024, including a 46 percent jump in 2023 alone. In 2025 they will decrease by 9.8 percent.
Texas apartment insurance rates fell 8.4 percent, and Louisiana apartments saw a 10.5 percent decline last year. Nearly two-thirds of Florida apartment owners paid less than a year ago, as did 57 percent in Texas and 58 percent in Louisiana.
The decline continues through 2026. In the first half of the year, 59 percent of apartment properties paid less for insurance than in the first half of 2025, up from 38 percent the year before. In the Sun Belt, 72 percent paid less, and the typical premium dropped 11 percent.
Owners of coastal apartments have not shown such relief. Premiums on apartments in major coastal metros will increase 4.8 percent in 2025, and premiums for California apartments will increase 6.3 percent. California has now passed Florida in cumulative growth since 2019, with an index of 251 against Florida’s 230, and overall coastal apartments (226) have passed the Sun Belt (221).
The lease never continued
A bigger problem for owners is that revenue is not constant. In the same property, apartment income per unit increased by 27 percent from 2019 to 2025, from $14,210 to $19,292 a year. Insurance per unit increased 115 percent, from $339 to $778 a year. Nationally, insurance now takes $4.02 from every $100 of apartment revenue, up from $2.39 in 2019. Insurance exceeds rent in every 30 states measured, led by Louisiana, California, Oregon, Washington and Texas.
2025 is the turning point
Last year was the first since 2019 where apartment income grew faster than insurance: Income rose 1.4 percent while insurance costs fell about 2 percent. In the Sun Belt, apartment revenue was flat, but insurance fell 7.2 percent, or $65 million overall. As a result, net operating income decreased by 1.4 percent instead of 2.1 percent.
For lenders, the Sun Belt relief is real and comes as a loan to 2027 and 2028 refinancings. But insurance costs for Sun Belt apartments are still more than double 2019 levels, and on the coast they’re still rising. Spike is done. Higher costs remain.
Liam Mulcahy is senior product manager for CRE data and AI implementation at CRED iQ.