When you begin the process of shopping for a new home, it's exciting to visit different properties and evaluate how each house might suit your family's needs. While your home insurance rate, from an insurance company like Norman Heil Insurance, might be a distant thought during this time, it's nonetheless important to keep in mind. A variety of different factors related to your prospective new home can influence whether you'll pay more or pay less for your home insurance. These factors shouldn't exclusively influence whether you decide to buy the home or not, but knowing them will help you to make an informed decision. Here are three areas to keep in mind.

Proximity To Fire Station

You shouldn't necessarily shy away from a home that's near a fire station because you're concerned that the noise of passing trucks will be disruptive. In reality, living near a fire station can actually decrease your home insurance premium. The risk of a house fire is something that concerns your insurance provider, but it knows that if you're close to a fire station, there's a better chance that a fire could be contained before it destroys your entire home. If you aren't looking in an area where there's a fire station, keep your eyes open for fire hydrants; leaving near one can also reduce your rate.

Swimming Pool In Yard

When you're house shopping, it's easy to get excited when you see that one of the homes you're considering has a backyard swimming pool. Despite its penchant for providing countless summer memories, a swimming pool can have a negative effect on your home insurance. Your insurance provider knows that there's a risk of injury or drowning when people play in and around the pool – and the company is concerned of the chance of a visitor to your property drowning and his or her family filing a negligence suit against you. To mitigate this risk, you'll be looking at a higher insurance rate if the home you buy has a swimming pool.

Neighborhood Crime Rate

If you're thinking about buying a home in a neighborhood with a high crime rate, you can expect to pay more for your insurance. Your provider will be concerned with the chance of you having to enter an insurance claim after vandalism or a burglary. Given that it can be difficult to assess an area's crime rate simply by visiting it, you can get authoritative data about each area you're considering by checking the crime map feature on your local police department's website.