Dear Evergreen Community Association Members,
The Board is writing to inform you of significant developments regarding our Association insurance that will affect our budget and future assessments.
Like many communities across California, Evergreen is facing the impact of a statewide insurance crisis. Several major insurers have withdrawn or reduced their coverage. Major insurers such as State Farm, Farmers and Allstate have received rate hikes of 25% or more in just the last 13 months, while the California Department of Insurance approved Allstate’s request to increase its homeowner insurance premiums by over 30%.
Evergreen enjoyed years of modest increases, with premiums rising gradually from $28,800 in 2020 to $32,100 in 2023. However, after a member made an insurance claim in 2024, our premium jumped 26% to $40,500. Now we are budgeting another significant increase of nearly 50% to $60,400 for our fiscal year 2025-26 budget.
Currently, our CC&Rs (Article 12.1) require the Association to maintain fire and casualty insurance for loss or damage to residences, structural portions, and certain other “walls in” items. After more than 20 years, insurance has become extremely expensive and complicated due to owner improvements and difficulty determining what constitutes “original construction.”
The Board is working with our legal counsel and our insurance broker to review options for amending our CC&Rs to change the current “walls in” language to something called “walls out” or “bare walls” coverage. This coverage would limit the Association’s responsibility to the building structure itself—exterior walls, roof, and common areas. Each homeowner would become responsible for their interior contents, fixtures, and improvements through their own homeowner insurance policy. This change promises to significantly reduce our Association insurance costs in the coming years.
In future updates, we will provide more detailed information about our plans, including the timeline for proposed amendments and what this change would mean for homeowners. We appreciate your patience as we navigate these challenging market conditions and work to find the most cost-effective solution for our community.
Evergreen Board of Directors