Insurance provider Kin starts Florida mortgage business

Kin, a direct-to-consumer home insurance provider, has entered the mortgage broker business, starting in Florida, and offering a full array of mortgage and home equity products.

The mortgage broker business is also direct-to-consumer and plans are to eventually expand to other states where Kin has a presence, said company founder and CEO Sean Harper. He noted that Florida was the first state Kin set up its insurance operations in as well.

“It’s one of our aspirations to provide multiple products to our customers,” Harper said. It will be able to offer them mortgages at lower pricing because “we already have them,” referring to the fact that customer acquisition costs are one of the major expense centers in mortgage. Its mortgage customers will be crossing over from the insurance side.

It is the company’s initial entry into the home finance business.

When it comes to offering insurance, Kin gives clients credit if they have made their homes more resilient to stand up to the increased threat from natural disasters.

Kin’s footprint is in Florida and other states such as California, Texas and South Carolina, which are areas with higher catastrophe risk. The cost of insurance does enter the minds of home purchasers and Kin looks at detailed information about construction that other insurers might not.

“We think the two things play really well together,” Harper said. “Because if you can get insurance, it’s reliable, it’s affordable, it’s good, then that actually helps you get the mortgage; we can help you get the mortgage too.”

In particular, Florida has been a state where obtaining property insurance has been particularly difficult because of natural disasters.

In Miami, 13.1% of monthly homeownership costs go towards property insurance, while in Tampa, it is 11.6%, a Valuepenguin survey found. The high price has left 20% of Miami homeowners deciding to go without coverage.

But the secondary market requires property insurance on the mortgages it purchases.

While the difficulties, not just in cost but obtaining an insurance policy, were not a direct reason for Kin to start its mortgage business in Florida, the company’s ability to offer lower rates because of the access to the customer is a benefit and shows how the two products work well together, Harper reiterated.

Those looking for a mortgage can apply online, but also they are able to reach out to Kin’s call center if they need assistance.

The company is already taking applications, Harper noted.