Over the course of 2025, the Mountain West News Bureau did a deep dive on the serious and growing homeowners insurance crisis impacting communities across the region. Premiums are soaring, policyholders are losing coverage with little explanation and real estate markets are being threatened. Reporters Murphy Woodhouse and Rachel Cohen spoke with numerous experts, policymakers, advocates and regular people across the West worried about what this all means for the roofs over their heads.
The reporting was based in part on publicly available federal data and state data obtained through records requests. The MWNB produced multiple interactive maps, including the only one based on recent Idaho numbers detailing policy premiums and non-renewals.
Beyond providing a detailed account of a major regional challenge, the reporting identified underappreciated factors at play - like hail and fast-moving grassfires. It has also been credited by state lawmakers for raising the profile of the issue and adding momentum to reform efforts.
FOR JUDGES: The playable audio above includes the radio versions of three features, along with a debrief. Below you will find links to the three features, as well as to a dedicated insurance reporting page with interactive maps and other resources for impacted listeners across the West.
ENTRY ELEMENTS
- A home insurance crisis is building in the Mountain West. State leaders are struggling to respond, 5/20/25
- Scientists chase storms through the Mountain West to study hail’s growing toll, 8/4/25
- As evidence of Idaho homeowners insurance crisis mounts, so does bipartisan concern, 12/29/25
- Mountain West News Bureau Homeowners Insurance Resources