Christopher MimsSep 4, 2023

Evidence of America’s — and the world’s — climate migrations are mounting.

In this thread, I’ll collect all the papers, news items and anecdotes I find on the subject. Feel free to contribute by using this tag:

#climatemigration

It’s starting with insurers. When homes are destroyed and homeowners lose everything, with no recourse, market forces herd people away from the zones of greatest vulnerability:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2023/09/03/natural-disaster-climate-insurance/

#climate #climatechange #adaptation #climateimpacts

🧵

Home insurers cut natural disasters from policies as climate risks grow

Major insurers say they will cut out damage caused by hurricanes, wind and hail from policies underwriting property along coastlines and in wildfire country.

The Washington Post
Show threadChristopher MimsSep 4, 2023

Tech workers who fled to Austin during the pandemic are being repelled — Austin is #3 in the country for outmigration now — by a summer that has smashed all records for heat, with well over a month of days above 100 degrees.

This is a profoundly different weather than Austin had 20 or 30 years ago.

🧵 #climatemigration #climatechange

https://www.businessinsider.com/tech-workers-moved-to-austin-regrets-2023-8

Some tech workers who moved to Austin are having regrets

Drawn by the promise of an emerging tech hub, some tech workers who flocked to Austin found a middling tech scene, subpar culture, and scorching heat.

Insider
Show threadChristopher MimsSep 4, 2023

In areas most vulnerable to climate change-enhanced disasters, like Florida, the cost of home insurance has gone up so much that it’s now affecting how much lenders will give — potentially pushing many out of the home ownership market altogether.

Others are risking having no insurance at all, gambling on complete financial ruin should their home be damaged or destroyed.

🧵 #climatemigration #climateimpacts #climatechange

https://www.wsj.com/personal-finance/americans-are-bailing-on-their-home-insurance-e3395515

Americans Are Bailing on Their Home Insurance 

Some homeowners who are skipping coverage say they can no longer afford rising premiums

WSJ
Show threadAllan ChowSep 4, 2023
@mimsical companies like kin insurance specialize in going into insurance markets others won't. Their claim is that their automated data pipelines and lack of brick and mortar agent costs (alongside charging the appropriate premium) allows them to take on these risks. Time will tell if that will be the case.
Show threadNicole Parsons

@grumpasaurus @mimsical

More likely it's a marketing scam being ignored by Republican regulators and GOP oversight boards.

They will accept high price premiums from home owners who are grateful to get any insurance at all. Home owners get desperate because many mortgage lenders will close loans when there's no property insurance.

Then the insurer will declare bankruptcy just like insurers did after Katrina.

There's been huge consolidation of insurance into the hands of #KochNetwork donors.

Sep 4, 2023 at 3:24pmWeb
Show threadAllan ChowSep 4, 2023
@Npars01 @mimsical it's always interesting when such high unit economics still pursues such a big funding round
https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230322005218/en/Kin-upsizes-its-Series-D-round-to-109M
Kin upsizes its Series D round to $109M

Kin, the direct-to-consumer home insurance company built for every new normal®, today announced that it conducted a third close, an incremental $15 mi

Show threadNicole ParsonsSep 4, 2023

@grumpasaurus @mimsical

Markets should heed Dan Arielly's books, especially "Predictably Irrational"

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dan_Ariely

Dan Ariely - Wikipedia