Condominiums facing larger rate increases.

Publication: The Miami Herald (Miami, Florida) (via Knight-Ridder/Tribune Business News)

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COPYRIGHT 2005 The Miami Herald

Byline: Beatrice E. Garcia

Oct. 30--Eight hurricanes hitting Florida in 14 months. Only a handful of insurers are writing policies. And dozens of high-rise condo towers coming out of the ground -- many at the water's edge.

These are the ingredients for a condo insurance market where coverage is increasingly harder to find and more expensive. In some cases, condo owners and condominium associations are facing higher rate increases than single-family homeowners.

After double-digit rate increases in recent years, "it's only going to get worse" now after Wilma, says Alex Soto, president of InSource, a Dadeland insurance agency that works with several condominium associations.

And when catastrophe strikes, condo owners must cover hefty deductibles before their insurance kicks in.

The 532-unit Grand View Palace in North Bay Village had walls, appliances and furniture in units on the southeast side of...

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