Danvers, MA Home Insurance

By Jon Merwin, Founder and CEO

Home · Riverfront · Historic · Flood · Umbrella · Danvers, Massachusetts

Portsmouth Atlantic Insurance is an independent agency founded in 2005 and licensed in 10 states, including Massachusetts. We are New Hampshire’s highest-rated agency on Google, with 1,000+ Google reviews and over 2,000 testimonials across our two offices. If you are shopping for home insurance in Danvers, MA, we compare each house across 40+ carriers. Start with Massachusetts homeowners insurance, or read on.

Danvers at a glance

The town’s draft Hazard Mitigation Plan Update (May 2025) places Danvers in Essex County on the North Shore, with Topsfield to the north, Peabody and Salem to the south, Beverly and Wenham to the east, and Middleton to the west. The U.S. Census Bureau estimates 29,211 residents as of July 1, 2025.

The plan describes a dense town with only about 25% of its land still undeveloped. Most new housing is infill, concentrated downtown and around the Liberty Tree Mall, including the 145-unit Maple Square development. The town runs its own water and sewer systems, and electricity comes from the town-owned Danvers Electric.

For insurance, Danvers mixes riverfront homes, older houses near the town center, established neighborhoods, and newer condos and apartments. Each should be insured at today’s cost to rebuild, not market value.

Where you live in Danvers changes the policy

• Along the tidal rivers. The plan says the FEMA flood zones along the Porter, Crane, Waters and Danvers rivers mainly reflect coastal flood risk. In the March 2018 nor’easter, flooding entered buildings along Broad Street. Along the Crane River, the plan notes more demolition-rebuilds and large additions where bungalows once dominated.
• Tibbets Avenue and Frost Fish Brook. The plan describes Tibbets Avenue as a private road of about 20 homes surrounded by the Crane River estuary that has become more flood-prone when king tides and storms coincide. The 2019 plan says Frost Fish Brook floods during extreme high tides and storm surge, with culvert upgrades needed from Massachusetts Avenue to Wellesley Road.
• Neighborhoods that flood in heavy rain. The plan lists the Ash Street and Purchase Street culvert, Upper Massachusetts Avenue and Upper Valley Road, and undersized culverts in Woodvale (Coolidge, Dartmouth and Wenham) and on Adams Street. Poplar Street, the Locust Street area and Valley Road also flood.
• Below the dams. The four Putnamville Reservoir dams and dikes are rated high hazard, and the town’s Meadow Dam and Mill Pond Dam significant hazard. That rating describes what lies downstream, not the dam’s condition. Flooding from a dam is a flood-policy question.
• Historic homes. The plan notes that the Danvers Historic District Commission oversees alterations in the Old Salem Village Historic District. Historic-district rules and older construction can raise the cost of a rebuild, so tell us if your home is in one.

Flood coverage in Danvers

The draft plan says the current 100-year floodplain covers about 1,246 acres, or 13.8% of Danvers, and counts 304 buildings in it, including 200 single-family homes and 51 multi-family buildings. On the newer maps it analyzed, the floodplain grows to about 2,124 acres, or 23.5% of town, while the count of buildings inside it drops to 288, including 191 single-family homes. FEMA’s Essex County Flood Insurance Study lists Danvers’ first flood insurance rate map as July 2, 1980, with a revision effective July 8, 2025. Check your address on the FEMA Flood Map Service Center.

Danvers has been in the NFIP since 1975. As of December 31, 2024, the plan reports 196 NFIP policies in force, with $47,151,000 in coverage, and 48 paid claims since 1975 totaling $668,643. It estimates 812 structures exposed to the 100-year and 500-year floods and says flood-zone owners are likely underinsured. It counts four repetitive loss properties with 11 insured losses totaling $371,950, and no severe repetitive loss properties.

The town’s 2019 plan said only one of the five repetitive loss properties it counted then was in a mapped flood zone; the other four were outside the zones near the town center. A homeowners policy will not pay for storm surge, tidal flooding or a brook over its banks. Flood is its own policy, and lenders require it for federally backed mortgages in a special flood hazard area.

• NFIP through Selective. We write National Flood Insurance Program policies through Selective, a Write Your Own carrier. The NFIP covers up to $250,000 for the building and $100,000 for contents. New policies generally have a 30-day waiting period (see FloodSmart), so buy before storm season, not during it.
• Private flood. When a home costs more than the NFIP building limit to rebuild, or you want coverage the NFIP leaves out, we compare Flow Flood, Neptune Flood, Beyond Floods, The Flood Insurance Agency, CatCoverage and Aon Edge. Each one decides address by address.
• Elevation certificates. If you have one, send it. If the house has been raised or has flood vents, it can make a real difference in how flood carriers rate it.

Water backup (sewer, drain or sump pump failure) is an add-on to homeowners; flood is separate. If your basement is finished, ask about both. See basement flooding coverage and our flood insurance overview.

Recent storms, wind and winter in Danvers

The plan ranks flooding from heavy rain, severe winter storms and other severe weather as Danvers’ highest hazards, with coastal flooding, hurricanes, drought, dam failure, tornadoes and wildfire as moderate. Its storm records name Danvers streets. In October 2014, clogged drains closed Massachusetts Avenue, Brookvale Drive, Coolidge Road, North Belgian Road, Grove Street and Sycamore Street. An October 2019 storm severely damaged a home at Purchase and Arthur streets. In November 2021, a foot of water covered Hathorne Avenue and water reached SUV floorboards on Village Post Road. The plan also notes back-to-back coastal floods in January 2024. Fallen trees, ice dams and frozen pipes are generally homeowners claims, subject to your deductible and policy terms; rising water is a flood claim.

Larger and waterfront homes

Under about $2 million, most of our 40+ carriers are in play. Andover writes up to about $2.25 million in Massachusetts, sometimes higher with underwriting approval. Around $2 million to $3 million, Hanover is among the carriers we compare. Cincinnati and Chubb are similar high-value carriers that compete with each other and write homes at any dwelling limit, so we quote both. Whatever the size, we build the dwelling limit around the cost to rebuild, not the market value, and we look at extended or guaranteed replacement cost where a carrier offers it.

Openly and National General write up to about $5 million, so they are also in the mix for larger Danvers homes. See high-value home insurance in coastal Massachusetts.

Condos, rentals and multi-family homes

Your HO-6 condo policy covers what the association’s master policy does not: usually your interior, improvements, belongings, liability and loss assessments. If your association is in a flood zone, read its flood coverage closely. If you rent out a house or a two- to four-family building, you need a dwelling or landlord policy. It covers the building, lost rent and your liability, and we don’t charge fees on those either.

Renters and tenants in Danvers

If you rent in Danvers, your landlord’s policy covers the building, not your belongings or your liability. A renters policy covers both, plus extra living costs after a covered loss. We shop renters coverage across our carriers, and Progressive Home is one of them; we use Progressive Home for renters policies only. Landlords who own two- to four-family buildings can see landlord insurance.

Auto, umbrella and the rest of the household

Most Danvers households also need auto insurance, and many add a personal umbrella. We quote them with the home so the liability limits line up, and we put rentals, second homes, boats and valuables under the same review. One agent, one renewal conversation.

Common coverage gaps we see in Danvers

• A dwelling limit based on the purchase price or assessed value instead of the cost to rebuild
• No water backup coverage on a house with a finished basement
• Personal property limits that have not kept up with what the household actually owns
• Liability limits on the home and auto that do not line up with an umbrella, or no umbrella at all
• No ordinance or law coverage on an older home that would need code upgrades after a loss
• No flood policy on a riverfront home or a house near Frost Fish Brook
• A dwelling limit that has not caught up with a large addition or rebuild

Most of these are straightforward to fix once someone reads the declarations pages side by side, and that is the first thing we do in a review.

Before storm season in Danvers

• Know your hurricane or named storm deductible in dollars, not just as a percentage
• Photograph or video each room so a contents claim is easier to document
• Keep your declarations pages, flood policy and any elevation certificate somewhere you can reach from your phone
• If you are thinking about flood coverage, buy it well ahead of a storm because of the waiting period
• If you live on Tibbets Avenue or another low street near the rivers, watch king tide dates and move vehicles before a storm surge

Buying a home in Danvers

Start the insurance conversation before you are under contract, not the week of closing. Send us the listing and the inspection report when you have it. The report answers most of what carriers ask: roof age, electrical panel, heating, plumbing and any water in the basement. Near the tidal rivers or a brook, ask for any elevation certificate and the seller’s flood policy, and check the zone against FEMA’s July 2025 maps. For an older house, ask about the wiring, heating and roof, and whether it sits in a historic district. We line up the homeowners binder, and a flood binder if you need one, so both are ready for your lender.

How a Danvers home quote works

• Tell us about the house: address, year built, square footage, roof age and updates to wiring, plumbing and heating.
• Send your current declarations page so we can compare like for like and point out limits that look short.
• We shop the carriers that fit and lay the options out side by side, with the differences in coverage, deductibles and storm terms, not just price.
• You choose, and we handle the switch, including your mortgage company and the effective date, so there is no gap.

Serving Danvers from Portsmouth, NH

We do not have a Massachusetts office. We insure Danvers homes from our Portsmouth, NH office, and work by phone, email and online. Call (603) 431-4020. Nearby, see our Beverly, Salem, Marblehead and Swampscott pages, or our Massachusetts homeowners insurance guide. Neighboring towns: Middleton, Topsfield and Wenham.

Sources

• Town of Danvers, Hazard Mitigation Plan Update, draft for public review (May 2025)
• Town of Danvers, Hazard Mitigation Plan 2019 Update
• FEMA, Flood Insurance Study, Essex County, Massachusetts, volume 4 (revised July 8, 2025)
• U.S. Census Bureau, Vintage 2025 subcounty population estimates
• FEMA Flood Map Service Center
• FloodSmart, buying a flood policy

Get a quote

Tell us about the property and we will compare carriers and follow up with options. Prefer to talk? Call (603) 431-4020.

Frequently asked questions

Do you insure homes in Danvers, MA?

Yes. We’re licensed in Massachusetts and insure Danvers homes from our Portsmouth, NH office by phone, email and online. Call (603) 431-4020.

Does Danvers flood?

Yes. The town’s draft 2025 hazard mitigation plan ranks flooding from heavy rain among its highest hazards and coastal flooding as moderate. Low areas along the Crane, Porter, Waters and Danvers rivers, including Tibbets Avenue, flood in storm surge, and streets such as Upper Massachusetts Avenue, Upper Valley Road and Ash Street flood in heavy rain. FEMA’s revised flood maps took effect July 8, 2025, so check your address on the FEMA Flood Map Service Center.

Does homeowners insurance cover a flooded basement?

Not from flood. Water backup from sewers, drains or a sump pump is an add-on, and rising or surface water needs a flood policy.

Who writes your NFIP flood policies?

We write NFIP policies through Selective, and we compare private flood from Flow Flood, Neptune Flood, Beyond Floods, The Flood Insurance Agency, CatCoverage and Aon Edge.

Do you charge fees?

No. We don’t charge fees on any policy we write, including homeowners, condo, renters, landlord, dwelling and auto.