By Jonathan Merwin, Founder and CEO, Licensed Insurance Advisor. Updated October 30, 2026.
Holderness is where the big Squam houses are, but it is also a river town. Its high-value homes sit on Squam Lake, Little Squam and White Oak Pond, on wooded hillsides under the Squam Range and on lower ground near the Pemigewasset River. This guide covers how we insure larger homes across the whole town, with a focus on the risks that are specific to Holderness.
Key facts
- Holderness has been part of the National Flood Insurance Program since April 15, 1981, according to the town’s February 2022 hazard mitigation plan update.
- The same plan says the town’s mapped floodplain lies mainly along the Pemigewasset River and Owl Brook, and that the current flood maps date to February 20, 2008.
- In January 2019, the Pemigewasset rose from 2.98 feet to 15.88 feet overnight, closing Route 175A and Exit 25 ramps, WMUR reported.
- The plan lists cell phone service and high-speed internet in town as limited, which matters for remote home monitoring.
- Our usual high-value lineup here is Openly up to $5 million, then Chubb and Cincinnati for larger estates, each subject to underwriting.
Three kinds of high-value home in Holderness
The town’s larger homes fall roughly into three groups. The first is lake property: shingled houses and restored camps on Squam and Little Squam, many with boathouses and long private drives through the woods. The second is hillside and view property on the slopes toward the Squam Range, where a big house may be a mile or more from pavement. The third is the village and river side of town, along Route 3, Route 113 and Route 175, where older homes and newer builds sit closer to the Pemigewasset and its tributaries.
Each group raises different underwriting questions. On the lake, it is ice, docks and access by water. On the hills, it is winter access, wells and fire response. Near the river, it is flood. A high-value policy can be shaped around all three, but only if the submission describes the house accurately. Our replacement cost estimator helps you start on the rebuild number.
Squam and Little Squam
Lakefront and channel homes with boathouses, docks and in some cases boat-only access.
White Oak Pond
A smaller lake with its own shoreline homes, frontage rules and winter questions.
Squam Range hillsides
View homes on long drives with private wells and fewer nearby hydrants.
Pemi side of town
Homes off Routes 175 and 175A, where river flooding is the main water risk.
The Pemigewasset and Owl Brook
Most people think of Squam when they think of Holderness, but the town’s 2022 plan places its main floodplain along the Pemigewasset River on the western side of town and along Owl Brook. The Pemigewasset River Corridor Management Plan quotes FEMA describing the corridor as “one of the most flood prone areas in the state,” with flooding tied to spring runoff, ice jams and storms. It includes a photo of NH Route 175 under water in Holderness during Tropical Storm Irene in September 2011.
The January 2019 event shows how fast it can happen. After heavy rain and snowmelt, the river rose almost 13 feet in about ten hours. The southbound ramps at Exit 25 closed, part of Route 175A went under water and the town closed the bridge to Plymouth. As temperatures hovered near freezing, some of the floodwater began to ice over. A house on low ground near the river can take water in that kind of event without ever being near the lake.
Flood maps from 2008 and what they miss
According to the town’s plan, Holderness’s Flood Insurance Rate Study and digital maps are dated February 20, 2008. Using FEMA floodplain data, the plan estimates that the floodplain, including the lakes, makes up a little more than 2% of the town. Being outside a mapped zone does not mean a home is dry. Older maps, culverts that clog in heavy rain and finished lower levels all raise the stakes.
Home insurance excludes flood, so a separate policy is needed if you want that protection. Big houses often need more building coverage than the NFIP allows. Selective handles our NFIP placements, and for private flood we look at Aon Edge, Flow Flood, Neptune, Beyond Floods, TFIA and CatCoverage, a few of which will cover a finished lower level. FEMA’s map search tool shows the official zone for a Holderness lot, and our flood insurance page explains the choices.
Monitoring a house where the signal is weak
Many high-value carriers want to see monitored fire alarms, water leak sensors, low-temperature alerts and automatic water shutoff valves, especially in a seasonal home. Those systems only help if they can reach the outside world. The Holderness plan lists cellular service and high-speed internet in town as limited. On a back road above the lake, a sensor that depends on a weak cell signal may never send its alert.
Before you count on monitoring, test it. A wired internet line with a cellular backup, a signal booster or a central station that uses more than one path all make the system more reliable. When we submit a Holderness home to a carrier, we describe how the monitoring actually connects. Underwriters notice the difference, and it matters at claim time if a pipe bursts in January.
Hillside roads, wells and fire response
Homes on the slopes above Squam tend to have long private drives, private wells and some distance to the nearest hydrant. The town plan lists Perch Pond Road, Hawkins Pond, McCrillis Hill Road and Coxboro Road as secondary evacuation routes, which gives a sense of how much of town relies on narrow back roads. In winter, a steep, icy drive can slow a fire engine.
Carriers ask about driveway width, turnarounds, the distance to a pond or dry hydrant and the heating system. A standby generator protects the well pump and heat during outages. Clearing brush and dead wood near the house helps with wildfire risk, which exists across the wooded parts of town.
Docks, boathouses and ice on Squam
On Squam and Little Squam, the dock and boathouse can be a large part of the property’s value. The lake freezes hard, and moving ice in spring can crush cribs and pull pilings loose. Many home forms limit or exclude that damage. Dock terms differ a lot between companies, so we line them up for you and set a detached-structure limit that reflects the boathouse, lift and dock you actually own. Boats belong on a separate boat policy.
Permits shape any rebuild at the water’s edge. New Hampshire reviews projects within 250 feet of Squam, Little Squam and White Oak Pond (the NHDES shoreland program explains the rules), and dock repairs and replacements go through their own state review. The Pemigewasset corridor plan notes that Holderness also protects land at least 500 feet back from the river through a local overlay district. When those approvals drag, code upgrade coverage and extra months of living expense keep the claim on track.
Seasonal homes and winter vacancy
Many Holderness homes are summer or weekend houses. A house that sits closed from Columbus Day to Memorial Day faces frozen pipes, ice dams and undetected leaks. Carriers ask how the heat is set, who checks on the house and how often, and whether water is shut off. Some policies narrow coverage after a period of vacancy. Our second home insurance page covers the wording in detail.
Carriers we compare for Holderness homes
Holderness homes span a wide range, and so does our carrier list. Andover handles houses up to about $1.5 million and Hanover up to $2 million. Openly picks up where they stop and runs to $5 million. The largest Squam estates, and families with fine art or jewelry to schedule, usually end up with Chubb or Cincinnati. Hagerty is our market for collector cars. A boat-only lot, an aging camp or a house in the Pemi floodplain can take some of these options off the table, since each underwriter weighs the risk independently. Read more about how we pick carriers.
Getting a Holderness quote together
- The address, and whether the home is on Squam, Little Squam, White Oak Pond, the hills or near the Pemi
- Year built, size, renovations and photos of the house, dock and outbuildings
- Roof age, heating, generator and well details
- How the alarms and sensors connect, and the name of your winter caretaker
- Any flood policy, elevation certificate, boats or collector cars
Related pages for Holderness homeowners
Holderness owners also read our Squam Lake waterfront home page, the Lakes Region high-value home insurance guide and pages for Center Harbor, Meredith, Moultonborough and Sandwich. Car and day-to-day coverage in town is on our Holderness insurance agency page, and lake liability is covered on our umbrella insurance page.
Request a Holderness high-value home quote
Tell us where the house sits, how it connects for monitoring and how you use it through the year, and we will compare carriers that fit. About 90% of our quotes go out within 24 hours, and we don’t charge any fees.
Holderness high-value home insurance FAQs
Is my Holderness home at risk of river flooding even if it is not on the lake?
It may be. The town’s mapped floodplain sits mainly along the Pemigewasset River and Owl Brook, and the Pemi has flooded Route 175A and Route 175 in recent years. Homes near the river or on low ground off those roads should check the flood map and ask about a flood policy, since home insurance excludes flood.
How old are the flood maps in Holderness?
The town’s 2022 hazard plan says its current Flood Insurance Rate Maps and study are dated February 20, 2008. Maps that old may not reflect every recent change on the ground, so we look at the actual site and elevation as well as the zone.
My Holderness house has weak cell service. Does that affect my insurance?
It can. Carriers that write high-value homes often want monitored alarms, water sensors and low-temperature alerts. The town’s plan lists cell service and high-speed internet as limited, so it helps to confirm the monitoring has a reliable connection, such as a wired line with a cellular backup.
Does a standard policy cover my dock on Little Squam if the ice moves it?
Often it does not. Many home forms limit or exclude damage to docks from ice, waves and freezing. A few specialty forms give docks wider protection, and we read each carrier’s terms and detached-structure limits for you.
Which carriers write Holderness homes worth more than $2 million?
Openly can insure a Holderness home up to $5 million. Beyond that, Chubb and Cincinnati are the usual options. Each still needs the underwriter’s approval.
You are based in Portsmouth. How do you work with Holderness homeowners?
By phone, email and video. Most of our Lakes Region clients never need to come in. We gather photos and details remotely and send a side-by-side comparison of carriers.
Sources
- Town of Holderness, Hazard Mitigation Plan Update, Final for Adoption, February 11, 2022 (Holderness Planning Team and NH Homeland Security and Emergency Management)
- FEMA, Flood Map Service Center (address search)
- Lakes Region Planning Commission, Pemigewasset River Corridor Management Plan Update 2024
- WMUR, “Flooding forces closures of I-93 exit, Route 175A in Holderness, Plymouth,” January 2019
- New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services, docking structures
- New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services, shoreland protection
About Portsmouth Atlantic Insurance
Portsmouth Atlantic Insurance is a family-owned independent agency founded in Portsmouth in 2005 and licensed in 10 states. We compare 40+ carriers, hold an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau, and are New Hampshire’s highest-rated agency on Google, with 1,000+ Google reviews and over 2,000 testimonials (see our client feedback). Our team brings 200+ years of combined experience. We don’t charge any fees.
We serve Holderness homeowners by phone, email and video from our office at 601 Islington St, Unit 206, Portsmouth, NH 03801. Call (603) 431-4020 to talk through your Holderness home.
About the author
Jonathan Merwin is the Founder and CEO of Portsmouth Atlantic Insurance and a Licensed Insurance Advisor. He started the agency in Portsmouth in 2005 and works with owners of larger and older homes on lake, hillside and river homes in Holderness. Read his full bio or see how we choose carriers.