Insurance asking for a tie-down inspection? What Florida mobile home owners need to know (2026)

If your insurance carrier just asked for proof of tie-downs — or declined to renew without it — you're seeing Florida's insurance market tightening in real time. Carriers have learned that anchoring is the difference between a claim and a catastrophe, and they increasingly want documentation before they'll write or keep a mobile home policy. Here's what that means practically.

What the inspection actually checks

• Anchor count and spacing against Florida Rule 15C-1 for your home's size and wind zone.
• Strap condition: rust, fraying, broken or missing straps, and proper tension.
• Anchor integrity: heads above grade, not pulled, set in stable soil.
• Longitudinal vs frame ties — older homes often have only one type when current standards expect both.
• Pier and blocking condition while the crew is under the home anyway.

What it costs to fix what they find

Light deficiencies (re-tension straps, replace a handful) are a few hundred dollars. A fuller retrofit — adding anchors and straps to bring an older home toward current standards — typically lands in the $1,500–$4,000 range in Central Florida depending on home size and soil. That's almost always cheaper than one year of the premium increase (or non-renewal) that an uninsurable anchoring report brings.

The free option almost nobody knows: pre-1999 homes

Florida's Hurricane Loss Mitigation Program funds free tie-down retrofits for qualifying mobile homes manufactured before 1999, administered through Gulf Coast State College. If your home qualifies, the state pays for the retrofit work itself. We can check whether your home fits the program's criteria and handle the parts the program doesn't cover (and the documentation your insurer wants either way).