Is State Farm taking new customers in California?

No. As of October 28, 2026, State Farm was not yet open to new homeowners customers in California.

State Farm General Insurance Company, the company's California home insurer, stopped accepting new applications on May 27, 2023. The pause covered property and casualty insurance, but not personal auto insurance, the company said.

State Farm says it filed updated guidelines with the Department of Insurance on September 16, 2026. They would let it consider new applications from homes with a wildfire safety designation. It called the move "a small but important step."

The Department announced the filing on September 18, 2026, and said State Farm was not yet open for new business. On October 22, 2026, State Farm said the filing was still under review by the Department. Neither had announced an opening date as of October 28, 2026.

The filing, which was under review as of October 28, 2026, ties new policies to a Wildfire Prepared Home designation. The Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) issues it for completed wildfire safety work.

Homes with the Enhanced designation would be eligible anywhere in California, "regardless of wildfire risk area," State Farm said. They would still have to meet State Farm's usual rules for the homes it insures.

Homes with the Essential designation would qualify only in "low and moderate wildfire severity zones," the Department said. Neither announcement says how those zones are drawn. If the filing is approved, ask State Farm which zone your address is in.

IBHS used to call the two levels Base and Plus, and only the names changed. The Department's announcement still calls Essential the "base" standard.

IBHS is a nonprofit research group supported by property insurers. Its Wildfire Prepared Home program is open in California. It certifies homes that finish a set list of wildfire safety work.

IBHS takes detached single-family houses, modular homes, and manufactured homes built after July 1994. The home must sit on a permanent foundation and be three stories or fewer.

It must also meet state and local wildfire building codes and finish every item for its level. IBHS puts it this way: "Wildfire exploits the weakest link."

IBHS says the process usually takes several weeks to a few months. Homes under construction cannot apply.

The steps, as IBHS describes them:

• Do the work first, using IBHS's How-To Prepare checklist for the level you want.
• Apply at wildfireprepared.org with photos of the home. The application fee is $125, and it is not refunded.
• An outside evaluator visits in person. If anything is missing, you get 60 days to finish it and send new photos.
• A designation lasts three years, with photo-based reviews after the first and second years.
• If you sell the home, the designation can transfer to the buyer for a small fee.

Shop now. The Department of Insurance said on September 18, 2026, "Consumers should not wait on an approval to shop for coverage."

As of October 27, 2026, the Department counted 12 homeowners insurance groups expanding under its Sustainable Insurance Strategy. Farmers, Mercury and CSAA are among them. Our guide to who is writing new home insurance gives each one's status and source.

The designation can help beyond State Farm. In March 2026, the Department said some of California's largest insurers commit to writing policies for homes that meet the IBHS standard.

IBHS says discounts vary by insurer and state. Our guide to home hardening discounts explains what wildfire safety work earns.

If standard insurers say no, specialty insurers come next, through a licensed broker. The California FAIR Plan, the state's fallback fire insurance program, comes last.

If you already have a State Farm policy, the pause on new applications does not end it. Our guide to State Farm's non-renewals covers what the 2026 rate settlement means for current customers.

By the Department's count in September 2026, State Farm had been closed to new homeowners business for more than three years.

The record, in order:

• May 27, 2023: State Farm General stops accepting new California applications for property and casualty insurance, except personal auto.
• July 23, 2026: the Insurance Commissioner signs the order that makes State Farm's 2026 rate settlement final.
• September 2026: State Farm General files to consider new applications from homes with IBHS Wildfire Prepared Home designations.
• September 18, 2026: the Department of Insurance announces the filing and says State Farm is not yet open for new business.
• October 22, 2026: State Farm says the filing is pending review by the Department.