E.S.
I also would recommend working with an agent and not doing anything online. If this is your first home, or even if it isn't, it would be way too confusing to do this on your own. Once you have insurance on a house, getting online quotes may be easier because you can compare based on your declaration pages. But until then, forget it!
As a lender, I can tell you that the minimum coverage you need is whatever your lender requires. Ask your loan officer or their assistant or processor what the minimum coverage is that you need (if they tell you loan amount they are wrong). You can start with the minimum and add more coverage if you feel it is necessary. Generally, the minimum is going to be enough to guarantee a complete rebuild of your home in the worst case scenario which would be a fire burning it down to the ground. A good agent will request a copy of your appraisal and give you a quote based on value of the building minus the land. If your house burns down, you still have your land which is worth something (how much depends on your neighborhood). You can then decide what your deductible is to keep costs in line. The higher the deductible, the lower the premium. In my opinion, it is best to get the highest deductible the lender allows (we allow up to $2,000 deductible) because the reality is that you don't want to use your homeowners insurance for much of anything other than the house being completely destroyed. You will find that if you try to claim things such as a destroyed roof, or a lost wedding ring, etc., your premiums will continue to rise to where it didn't make much sense to claim that in the first place.
Hope this helps. If you would like names, I have a great Farmers and Allstate agent that would be happy to assist you. If you move your cars to your new agent, your costs will be even lower (probably for both).
Just wanted to add on that the cost of the premium depends largely on your credit score, the type of house (brick vs. frame), sq. feet, etc. and how far you are away from the nearest fire station and fire hydrant. It's basically computing the risk of your house burning down to the ground coupled with your risk of making a lot of frivolous claims. I have seen rates as low as $350 per year and as high as almost $1200 for larger houses and lower credit scores and more rural areas. Rates will also be higher if you have additional coverage for things like your wedding rings, furs, sewer back up, etc.
