Self-insuring is probably not going to fly with your mortgage lender. If nobody can get a mortgage, and everyone has to self-insure, it's going to 1) drive down housing prices (fewer cash buyers) and 2) guarantee that only people of pretty substantial means can afford to live there (even with lower prices, most people can't come up with a cash payment for a house).
I did acknowledge it would go against housing bubble culture. It certainly wouldn't be a financially prudent way of obtaining primary shelter, but rather for vacation homes or whatnot. We're mostly talking about rural properties in the woods, right?
