What Is Home Insurance For Landlords

If you’re thinking about becoming a landlord by either buying a one- to four-family home and renting all of it or by renting the home that you currently own, you definitely need to know about home insurance for landlords. It may be something you haven’t thought about, but you’ll definitely need a good landlords insurance policy, and the costs of this policy may be steeper than you think.
Home Insurance

What it Does

Home insurance for landlords pays for the same basic things that homeowners insurance covers and then some. Because rental properties are at a higher risk, though, because of poor maintenance practices and tenant damage, among other things, a regular homeowners insurance policy won’t be enough to cover your rental property; in fact, some companies don’t even write regular homeowner’s insurance policies for rental properties.

At its most basic level, home insurance for landlords pays for things like fire and flood damage, and it will cover your costs if you have to restore or completely rebuild your building because of things like this. Beyond that, though, it will actually protect any and all of your belongings inside the rental property against damage by thieves or your tenants themselves.

You are responsible, in part, for the well-being of your tenants while they rent property from you. When something goes wrong like a broken water pipe or a broken heating and cooling system, some home insurance for landlords will cover some of the immediate costs of repair and, possibly, of relocating tenants, so that you can fix the problem quickly, efficiently, and without draining yourself of all your available cash.

Also, home insurance for landlords will pay for legal costs in case you ever have to take your tenants to court. Sometimes if tenants are injured because of conditions on your property that are supposedly or actually unsafe, your landlords insurance will have to kick in to cover attorney and settlement fees.

As you can see, home insurance for landlords covers a lot of extra things that normal home insurance doesn’t touch, and it’s very important that you have a good home insurance for landlords policy when you’re starting up your own renting business. One lawsuit or burnt-out kitchen can completely wreck your dreams of becoming a successful landlord, and a good insurance policy will help you make sure that doesn’t happen.
Home Insurance

Be aware, though, that home insurance for landlords is more expensive than typical home owners insurance because the insurance company is taking on a greater amount of financial risk. To find a good, affordable landlords insurance policy, be sure to shop around, talk to other landlords in your area, and find a policy that includes all the coverage you need without adding in extras that you shouldn’t be paying for.