Landlord Insurance

Landlord insurance is a form of homeowners insurance designed for property owners who rent out all or part of their property to others.

Landlord insurance coverage is similar to a standard homeowners policy, but the relative amounts of coverage may differ. For example, as a landlord, you probably only need a very small amount of personal property coverage because you are not responsible for insuring the belongings of your tenants. You should encourage your tenants to obtain a separate renters insurance policy.

The categories of coverage provided by a typical landlord insurance policy are described below:

1. Dwelling Coverage

   This is coverage for the physical structure of the dwelling.

2. Coverage for Other Structures

   This provides coverage for structures on your lot that are not attached to the dwelling, such as garages and sheds. Coverage for detached structures is normally limited to 10 percent of the insurance value of the dwelling.

3. Personal Property Coverage

   This is coverage for personal property owned by the landlord and made available for the use of the tenants, or stored on the property, such as appliances, furniture, tools, and gardening implements.

4. Liability Coverage

   Liability coverage provides protection against bodily injury and property lawsuits arising from a covered loss.

5. Coverage for Loss of Rental Income

   This provides compensation for lost rental income if you are unable to rent out your property as a result of damage caused by a covered event.

6. Additional Coverages

   Your policy may provide coverage for additional expenses, such as damage to trees and shrubs (generally excluding damage caused by wind and ice), debris removal, fire department charges, and loss assessment.

Like other homeowners policies, a landlord insurance policy may exclude some items or perils from coverage. For example, earth movement, intentional loss, neglect, nuclear hazard, power failure, and war.