The Facts About Vacant/Rental Property Insurance
Vacant Property Insurance
Vacant home insurance is typically something you only need in specific situations in which a home you own will be empty for an extended period of time. Some of the situations that may require vacant home insurance include selling a home that you no longer live in because you’ve moved into a new property or performing extensive renovations or repairs on a home that make it temporarily inhabitable. You may also need vacant home insurance if you’re on active-duty military service or traveling for an extended period. Remember, though, for the home to be considered vacant, it typically means that it must be completely emptied of all personal belongings. In terms of what vacant home insurance can cost, fielding quotes from multiple insurance companies can help with finding a policy at an affordable rate. That’s where we come in! When purchasing insurance to cover a vacant home, consider carefully how long you’ll need it. This can be tricky if your home is listed for sale and you’re waiting to receive a viable offer. If you’re purchasing a vacant home that you eventually plan to rent out, ask us whether the policy can be converted to a landlord policy once the property is occupied.
Rental Property Insurance
Landlords renting out a residential property (house, vacation cottage, apartment) for the first time may assume that their homeowners insurance will cover all the costs in the case of a natural disaster, accident or other damaging events. That’s a rookie mistake. Chances are that your policy only covers owner-occupied homes. If you start renting out to someone else, the coverage no longer applies. And as renters are generally not held liable when a large appliance malfunctions, a person suffers an injury on the property (through no fault of the tenant), a forest fire damages or destroys your home, or burglars simply empty the place, that means you could be left out to dry for these or other misfortunes caused by humans or Mother Nature. This is where landlord insurance comes in. These policies come in all shapes and sizes. A good, comprehensive landlord insurance policy will have three core protections:
Vacant Property Insurance
Vacant home insurance is typically something you only need in specific situations in which a home you own will be empty for an extended period of time. Some of the situations that may require vacant home insurance include selling a home that you no longer live in because you’ve moved into a new property or performing extensive renovations or repairs on a home that make it temporarily inhabitable. You may also need vacant home insurance if you’re on active-duty military service or traveling for an extended period. Remember, though, for the home to be considered vacant, it typically means that it must be completely emptied of all personal belongings. In terms of what vacant home insurance can cost, fielding quotes from multiple insurance companies can help with finding a policy at an affordable rate. That’s where we come in! When purchasing insurance to cover a vacant home, consider carefully how long you’ll need it. This can be tricky if your home is listed for sale and you’re waiting to receive a viable offer. If you’re purchasing a vacant home that you eventually plan to rent out, ask us whether the policy can be converted to a landlord policy once the property is occupied.
Rental Property Insurance
Landlords renting out a residential property (house, vacation cottage, apartment) for the first time may assume that their homeowners insurance will cover all the costs in the case of a natural disaster, accident or other damaging events. That’s a rookie mistake. Chances are that your policy only covers owner-occupied homes. If you start renting out to someone else, the coverage no longer applies. And as renters are generally not held liable when a large appliance malfunctions, a person suffers an injury on the property (through no fault of the tenant), a forest fire damages or destroys your home, or burglars simply empty the place, that means you could be left out to dry for these or other misfortunes caused by humans or Mother Nature. This is where landlord insurance comes in. These policies come in all shapes and sizes. A good, comprehensive landlord insurance policy will have three core protections:
- Property Damage—This is coverage in the event that the real estate or furnishings suffer from a natural disaster, fire, electric/gas malfunction, earthquake, vandalism, or irresponsible tenants. We recommend a policy that offers replacement cost instead of the actual cash value (especially if fixtures and furnishings are old) or a predetermined lump sum of cash.
- Lost Rental Income/Rental Default Insurance —Should something cause your property to be totally uninhabitable, this coverage provides temporary rental reimbursement to cover the rent money you’d otherwise receive if tenants could be occupying the property.
- Liability Protection—This is coverage for the medical or legal costs that might ensue if the tenant or a visitor suffers injury due to a property maintenance issue (such as icy walkways, architectural collapse, or an out-of-control hive of bees).