Even though you may not live in your rental properties, you still need to provide a safe environment for your tenants. While rental fees cover regular maintenance, you may face larger restoration costs after a fire or severe storm. Rental property insurance can help pay for those repair bills. Purchasing rental properties is a big investment. Like any business it is important to protect that investment from unforeseen events, so having rental property insurance can help you manage the risks involved with owning rental dwellings.
Landlord insurance policies vary based on the insurance company that’s providing the coverage. In general, though, the idea behind this insurance is to provide a range of coverage for owners of rental property.
What is Covered?
A typical landlord insurance policy might include coverage against property damage, liability against tenant lawsuits, medical expense coverage if someone is injured on your property and rental reimbursement in the event you can’t find paying tenants because of property damage. Some policies let you pay to add other forms of insurance protection. These could cover the contents of the unit if you’re renting out a furnished apartment, for example.
Landlord policies cover a number of things, usually including:
  • Property: This includes the dwelling, other structures, and any personal property used to service the rental that you leave onsite (think of your snowblower and lawn mower).
  • Fair Rental Income: Sometimes called “Fair Rental Value,” this is the part of your landlord insurance that covers the most important part of the business aspect of your property: the rental income. In the event that a covered event makes the property temporarily unfit for occupation, this may help you maintain your income stream.
  • Unoccupied space: You’d think an unoccupied property would be less trouble than one full of tenants sliding their chairs across your refinished hardwood floors, but that’s not necessarily the case. An empty space can suffer water damage or a rodent infestation or worse with no one around to report the events. The litany of possible issues is far from reassuring, so we won’t dig deeper here, but it does behoove you to treat your investment property like a valuable asset even when it’s not actively pulling in rental income.
  • Liability: This may help you cover legal expenses or medical bills if someone is injured on your property. This is one of the biggest areas for concern, as liability claims can be much more expensive than property claims, which is why it’s one of the greatest incentives for ensuring you have the right coverage.
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