{"id":2827,"date":"2014-08-04T11:10:59","date_gmt":"2014-08-04T18:10:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.costulessdirect.com\/?p=2827"},"modified":"2014-08-04T11:10:59","modified_gmt":"2014-08-04T18:10:59","slug":"do-you-need-landlord-insurance-for-a-rental-property","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.costulessdirect.com\/blog\/do-you-need-landlord-insurance-for-a-rental-property\/","title":{"rendered":"Do You Need Landlord Insurance For a Rental Property?"},"content":{"rendered":"

If you thought being a landlord was just stopping by to collect the rent payment every month, you\u2019d be mistaken. Landlords have additional responsibilities from regular homeowners since they don\u2019t live on the property but they\u2019re still responsible for what happens there. Most likely, a specific landlord insurance policy will have to be purchased since home insurance<\/a> only covers the property when you live there (terms vary between companies). Of course, if you\u2019re only renting out a room but still living in your home, you probably won\u2019t need to purchase another insurance policy since your home insurance should adequate.<\/p>\n

The liability risks for landlords are different than for traditional homeowners. If a landlord doesn\u2019t properly maintain the property, they can be held liable for any tenant injuries or illnesses that occur due to their negligence. Even if certain safety or environmental hazards contributed to the injury or sickness of a tenant, it will be the landlord who is held accountable.<\/p>\n

A landlord can request certain maintenance practices that are required of the tenant to ensure compliance to health and safety codes, or specify that a tenant reports a major issue in 24-48 hours so damage can be minimized. These terms can always be added later as an addendum to a written contract, but it\u2019s usually easiest and best if it\u2019s outlined from the beginning.<\/p>\n

Although home insurance does cover injuries that occur to visitors at your home, since a tenant is living on the premises, there will be more opportunities for accidents or mishaps to arise, and you may want additional coverage in addition. Landlord insurance isn\u2019t just supplemental; it also offers coverage for things that aren\u2019t under the home insurance policy. One notable difference is fair rental income protection, which isn\u2019t needed by homeowners, but would be a valuable coverage to have as a landlord.\u00a0 Fair rental income protection offers the reimbursement of lost rental income if the residence is temporarily unavailable from risks covered under the policy.<\/p>\n

Because landlord insurance offers more protection in some ways than normal home insurance, it reflects that in pricing. The average premium in 2011 was $978, which was about 25% more than a home policy. However, neither type of insurance would cover the costs of replacing a tenant\u2019s belongings and clothing, so you may want to suggest that they consider renters insurance.<\/p>\n

As a landlord, if you\u2019re not keeping the house up to code and making sure it\u2019s safe, you could lose your insurance policy, so it\u2019s critical to have periodic check-ups and regular maintenance to address any issues, especially safety concerns. It\u2019s suggested that before a new tenant moves in, a house inspection be ordered so the landlord can identify and quickly handle any issues. If you do find something and file a claim, be sure to promptly repair it, otherwise if the issue develops and becomes a bigger problem, you may be dropped from the policy. You can also expect that there will be inspections or check-ups from the insurance company so they can report back on any significant problems. If they find a major issue that is not being quickly addressed, it gives them grounds for canceling the policy on the landlord.<\/p>\n

Being a landlord can have its financial perks as a primary source or an additional stream of income, however, the role shouldn\u2019t be taken lightly. A smart landlord will make sure to protect their property and look out for the well-being of their tenant by maintaining a safe and clean home, otherwise the consequences could become serious and costly.<\/p>\n

Are you thinking about becoming a landlord? Feel free to share your thoughts and experiences in the comments section below.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

If you thought being a landlord was just stopping by to collect the rent payment every month, you\u2019d be mistaken. Landlords have additional responsibilities from regular homeowners since they don\u2019t live on the property but they\u2019re still responsible for what happens there. Most likely, a specific landlord insurance policy will have to be purchased since […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2828,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[720],"tags":[62,518],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.costulessdirect.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2827"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.costulessdirect.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.costulessdirect.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.costulessdirect.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.costulessdirect.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2827"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.costulessdirect.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2827\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.costulessdirect.com\/blog\/wp-json\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.costulessdirect.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2827"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.costulessdirect.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2827"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.costulessdirect.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2827"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}