Insurance For Rental Property

The 8 Best Landlord Insurance - insurance for rental property

Protect your assets and your income

If you own rental property, you have unique business risks and assets that aren’t covered by a homeowner’s insurance policy. And you stand to risk losing your livelihood if you lose your rental income while your building undergoes repairs after an unexpected loss from a fire, flood, earthquake or another type of natural disaster.
Most landlord insurance policies offer some form of the following types of coverage: dwelling coverage, water/flood coverage, personal property (contents), acts of nature, as well as fair rental income coverage. Other policy add-on options are available with some insurance companies for an additional premium. The coverage is provided for multiple types of rental units, including single-family, duplex, triplex, quad and larger properties.
Choosing a landlord insurance policy can give you added security in knowing your rental income is safe. Here are a few of the top choices for landlord insurance on the market today.

• 01

   Best for Inflation Protection: Liberty Mutual

  
  
  

  

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  Liberty Mutual and has an “A” financial strength rating from A.M. Best and ranked 2^nd in a J.D. Power & Associates customer satisfaction. It also ranks highly in claims processing services. Liberty Mutual offers inflation protection coverage that automatically adjusts your policy limits to keep up with the rate of inflation to keep up with the cost of making repairs to your property.

  Other coverage options and features of Landlord Insurance from Liberty Mutual include:

  • Liability
  • Fair Rental Value Coverage
  • Personal Injury Protection
  • Discounts for multi-policy, early shopper (if you have current coverage), new/renovated home (13 years or less and recently renovated)
  • Additional policy options and benefits for emergency repair service, 24-hour claims assistance, contractor network referral, flexible payment and billing options.

• 02

   Best for Policy Bundling: Allstate

  
  
  

  

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  Allstate has been in business since 1931 and has numerous service recognitions, including a 4.5 out of 5-star rating for claims processing from a customer survey conducted by Insure.com. Allstate Insurance has an “A+ Superior” financial strength rating from A.M. Best. Landlord insurance from Allstate can be bundling in a package with one of their many other policies, giving you an additional discount and also expanding your coverage.

  Landlord insurance from Allstate includes:

  • Dwelling protection
  • Other structures protection
  • Liability coverage
  • Fair rental income coverage
  • Premises medical protection
  • Vandalism coverage
  • Burglary coverage
  • Rental property under construction
  • Building code (added coverage to bring any property improvements up to building code ordinances including maintenance, repair or building demolition).

• 03

   Best for Additional Structures Coverage: State Farm

  
  
  

  

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  State Farm Insurance, founded in 1922, offers insurance throughout the U.S. and has a longstanding history of financial strength (A.M. Best “A” rated) and excellence in customer service. State Farm offers multiple Landlord Insurance policy options at reasonable rates. The Landlord insurance policy through State Farm offers coverage for additional structures, including garages, storage buildings, swimming pools, fences, retaining walls and other structures.

  Other Landlord Insurance basic coverage and additional coverage policy options from State Farm include:

  • Building coverage that includes owned personal property used to maintain building/premises
  • Comprehensive general liability
  • Loss of income
  • Equipment breakdown
  • Tenant move back expenses (Covers your expenses for moving tenants back after they’ve had to evacuate temporarily due to a covered loss)
  • Heating and air conditioning loss reimbursement
  • Data compromise and identity restoration (protection if you become a victim of identity theft)
  • Ordinance or law (covers costs due to enforcement of municipal laws or ordinances for construction/repair of damaged buildings caused by an insured loss).

• 04

   Best for Multiple States: Foremost

  
  
  

  

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  Foremost is a member of the Farmers Insurance Groups and is rated “A Excellent” by A.M. Best. The company offers specialized coverage for landlord insurance with flexible policy options. Basic landlord coverage includes: comprehensive property coverage, named peril coverage, optional replacement cost, agreed loss settlement, actual cash value, extended replacement cost and liability. Optional coverage choices include: loss of rental income, liability limits, personal injury, other structures coverage, repair cost, water damage for sewers/drains.

  Foremost offer a specialized policy for landlords with property in many states called its “Platinum Package.” The Platinum Package offers:

  • $3K for personal property
  • Pays 10 percent of loss of rental income
  • Landlord personal injury coverage
  • $300K of premises liability coverage
  • Medical payments of $1K
  • Replacement cost on dwelling
  • Other structures coverage up to $10K or 10 percent of dwelling
  • Reduction in coverage when vacant applies after 90 days

• 05

   Best for 10 or More Units: American Modern

  
  
  

  

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  American Modern has an “A+” A.M. Best financial strength rating and has been in business since 1965. The company specializes in owners insurance for the manufactured housing and specialty dwelling sector.

  Whether you need a basic policy for rental properties with very little wear and tear or a more specialized policy similar to homeowner’s coverage, American Modern has options for you:

  • Comprehensive Coverage is offered for a home up to 80 years of age (the limit is 60 in some states) and the policy insures up to a four-family structure. All causes of loss are covered under the comprehensive package unless they are specifically excluded. You will be paid for policy losses at replacement cost value up to the policy limits of coverage. To be eligible for comprehensive coverage, the roof must have been updated within the last 20 years and the home must be in overall above average or better condition.
  • Flexible Coverage provides landlord insurance for homes with no age limit on the structure for up to a four-family structure. Coverage is provided for losses caused by named perils in the policy, including fire, lightning, wind, hail, explosion and more. To be eligible for coverage, the home must be in fair or better condition.

  • Coverage for 10 or more units is available for real estate investors. It allows investors to insure ten or more rental properties on one policy with these coverage options: expenses for emergency repairs, damage to other structures, debris removal, fire department service charge, collapse, water/mold, improvements/alternations, vandalism, tree/shrubs/lawn and loss of rental income. Optional coverage includes short-term rental permission, short-term vacancy permission, premises liability, personal property, vandalism, breakdown replacement and limited burglary coverage. There are flexible payment options to make purchasing a policy easier, including EZPay, check or credit card. You can pay your policy premium in full or by installment payments.

• 06

   Best for Condo Owners: MetLife

  
  
  

  

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  MetLife and its subsidiary companies all have excellent financial strength ratings and offer coverage across the U.S. It is among the oldest U.S. insurance companies, founded in 1868. MetLife offers Landlord Insurance for rental units, private structures and personal property. Rental building insurance is available for buildings for one to four families. There is also a Condo Landlord Insurance policy for those who own a condo and rent it out.

  Policy features and benefits include:

  • Coverage for private structures, including garages, sheds and any belongings stored on-site or used by tenants
  • Loss of rental income
  • Liability
  • Medical payments to others up to $1,000 (more for an additional premium)
  • Identity protection services included with each policy

  
  

• 07

   Best for Military Members: USAA

  
  
  

  

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  USAA has been providing coverage to military members and their families since 1922. The company has superior financial strength ratings and provides landlord insurance coverage with these options:

  • Income replacement
  • Personal liability coverage
  • Coverage for multiple properties for up to 10 units
  • Multi-product discount (save up to 10 percent on rental property insurance when you insure home and auto)
  • Fire, theft, vandalism coverage

  
  

• 08

   Best Landlord Insurance for Optional Medical Expenses: American Family

  
  
  

  

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  American Family Insurance is “A Excellent” rated by A.M. Best and has been recognized by J.D. Power & Associates for excellence in claims handling. The optional medical expense coverage form American Family is $5,000 per person, which is more than some other providers.

  Landlord Insurance from American Family includes basic and optional coverage for:

  • Buildings: auxiliary buildings and structures, lock and key replacement, retaining walls, outdoor fences and increased building limit coverage
  • Liability and medical expenses with option endorsements for hired auto and non-owned auto liability (not available in Illinois)
  • Business income
  • Inflation protection
  • Debris removal
  • The increased cost of construction (Up to $10,000 for additional costs incurred to comply with ordinance enforcement)
  • Electronic data
  • Interruption of computer operations
  • Accounts receivable/valuable papers and records
  • Optional coverage available for: outdoor signs, antennas, fences, builder’s risk (units under construction), utility services damage (damage caused by interruption of water, communication, power or supply services), earthquake coverage, water backup/sump overflow