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Updated 8 months ago, 04/22/2024
Your thoughts on Zillow "Rental Protection"?
I recently found this new service from Zillow, called "Zillow Rental Protection". I won't post a link so you think I'm spamming, but you can google it.
For $45/month, you get $5,000 in rental coverage for things like missed rent, excessive damage, excessive cleaning, pet damage, and eviction costs. Or so they say. Only available in 3 states currently, and I happen to be in one of them. (NC)
I have a vacant house to fill and I'm thinking about using this. I already use Zillow for payments and applications. Theoretically, I could advertise "no deposit" and charge something like a $500 move in fee, which is non refundable. This fee pays for the insurance. Problem is I don't want this attracting tenants who cannot pay, or making them think "who cares, I don't have a deposit to lose".
What do you think about using this in lieu of a standard deposit? Perhaps just collect a standard deposit AND buy the insurance? ($5,000 coverage is way more than my deposit would be) Or, will they be impossible to work with and try to deny any claims? I have a bit of a problem trusting Zillow fully...