Protection against Liability Claims (Insurance/LLCs/trusts/etc.)

[Cory Cook]

Greetings BP,

My wife and I have four rental properties, all tenant occupied (two in SC, one in DE, one in VA). We've owned each of the properties for several years, all cash flow, we have 30-year fixed loans on the two SC houses and the VA house, the DE house we own outright. We currently have standard insurance on each of the four properties but noting else.

My wife and I are in our late 30's, we have pretty significant savings/investments/retirement accounts and we've grown concerned that a liability claim originating from one of the rental properties could wipe out either our personal savings or our other properties.

What is the conventional wisdom on protecting your assets against a liability claim?  We've done some research on umbrella insurance policies, LLCs, etc but I'm having a hard time deciphering the advantages and disadvantages of each strategy.

Thanks!

Cory