Real Estate Insurance for Rentals

[Chris Kaminski]

Hi from Ontario,

I am currently looking into buying a house and renting it out to students. I did some insurance shopping and it seems if I want to have a standard insurance + liability in case something happens to a tenant due to landlord fault I should be looking to pay around $3000 which seems extremely expensive. In comparison I pay $600 for the house I currently live in. 

Can you please let me know if you had the same experience when it comes to prices and if the additional protection will really be an advantage if something happens.

Best  

Chris

[Allen Maris]

Hi Chris,

I have a rental with a pool, which a lot of people don't recommend, but it was too good of a deal. I went with a well known insurance company that markets to investors. I bought the idea that their insurance was better than one of the normal homeowners companies because that's what they specialize in. Their policy cost me over double with a $5000 deductible. For the same liability coverage and a $1000 deductible, I'm now paying 1/2 the price with my normal insurance company that covers my primary residence and now a few other houses. Shop around, don't fall for the pitches and compare coverage.

I recommend getting extra liability coverage on a rental, it's too easy for someone to slip and fall and go after you.