Are
you a landlord? Do you rent your properties to tenants? Well, that’s a pretty
good source of income but have you ever thought of the financial and legal
risks over letting your properties on rent could bring you? The perfect answer
for that is a specialized form of insurance formally known as landlord
insurance.
Having
a healthy understanding of the real-world things that can go wrong with rental
real estate, and how the legal system often assigns liability. Carefree
attitude of landlords, can frequently torn apart limb from limb in bankruptcy
courts to extract damages that would instead be borne by the landlord
insurance.
Your
standard homeowners insurance won’t solve the purpose. If that’s all you have,
and your tenant can sue you, your world can still fall apart.
Here
are seven reasons why you should change your mind & opt the Landlord
insurance.
If you have purchased a property for the sole
purpose of renting it, and you no longer a resident in it, then you are
endangering yourself and you are vulnerable to a huge financial loss and thus
the need for a proper landlord insurance comes in to place.
Check
with your insurance provider for specific exclusions. Some are more tolerant of
short-term/vacation/occasional rentals than others. Be aware that renting your
property over a month per year will likely prevent your homeowners insurance
policy from giving you the protection you need.
If
you’re renting a property and a tenant gets seriously injured, they may sue you
fatal injuries and damages. Your personal liability insurance on your policy
likely won’t cover damages to tenants who live there for an extended period of
time. Your homeowner’s insurance carrier did not sign on for that risk, and there
is a high chance of denying the claim and you must face the legal consequences.
Umbrella
coverage is important and cheaper. One of the reasons it’s cheap is that it
only goes into effect after other kinds of insurance have paid out their
maximum claims. If a tenant sues you and you don’t carry landlord insurance,
your umbrella carrier may resist paying the claim as well. Their lawyers would
argue that you were negligent in not obtaining the basic landlord coverage, and
therefore misrepresented your true risk profile to them.
4.You Need More Liable Coverage Than Homeowners Insurance Typically Provides
Most
homeowner’s insurance policies limit personal liability coverage to a few
hundred thousand dollars. But landlords frequently face lawsuits with damages
that amount to much more than that, particularly when negligence is involved.
Landlords typically need at least $1 million in liability coverage.
Increasing
your overall liability coverage from a couple hundred thousand dollars to $1
million may cost you a few hundred dollars more per year. The immense
difference in protection is worth it, however, in that it will provide
sufficient coverage for the vast majority of lawsuits and other legal actions.
If
you’re embroiled in a landlord-tenant legal dispute or are being sued by a
tenant, your homeowner’s insurance carrier may not cover your legal costs.
Their policies are limited to non-landlord tenants, which have a very different
risk profile.
The
costs of legal representation can easily run to $50,000 or more. Most landlord
insurance policies provide help with legal defense, including a “duty to defend
clause,” that’s specific to cases that arise as a result of activities related
to managing rental real estate.
Standard
homeowners insurance doesn’t provide coverage for housing discrimination
lawsuits or problems arising from disputes over the Americans with Disabilities
Act, the Fair Housing Act, state regulations or anything else. Landlord
insurance carriers understand that these disputes occasionally happen, even
with landlords who never intend to discriminate. They therefore design their
landlord insurance coverage with this in mind.
Suppose
you have a tenant whose dog bites a child. The average dog bite claim is close
to $30,000, but few renters would be able to pay that much. Many plaintiffs’
lawyers will go after the landlord, knowing where the pockets are deepest. If
all you have is a homeowners insurance policy, and you file a claim, you’re
going to have problems with your insurance carrier the moment they find out you
have a renter.
Also
Lost Income Is Covered If Property Becomes old and inhabitable.
Many
landlord insurance policies come with fair rental income insurance that will
cover your lost income if your tenants have to move out because they can’t live
in the dwelling anymore due to it being inhabitable.
No comments:
Post a Comment