There are so many people deciding to become landlords for the first time nowadays. But the ones that succeed will be the ones that get everything right – including the insurance. Here’s your guide to landlord insurance.
What You Need
Every landlord needs landlord insurance. It’s not enough to get an ordinary home insurance policy; you need one that’s tailored specifically for landlords. If you have an ordinary policy and the something happens to the property, the insurer probably won’t pay out.
There are lots of landlord insurance policies out there so make sure you compare them to find the best. Below, I will discuss some of the essential cover that your policy should include. Remember, cheaper doesn’t necessarily mean better.
Building
Every landlord insurance will cover your building. Your building is probably the most valuable asset you have, so it needs to be covered. Typical landlord insurance policies will cover damage to your property sustained in instances such as fires, floods and storms.
This is the very minimum you should expect from your landlord insurance policy. But read all the small print and make sure you’re getting exactly what you expect to from the policy. I wouldn’t recommend using a policy that only covered your building though, read on to find out what else you should have.
Contents
Contents insurance covers all the items in your home. This is especially important for landlords if you’re renting out a property that’s fully furnished. You’re going to be putting a lot of trust in the tenant, so it’s nice to have the peace of mind offered by contents insurance.
Even if you’re renting out an unfurnished property, it can be a good idea to have an insurance policy that covers contents. You’ll have light fixtures and doors in the property at the very least, and content insurance will cover these items.
Malicious Damage
No landlord wants to think about the possibility of having their property damaged by a tenant. These things do happen though, unfortunately. You can never fully trust a tenant if you don’t know them, so make sure you’re covered for malicious damage.
Another thing you should do is do your best to find good tenants. You could use a company like London2let to act as a middleman between you and the tenant. That way you’ll have more security. You should make sure you get references from potential renters too.
Loss of Rent
Being a landlord can be a precarious job. To start with, you’ll probably be heavily reliant on incoming rent to cover your mortgage costs. So, you’ll be in big trouble if, for some reason, you suffer a loss of rent.
A lot of policies will cover loss of rent. Cheaper policies won’ do though, that’s why you need to weigh up the pros and cons of every insurance policy before you take on out. If the tenant refuses to pay or the house becomes uninhabitable, this part of the policy will cover you.
Being a landlord can be a great way of making money, but you can only do that if you first get the right insurance in place.