Help Please With Insurance On Rentals
Our Ins Co (the one that we have our home with) has insured our 2 rentals but said that it is not really a good idea to do this and we should think about getting Insurance with another company.
So I called 2 Farm Bureau they told me they would not insure rentals unless we had our homeowners with them.
State Farm took a look at the properties but since they were not rented(as of yet we are still reno them)they would not insure.
What is the true answer here? Good Idea or not to have personal home and rentals on the same Ins.
And who Insures rentals without having the homeowners with them also?
thanks
Mal
Foremost
Jam, will Foremost continue to insure rentals after the rehab is done, or only while the rehab is taking place?
Also, roughly how bad are the premiums in GA? We're leaving FL partly because insurance has become IMPOSSIBLE to secure and is going up by 35-40%.
You're gonna have to keep looking, make some calls. I've heard good things about Zurich, might start there. If you can find a young, hungry agent that may help, some complacent agents may not want to mess with the photos, inspections, etc. Just be sure you're upfront with all the details. I've had trouble getting insurance for my LLC-owned property; some companies won't write liability on them.
The whole insurance industry seems to be undergoing big changes since 9-11. Some companies have stopped writing commercial insurance. If you have a rental with a wood stove (like I do) you may not find anything til you disconnect that sucker. If you get turned down, your state may have a "Pool" program that can fill the gaps, but it can be expensive and may not include liability.
Zurich while the rehab's going on, Foremost when you're finished. If you're interested, I can send you the name/number of the agent I use, and they can quote you a price here in Ga. It's kinda ugly during the rehab, but it's not nearly as bad afterwards. Also, Foremost doesn't have an occupancy requirement, so they're easier to work with.
We are Insured right now with the company that has our home insured.
They just said it was not a good idea to combine the two. Which make sense to me.
Jam200 yes please thank you
Mal
we switched to Farm Bureau about 6 mos. ago...we have 5 rentals & our primary...at a much lower cost than Allstate...so far so good...CWal
Quote: They just said it was not a good idea to combine the two. Which make sense to me.
How does it make sense to you? I have all my rentals, primary residence, both car insurances, personal liability umbrella, and commerical liability umbrella all with State Farm. I love the fact that I have a single agent that knows my name and gives me his time.
I think they meant to NOT combine your home with the liability on the rentals. Separate the two, for sure. This article may help:
http://www.thecreativeinvestor.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&articleid=438
Best regards,
Tim
Quote:
On 2005-01-05 14:54, bgrossnickle wrote:
Quote: They just said it was not a good idea to combine the two. Which make sense to me.
How does it make sense to you? I have all my rentals, primary residence, both car insurances, personal liability umbrella, and commerical liability umbrella all with State Farm. I love the fact that I have a single agent that knows my name and gives me his time.
I have over 20 rentals with Liberty Mutual in Gainsville GA for 3 years. I have heard Hastings Mutual also insures rentals. I know nothing about Foremost but would appreciate hearing which you find to be the best. Thanks in advance
the reason it make sense is that if you ever had a claim on the rental you might could lose coverage on your primary res....
thanks for all the responses I will look into them.
Mal
ALLSTATE is a good company to go with for rentals, too... Just FYI!
Good Luck!
[addsig]
State Farm has a rehab policy... the agent you talked to must not be familiar with it but it is the only way they will cover an unoccupied property and their must truly be rehab going on (they will check).
Most conventional policies will not cover an unoccupied property. So, if your rental goes vacant and then is destroyed before you get it rented again the insurer can deny the claim.
I use foremost for my unoccupied properties. Their nonrefundable is much lower than others I have come across.
Since Property and Casualty insurance is mandated by the respective State's Insurance Department, most carriers products differ in each state. State Farm may not have the same contracts in every state...
Interesting, Liberty Mutual told me they didn't offer rental investment insurance so we went with State Farm. Must have been the agent I spoke to...
Quote:
On 2005-01-05 17:59, Flicker wrote:
I have over 20 rentals with Liberty Mutual in Gainsville GA for 3 years. I have heard Hastings Mutual also insures rentals. I know nothing about Foremost but would appreciate hearing which you find to be the best. Thanks in advance
I suspect it has to do with local numbers and what percentages rental properties the local offices want to carry. I've used State Farm as well.
[addsig]
It really depends on the appetite of the insurer for the type of risk in the respective market...[ Edited by norrist on Date 01/18/2005 ]
I have a vacant rental I bought and am rehabbing that I simply have covered as a vacation home through AAA. I have mentioned the "possibility" of renting it to them and they have said to let them know and they can switch the policy to a rental one.
You will need to make lots of calls. One thing I found out is that just because one state farm agent won't insure (or doesn't want to) doesn't mean another one won't – they are independently owned and operated. Some are willing to take more risk - some not. They all may have the same basic guidelines, but some chose to be pickier them others.
I called one state farm agent, out of the yellow pages, and he said he would, but then backed out once he saw the neighborhood. Called another state farm agent and she didn’t have any problem – been working with her now for over a year.
Quote:
On 2005-01-18 22:35, brianmi40 wrote:
I have a vacant rental I bought and am rehabbing that I simply have covered as a vacation home through AAA. I have mentioned the "possibility" of renting it to them and they have said to let them know and they can switch the policy to a rental one.
Don't fudge...insure it correctly. If you lie, or if the possibility even exists, not only can the insurer deny a claim, in many states insurance fraud is a felony...
Believe me, if an insurer can find a way to deny a claim...they will.
Hi Hoober,
and tend to shy away from business that may create some work! 
Though State Farm Agencies (similar to Allstate, Nationwide, etc... "the captives"...) are Independent Contractors, they are all subject to the same underwriting guidelines. One may have more opportunities depending on the type of contract they may have with the insurer, but the risk is the risk. I think your point is valid, though because many Agents become complacent (i.e. "lazy"
Tim
Here in MD, I use State Farm for all my rentals. Once, when I purchased a property that needed some rehab, I asked for a six month vacancy rider to my standard landlord policy.
I purchased the property in January. I explained that the rehab would take two to three weeks, which would put the property ready for service in early to mid-February. Marketing in February might mean that a prospective tenant would not be able to move in until April 1, if the tenant had to give 30 days notice before moving out of his current place. All this made sense to the person on the other end of the telephone line and I was issued a landlord policy.
The vacancy rider had a non-refundable, non-prorated premium but was a lot cheaper than a rehab policy on a vacant property.
I don't think State Farm has the "vacancy endorsement" in every state...
My agent acquired my policies through Foremost. My properties can be vacant no more than 60 days at a stretch or they will cancel on me.
All State!!! They insured an out of state property for me under rehab. They beat FOREMOST in cost and amount of coverage. All State also does not charge extra if the property is vacant!
I already have the policy. It is what the Agent explained to me over the phone & via email. I actually emailed the quote to FOREMOST to see if they could match it...not!
The one thing that I failed to mention in the first post is that I have to have a tenant within a minimum of 50 days after their drive-by inspection or the policy is subject to termination.
Rehab will be finsihed this week & tenant scheduled for February 01!
Thanks
I would negotiate with the insurance company to get a high monthly cashflow and a big security deposit in case of damage, but, I would do it. Insurance companies typically pay good rent. We had a house damaged by a hurricance and the insurance company paid us well (after negotiating) for loss of use every month until we had it fully repaired.
[addsig]
Maybe try a 6 month lease - 5 people to like each other and 5 rents to collect at least you as the landlord could call it quits if the the payment track record is poor.
Just food for thought.
Eric & Rosa
[addsig]
Or perhaps just do a month-to-month lease. Chances are likely that the student would not even care about the lease if they really wanted to move. Then go there the 30th day and see how they kept the place up, if bad, then 30 day notice(or raise rent), if good, sign a lease.