For Austin, TX homeowners, landlord insurance is one of the most important things you can have in place to protect your investment. With the ownership of a rental property, you take on significantly more risk by owning a home that you do not occupy. As most Austin, TX landlords have come to find out, renters can be irresponsible. You try your best to vet your tenants to find a good fit for your home, but you have no control over your tenants choices and behaviors.
You face a major liability exposure by having a tenant occupied home. If a tenant or a tenants guest is injured on your property you can be sure they’ll want recourse from you.
5 Austin, TX Landlord Insurance Tips
- Require your tenant to carry renters insurance. If someone is injured on your Austin, TX property due to your tenants negligence, making sure they have liability coverage on their renters insurance will help transfer risk from yourself to the tenant. This will also ensure that they have insurance for their own personal items and loss of use coverage in the event there is an insurable loss and they need to relocate for the time being.
- Make sure you have sufficient loss of rent coverage. Sometimes a property will suffer damage that leaves the property uninhabitable for sometime. This leaves you with the burden of having repairs made on your home and now having no rental income since your tenant had to move out. We always recommend 12-18 months worth of loss of rental income coverage.
- Make sure your policy is a DP(dwelling policy)3, not a DP-1. A Dp-1 only covers 10 perils that can cause damage to your home, whereas a DP-3 offers the most comprehensive coverage. DP1 policies also only pay you the actual cash value for a home, which is the replacement cost minus depreciation. A Dp3 provides you with the full replacement cost value.
- Replacement cost coverage for your roof. If you are not from Austin, TX you may not understand just how serious hail storms can be. Due to the high volume of hail claims many insurance carriers will only provide actual cash value coverage for your roof. Try to make sure you are with a company that provides full replacement cost coverage.
- Work with an independent agent. A good, independent insurance agent will make sure you have the appropriate coverage for your rental property or properties. The last thing you want is an issue at your rental property to back fire because you did not have the right coverage in place.
At Don Williams & Associates we work with the top landlord insurance companies in Austin, TX. From Safeco Insurance to Travelers Insurance we have a wide array of companies to choose from.
Reach out to one of our insurance experts today at 408-402-3646 or fill out a form below to see how we can help protect your Austin, TX rental property!