Loosely speaking insurance can be defined as a measure of recompense given by an insurer for pre-defined loss or damage. This insurance is provided at a specified premium. For the purposes of understanding landlord insurance, we will examine it as insurance specifically designed for rental properties. Moreover, it provides building insurance, contents insurance, rental protection insurance, as well as liability insurance. There are a host of insurance companies on the market, either selling insurance directly or through brokerages. So take your time to research and settle on a company that suits your needs and is offering you a great package.
Landlord insurance
To fully understand landlord insurance, you need to understand that it includes one or more of;
1. Buildings insurance
Building insurance can be viewed as insurance that is designed with particular emphasis on physical structures. This type of insurance covers the financial aspects of repairing damage to the physical structure in the event of predetermined damage or theft. By extension, the physical structure includes floors, walls, roof, as well as permanent fixtures and fittings.
2. Contents insurance
Unlike buildings insurance, contents insurance protects your household belongings against theft, loss, and damage. Most people do not appreciate the importance of contents insurance until they are forced to fork out thousands of Kwacha to replace their household goods. As such it is generally a good idea to acquire contents insurance. In most instances, this type of insurance will cover your electrics goods, furniture, as well as jewelry. In addition, it can also cover clothes plus money. There are instances where insurance providers can go as far as covering the contents of your shed.
3. Rental protection insurance
Simply put, rental protection insurance covers the cost of tenants defaulting on their rental payments. As a landlord, you have a lot of obligations, responsibilities, and stress, so this product comes in handy to alleviate some of that. In most cases, property owners use their rental income to cover a portion of their mortgage repayment. As such a defaulting tenant could negatively impact your ability to meet your mortgage repayment obligations. One of the greatest benefits of this type of insurance is the guaranteed peace of mind it gives landlords.
4. Liability insurance
Liability insurance is great for providing you with protection against claims emanating from injuries, or damage to people and property. On the one hand, it covers the legal costs, whilst on the other hand, it covers any payout if you’re found legally liable. In either case, the length of sorting out these issues, as well as the associated costs can be quite substantial.
5. Unoccupied property insurance
Lastly, we examine unoccupied property insurance. Although the concept of unoccupied property insurance is quite foreign to many Zambians, it is none the less very important. This is because unoccupied property insurance provides you with cover in between tenants.
Benefits of landlord insurance
- Firstly, landlord insurance guarantees that regardless of the tenant in your property, it always protected.
- Secondly, in the event that your tenant defaults, your earnings from the property are guaranteed.
- You also receive compensation for any damage the tenant causes ensuring quick repairs.
- In the event that your property becomes uninhabitable, you receive cover to make alternative arrangements for your tenants.
- Property owners liability cover helps to meet legal and payout costs, giving you peace of mind.
Finally, remember that protecting your property is essential. At the end of the day, landlord insurance protects your investment, your asset, as well as your future income.
