Umbrella insurance for mutliple property types in multiple states

[Jared Au]

Hi, I have 24 properties between my wife and I (all held in our individual trusts) and my self-directed IRA (three properties). Up until this point, I had underlying insurance for all properties (minimum of $500K per property with various insurers- State Farm, Travelers, Safeco, etc.) and I had a $1M umbrella policy for up to 20 investment properties (personal umbrella policy was separate) with State Farm for the bargain price of $250 a year. In the last two renewals, State Farm has made the commercial umbrella renewal process extreme onerous and has attached a plethora of conditions for renewal. At this next renewal, the conditions list got longer to the point that my State Farm broker advised me to find another carrier for umbrella insurance until State Farm's underwriting department wasn't as demanding. I've tried reaching out to numerous companies, including Chubb, independent insurance brokers, and other mainstream brokers, but all have said they have an issue as I have multiple property types (triplexes, duplexes, single family homes, condos, short-term rentals) and they are scattered in multiple states (I currently own in 12 different states). I do have a quote from an insurance broker, but the price is about $4,100 for umbrella coverage, a significant increase (which to be honest, is not unexpected as the previous annual premium by State Farm was about $12.50 a property per year). I don't like the price (it's also for only $1M in umbrella coverage), but I do like that I am not limited to 20 total properties (as I expect to acquire more properties in the future as well) and I have the option of increasing coverage ($1M was the maximum commercial umbrella coverage with State Farm). One broker I spoke with (that ultimately turned me down) did say they would consider providing umbrella coverage, but they would require a minimum $25,000 in business (meaning I would have to convert all my underlying coverages to them) and also move my primary home and auto coverages to them, which to me was a risk since many companies are not insuring in California right now (I live in Sacramento). I've also considered increasing the underlying insurance for each property, but I have an issue as I have about 7 properties covered by Safeco and Travelers, and both insurance companies will not provide underlying liability insurance in excess of $500K. I just want to put my story out there and see if anyone else has had this issue and if they were able to figure out a solution, if they would be so kind to provide a lead/contact that provides umbrella insurance coverage for this type of scenario (24 properties in 12 US states with multiple property types). Thank you in advance for reading and any potential guidance.

[Jimmy Lieu]

Quote from @Jared Au:

Hi, I have 24 properties between my wife and I (all held in our individual trusts) and my self-directed IRA (three properties). Up until this point, I had underlying insurance for all properties (minimum of $500K per property with various insurers- State Farm, Travelers, Safeco, etc.) and I had a $1M umbrella policy for up to 20 investment properties (personal umbrella policy was separate) with State Farm for the bargain price of $250 a year. In the last two renewals, State Farm has made the commercial umbrella renewal process extreme onerous and has attached a plethora of conditions for renewal. At this next renewal, the conditions list got longer to the point that my State Farm broker advised me to find another carrier for umbrella insurance until State Farm's underwriting department wasn't as demanding. I've tried reaching out to numerous companies, including Chubb, independent insurance brokers, and other mainstream brokers, but all have said they have an issue as I have multiple property types (triplexes, duplexes, single family homes, condos, short-term rentals) and they are scattered in multiple states (I currently own in 12 different states). I do have a quote from an insurance broker, but the price is about $4,100 for umbrella coverage, a significant increase (which to be honest, is not unexpected as the previous annual premium by State Farm was about $12.50 a property per year). I don't like the price (it's also for only $1M in umbrella coverage), but I do like that I am not limited to 20 total properties (as I expect to acquire more properties in the future as well) and I have the option of increasing coverage ($1M was the maximum commercial umbrella coverage with State Farm). One broker I spoke with (that ultimately turned me down) did say they would consider providing umbrella coverage, but they would require a minimum $25,000 in business (meaning I would have to convert all my underlying coverages to them) and also move my primary home and auto coverages to them, which to me was a risk since many companies are not insuring in California right now (I live in Sacramento). I've also considered increasing the underlying insurance for each property, but I have an issue as I have about 7 properties covered by Safeco and Travelers, and both insurance companies will not provide underlying liability insurance in excess of $500K. I just want to put my story out there and see if anyone else has had this issue and if they were able to figure out a solution, if they would be so kind to provide a lead/contact that provides umbrella insurance coverage for this type of scenario (24 properties in 12 US states with multiple property types). Thank you in advance for reading and any potential guidance.

Hey Jared, it sounds like you’ve built an impressive multi-state portfolio and are running into one of the tougher challenges of scaling: finding umbrella coverage that actually keeps up with growth and property diversity. What you’re seeing with State Farm and other carriers isn’t unusual—once you hit multiple property types across many states, traditional carriers often push back or set restrictive limits, and premiums jump because of the complexity and perceived risk. A few approaches people in similar situations use are working with national specialty insurers that focus on high-net-worth or multi-state portfolios, bundling as much coverage as possible under a single carrier to meet their minimums while still keeping some flexibility, or layering coverage with excess liability policies that sit on top of your underlying property insurance to increase your total umbrella protection. It’s also worth exploring brokers who specifically handle real estate investors with large, multi-state portfolios—they often have access to carriers that won’t show up on standard comparisons. It’s definitely more expensive than the old “per property” $12/year approach, but with multiple states and property types, having sufficient coverage to protect your assets usually outweighs the premium. Happy to connect and answer any questions you have!