Insurance for House Hack

[Mike Hinkley]

Hi all - apologies if this post is redundant, but I haven’t managed to find an answer to my particular scenario on the threads…

I am under contract on my first deal. It’s a 3/2 single family home with an internal/attached studio in-law suite. This is not a true duplex - the “units” have separate entrances but they are also adjoined by an internal door (will be permanently locked), the utilities are all together, and there’s only one address. I plan to house hack by living in the in-law suite and renting out the 3/2 unit to a long-term tenant. 

My question is what type of insurance policy(s) will I need to cover this situation? Is a normal homeowner’s insurance policy sufficient, or will I need a seperate landlord policy or umbrella liability policy, or some combination of the 3? Note, I am planning to require my tenant to carry renter’s insurance. 

Let me know if any further information about my situation would be useful to help answer the question… Thanks for your help!!

[Aaron Porter]

@Mike Hinkley  yes you will need a landlord policy.  this is mainly as you will have tenants and tenants create a different liability class than what is covered in a homeowners policy.  

requiring your tenants to have a renters policy is also a good call.  make sure that you are listed as an additional insured on their renters policy.  

having an umbrella is also a good call, but you have to have underlying coverage for an umbrella to work.  

The policy/policies that you will need may vary from one carrier to another.  one insurance carrier may be able to put the landlord with added personal property into one policy or they may want you to have separate policies.  working with a good independent insurance agent is what you actually need to do.  either use google and find someone local (make sure that your agent works with real estate investors on a regular basis.  as you scale and grow your needs will change and your agent needs to be able to understand how to set up your policies.