Condominium Insurance

Condominiums and townhouses have special insurance needs. They don't need as much insurance as a house, but owners have more to insure than a renter. The insurance needs for a condo owner include personal property and liability coverage's. Special policies for condominium owners, known as form HO-6, will provide the liability and personal property protection a condominium owner needs.

As a condominium owner, one needs to insure not only their personal possessions in the condo, but also any built in units such as cabinets, fixtures, appliances and shelves. In addition to covering the personal property, a condo owner also needs liability coverage. The liability portion of the policy would cover injuries or damage to people or property that the condo owner would be liable for.

Before You Buy Insurance

Before purchasing a condominium policy, check with your condominium association to make sure you're buying the insurance you need.

• Find out what parts of the interior are covered by your condo association's insurance and what items are your responsibilities. Then make sure that you have adequate insurance to cover repairing or replacing the items for which you are responsible.
• The contents of your condominium are not insured under the association's master condominium policy. So, estimate the cost to replace your contents and buy insurance for that amount.
• Your association's master condominium policy does not provide any liability coverage for your unit or your personal exposures. So, make sure you purchase adequate liability insurance, usually $300,000 to $500,000 or more, depending on your situation.
• If your association has insufficient funds, you may be assessed a proportionate share to pay for damage to your building and other situations. Check to see whether the condominium insurance you purchase covers these assessments. Buy this Loss Assessment Coverage in amounts of $5,000, $10,000 or more.