Landlord Insurance vs. Home Insurance

Co-author: TJ Ryan

If you’re considering purchasing an investment property, chances are, you’ve researched landlord insurance. You may also be asking yourself why you need it if you already have home and contents insurance. CANSTAR explains why.

What is home insurance?

Home insurance (also called property insurance or building insurance) helps to cover the cost of damage to or destruction of your home, garage, other outbuildings, and permanent fixtures such as built-in wardrobes.

For more information about home and contents insurance, click here.

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What is landlord insurance?

Landlord insurance covers everything that a normal home insurance policy would – and also covers several must-haves for investment property owners that are not part of standard home insurance policies.

And the good news is that because it is an investment expense, your policy premium is tax deductible.

For more information about landlord insurance, click here.

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Landlord insurance vs. home insurance features

Landlord insurance	Home building insurance
Fire and explosions (caused by gas leaks) Storm damage such as lightning strikes, falling trees, earthquakes, flooding etc. Vehicle collisions with the building Theft or burglary by tenants or their guests Malicious damage or vandalism by tenants or their guests Loss of rent due to tenant default Legal expenses required to evict a tenant	Fire and explosions (caused by gas leaks) Storm damage such as lightning strikes, falling trees, earthquakes, flooding etc. Vandalism Vehicle collisions with the building

Comparison Example Scenario: A tree falls on to a house during a violent storm, leaving the property uninhabitable for 9 weeks.

Solutions: A Landlord Insurance policy would respond by covering the loss of rent during this period. A Building Insurance policy would respond by covering the cost of repairing the properties structure.

Compare landlord insurance policies with CANSTAR

If you’re thinking about purchasing an investment property and letting it out to tenants (or you already do) it’s important to do a bit of research in order to find a policy that suits your particular needs. There are lots to consider when it comes to taking out landlord insurance.

Fortunately, CANSTAR compares over 40+ landlord insurance policies to find the right one for you.

Compare Landlord Insurance