What is Condo Insurance?

Condo insurance provides coverage for your personal belongings and liability, as well as additions, alterations and improvements made to your condo unit.

Your condo or homeowners association (HOA) requires you carry liability insurance and coverage for the “walls in” portion of the unit that you own. Generally “walls in” includes flooring, sheet rock, cabinets, countertops, bathroom finish out and the alike.

The homeowners or condo insurance association should have a policy in place that is separate from yours that covers the exterior of the building. Note that the associations’ policy usually does not provide coverage for your or belongings or your condo unit.

If common areas are damaged, your condo association may levy assessments against all the owners to pay the deductible on their association policy. You should be compensated for additional living expenses incurred if you need to vacate your condo after a covered loss.

Be sure to consult your HOA agreement to determine what their policy covers and what you are responsible for.

Protecting your personal possessions is as important as protecting your condo itself

Some policies offer Actual Cash Value (ACV), and for a few more dollars you can elect Replacement Cost or Full Value without regard for depreciation.

How much property insurance do you need? It is hard to tell how much you have accumulated over the years and what it’s all worth unless you make a personal property inventory.

Proceed room by room, listing all personal belongings and their estimated replacement costs. Don’t forget about closets or storage areas. Create a miscellaneous column on your list for any items that may not fit into a room category.

Be sure to store a copy of your inventory video or photographs along with the inventory list in your safe deposit box or at another secure location offsite for safekeeping.

Because values are constantly changing, you should update your personal property inventory from time to time and whenever you make a significant purchase.

Ultimately, it is your responsibility to confirm how much money you will need to rebuild your condo and replace your belongings if destroyed. When in doubt you can have a professional appraiser calculate the cost to rebuild the “walls in” portion of the condo.