FWOTW: Saving money on condo insurance

Our frugal win of the week (FWOTW) comes in the form of saving money on condo insurance for our rental property.  When we receive new insurance (home or auto) policy renewals each year, we always try to get a few outside quotes to see if we are paying the best rates possible.  Spending a few minutes calling around can save hundreds of dollars. 

This year, I received a letter from our rental property lender stating that we needed to lower the deductible on our HO-6 insurance from $5,000 to $500.  An HO-6 insurance policy is condo insurance that protects a condo unit while providing personal property coverage, liability coverage and living expenses if a condo becomes uninhabitable.  HO-6 insurance is designed to coordinate coverage with the condo association master policy, which covers the building’s common areas.  We were paying $323.91 annually for our HO-6 insurance and lowering our deductible would have increased our premium by $188.98 to a whooping $512.89!

It’s important to keep our rental property operational costs down so that we continue to be profitable.  Keeping tenants’ rental costs down also keeps them happy.  I asked a few local landlords which insurance companies they used and also got the name of a few insurance brokers.  Insurance agents can often find the best pricing since they are very familiar with the types of coverage individuals need.

We were able to find new HO-6 insurance coverage with an annual premium of only $193!  This new insurance offered similar coverage with a few changes that we didn’t need, such as $20,000 coverage of personal belongings (not needed since it is our rental property).

After a few phone calls and emails, we were all set up for another year of rental property HO-6 insurance.  This only took about an hour of time and saved us $319.89 ($512.89 - $193.00)!