Renting Out Your House in California? Your Homeowners Policy Probably Won't Follow

Usually not. A homeowners policy is written for a home you live in. Once a tenant moves in, it usually isn't the right policy anymore, and a claim is a bad time to find that out.

If you're renting out your house in California, the insurance needs a fresh look before the tenant gets the keys. That's true if you bought the home as a rental, and it's true if you moved out of your own house and decided to keep it.

Darlene Baxter is a licensed California insurance agent and owner of Darlene Baxter Insurance Agency in Pleasant Hill, CA, helping homeowners, families and business owners get covered with real choices: their main company first, and other companies through the brokerage when it isn't the right fit. She and Michelle Henning handle the agency's landlord policies themselves.

It does three main jobs.

• The building. It pays to repair or rebuild after a covered loss like a fire.
• Your liability. It protects you if a tenant or a guest gets hurt on the property and blames you.
• Lost rent. It can replace the rent you lose while the home is being repaired and nobody can live there.

The policy wording always decides what's covered. We go through the coverages with you before you sign anything, not after. Our landlord insurance page has the full picture.

Your tenant's belongings. Their furniture, clothes and electronics are theirs to insure with renters insurance. Many landlords require it in the lease.

Earthquake and flood. Both are left out, the same as on a home you live in. Each takes its own policy, and we can help with earthquake insurance for a rental too.

Yes. A long-term tenant signs a lease, usually for 12 months or more. A short-term rental is booked for shorter stays with no long-term lease, often through sites like Airbnb. The two are insured differently.

We insure both. Tell us up front which one your property is, so it's set up the right way from the start.

We start with regular companies. If none will take the property right now, the California FAIR Plan paired with a wrap policy can be the path, the same as for a home you live in. Our FAIR Plan and wrap policy page explains how the two fit together.

One client who owns several properties put it this way:

★★★★★

"Whether it is an owner occupied, 2nd home or an investment property she can do it all."

Your liability adds up with each one. An umbrella policy adds more liability coverage on top of all of them, and it's worth a look once you have more than one door.

A building with more than four units is a commercial apartment building. Our business insurance side handles those.

Darlene Baxter is a licensed California insurance agent and owner of Darlene Baxter Insurance Agency in Pleasant Hill, CA, helping homeowners, families and business owners get covered with real choices: their main company first, and other companies through the brokerage when it isn't the right fit.

Call the office at (925) 940-6970 or send us a message before the tenant moves in, so there's no gap. If you're renting out your house in California, tell us about the property and who will be living there. The steps we follow are the same for a rental as for your own home.