Use your HO-6 (condo) policy for “walls-in” coverage, not just assuming the HOA master policy covers your unit.
The Shell vs. Everything Inside the Nut
Imagine your condo is a walnut. The HOA’s “master policy” is the insurance on the hard, outer shell. It protects the building’s exterior and the common areas. But your personal HO-6 policy is the insurance for everything inside that shell. It covers your drywall, your flooring, your cabinets, and all your personal belongings. Never assume the HOA’s policy covers anything inside your front door. You are responsible for insuring your unit from the “walls-in,” and that is the primary job of your HO-6.
Stop thinking renter’s insurance (HO-4) is just for your stuff. Do understand it provides critical liability coverage instead.
The Fire Extinguisher for Your Life, Not Just Your Couch
You buy renter’s insurance to replace your couch if there’s a fire. But its most powerful, and most overlooked, feature is the liability coverage. This is the legal fire extinguisher for your entire financial life. If your dog bites someone at the park, if a guest slips and falls in your kitchen, or if you accidentally start a fire that damages the entire building, this is the coverage that pays for the lawyers and the massive, life-altering lawsuit. The stuff is replaceable; the liability protection is priceless.
Stop letting your landlord’s insurance company bully you. Do refer them to your own renter’s insurance for liability claims instead.
Your Bodyguard vs. Their Hired Muscle
Imagine you accidentally cause a small kitchen fire. Your landlord’s insurance company will send their hired muscle—a subrogation adjuster—to come after you for the repair costs. Do not try to fight this professional brawler yourself. You must immediately refer them to your own, personal bodyguard: your renter’s insurance company. The “liability” portion of your policy means your insurer is now legally obligated to step in, hire lawyers, and defend you from the landlord’s hired muscle.
The #1 secret to a condo claim is getting a copy of the HOA’s master policy and the bylaws to see where their coverage ends and yours begins.
The Official Property Line on a Shared Map
A condo claim is a border dispute. Where does the HOA’s property end and yours begin? The only way to know is to get the official map. The HOA’s master policy and the bylaws are that map. They will show you the exact property line. Does their responsibility stop at the bare, concrete walls, or does it include your drywall and your cabinets? You cannot win your claim until you have this map in your hands, showing you the exact location of the border.
I’m just going to say it: Your HOA’s master policy likely has a massive deductible that you will be assessed for.
The Surprise Bill for the Party You Didn’t Even Attend
Imagine the HOA throws a giant, expensive party (a new roof after a hailstorm). The bill for that party is the master policy’s deductible, which can be $25,000 or even $50,000. To pay for it, the HOA will divide that bill among all the residents. This is a “loss assessment.” Suddenly, you will get a surprise bill in the mail for your share of the party, even though you didn’t attend. This is one of the most common and shocking hidden costs of condo ownership.
The reason your condo claim is so confusing is because you don’t know if the master policy is “all-in” or “bare walls.”
The House That Comes Fully Furnished vs. the Empty Shell
There are two types of master policies. An “all-in” policy is like buying a house that comes fully furnished. It covers the structure, the drywall, the cabinets, and the fixtures. A “bare walls” policy is like buying an empty, concrete shell. It covers only the structure, and you are responsible for everything else. The reason your claim is so confusing is that you are in a dispute without knowing which type of house you live in. You must find out if you own the furniture or just the shell.
If you’re still not claiming “Loss of Use” on your renter’s policy after a fire forces you out, you’re losing your housing expenses.
The Lifeboat That Takes You to a Safe Harbor
When a fire makes your apartment unlivable, your landlord has no obligation to pay for you to live somewhere else. This is where your renter’s insurance becomes your lifeboat. The “Loss of Use” or “Additional Living Expenses” coverage is the part of your policy that pays for your hotel bills, your restaurant meals, and other costs while you are displaced. It is the fuel for your lifeboat, ensuring you can get to a safe harbor without draining your own savings.
The biggest lie you’ve been told is that you don’t need renter’s insurance.
The Financial Parachute You Hope You’ll Never Need, but Will Be Grateful For
Saying you don’t need renter’s insurance because “my stuff isn’t worth much” is like saying you don’t need a parachute because “I don’t plan on the plane crashing.” The real value is not in replacing your used furniture. It is the powerful liability coverage, the financial parachute that will save your entire future if you are the one who accidentally causes the “crash”—the kitchen fire, the overflowing bathtub—that leads to a massive, life-ruining lawsuit. It’s not for your stuff; it’s for your life.
I wish I knew about “loss assessment” coverage before my condo board hit me with a $5,000 bill for a roof replacement.
The Insurance for Your Neighbor’s Mistake
“Loss assessment” coverage is insurance for a bill you get because of your neighbor’s mistake. Imagine a guest slips and falls in the condo’s shared swimming pool, and the HOA gets hit with a huge lawsuit. If the settlement exceeds the HOA’s liability limit, they will divide the remaining bill among all the unit owners. Your “loss assessment” coverage is the special, personal fund that pays for your share of that unexpected, communal disaster. It is insurance for the risks of living in a shared community.
99% of renters make this one mistake: they have no idea how much their personal property is actually worth.
The Invisible Fortune Hiding in Your Closet
You might think, “I don’t own much.” This is a dangerous illusion. You are forgetting about the invisible fortune that is hiding in your closet and your cabinets. Take one minute and mentally add up the cost to replace every single pair of shoes, every shirt, every towel, every dish, and every book you own. The number will be shockingly high, often tens of thousands of dollars. Not understanding the true replacement cost of your life’s belongings is the #1 reason renters are tragically underinsured.
Use your HO-6 policy to cover your upgrades and betterments, not just relying on the HOA’s basic finishes.
The Granite Countertops in a Formica World
The HOA’s master policy is designed to replace your unit with the cheap, builder-grade materials it was originally built with. It is a Formica world. But you have spent $30,000 upgrading your kitchen with granite countertops and custom cabinets. Your personal HO-6 policy is the only place to insure these “upgrades and betterments.” It is the policy that recognizes you have turned your basic unit into a high-end home, and it ensures you will be paid for the granite, not the Formica.
Stop just accepting the HOA’s declaration of fault. Do let your own insurer investigate the cause of the loss instead.
The HOA’s Opinion vs. Your Insurer’s Professional Investigation
The volunteer HOA board is not a team of forensic engineers. When a pipe bursts, their declaration of who is at fault is just an amateur’s opinion, and it is usually biased to protect the HOA’s wallet. You must not accept their verdict. You should immediately file a claim with your own insurance company. They will then send their own professional investigator to determine the true cause of the loss. Let the two insurance companies fight it out, armed with real evidence, not just the opinion of your neighbor on the board.
Stop letting your landlord demand you pay for damages out of pocket. Do file a claim under your liability coverage instead.
The Angry Customer vs. Your Corporate Legal Department
When your overflowing sink damages the apartment below you, your landlord might demand you write them a personal check. Do not do this. The angry landlord is just a customer with a complaint. Your renter’s insurance liability coverage is your personal, corporate legal department. You must not engage with the angry customer; you must immediately forward their complaint to your legal team. They will investigate the claim, determine if you are actually liable, and pay the damages if you are.
The #1 hack for a condo water damage claim is to determine whose pipe failed first.
The Detective Work That Follows the Water Upstream
A water damage claim in a condo is a detective story. The key is to find the source. Was it your toilet supply line that burst inside your unit? Or was it the common-area pipe that is hidden inside the wall between your unit and your neighbor’s? The answer to that one question determines which of the two insurance policies—your personal HO-6 or the HOA’s master policy—is responsible for the damage. The entire case hinges on the forensic work of following the water back to its source.
I’m just going to say it: Your landlord is not your friend when an insurance claim is involved.
The Business Partner Who Is Now Your Financial Adversary
Your landlord might be a wonderful person. But the moment you have a claim that could cost them money, the dynamic changes. You are no longer a tenant and a friendly landlord; you are two business partners on the opposite side of a high-stakes financial negotiation. Their goal is to protect their asset and their money. Your goal is to protect yours. The friendly relationship must be set aside, and you must treat the situation as a formal, documented business dispute.
The reason your personal property claim is being denied is because you can’t prove ownership or value.
The Story of a Stolen Laptop vs. the Receipt for a Stolen Laptop
Telling an adjuster that your $2,000 laptop was stolen is just a story. They can, and will, question it. But if you can provide them with the original receipt, a credit card statement showing the purchase, and the serial number, your story has just been transformed into a proven fact. Without this “proof of ownership and value,” you are asking them to take your word for it. With the documentation, you are presenting them with an undeniable, contractual obligation to pay.
If you’re still not taking a video inventory of your apartment, you’re losing your best proof for a renter’s claim.
The Five-Minute Movie That Can Save Your Financial Life
Imagine a fire destroys your apartment. The adjuster hands you a blank sheet of paper and says, “List everything you owned.” It’s an impossible task. A video inventory is the ultimate cheat sheet. A simple, five-minute walk through your apartment with your smartphone, narrating what you see, creates a perfect, high-definition record of your life’s belongings. When the disaster happens, you will not have to rely on your traumatized memory; you can simply press “play.” It is the best five minutes you will ever spend.
The biggest lie you’ve been told by your landlord is, “My insurance covers the building, so you’re all set.”
The Insurance on the Box, Not on Your Treasures Inside
Your landlord is telling you a half-truth that is actually a whole lie. Their insurance policy covers their asset, which is the physical building—the box you live in. It provides exactly zero coverage for your assets, which are all the treasures you have stored inside that box. If there is a fire, their insurance will rebuild the box, but you will be left standing on the street with absolutely nothing. Only your own renter’s policy will pay to replace your treasures.
I wish I knew my HO-6 policy could cover the master policy deductible.
The Insurance Policy for Your HOA’s Insurance Policy
When the HOA has a major claim, they have to pay their massive deductible, often $25,000 or more. They will then pass that cost on to you and all the other residents as a “loss assessment.” But your own, personal HO-6 policy has a secret, powerful benefit. It often includes a specific coverage that is designed to pay for your share of that master policy deductible. It is an insurance policy for your insurance policy, and it can save you from a shocking, five-figure surprise bill.
99% of condo owners make this one mistake: they don’t buy enough “Coverage A” (Dwelling) to cover their interior structure.
You Own More of the Building Than You Think
Condo owners think the master policy covers the whole building, so they only buy a tiny amount of “Coverage A” on their personal policy. This is a catastrophic mistake. You are often responsible for insuring everything from the drywall inward—the plumbing in the walls, the flooring, the cabinets, the electrical. The cost to rebuild the entire interior of your unit after a fire can be enormous. You must get a real estimate for this interior build-out and insure it for its full value.
Use your renter’s policy’s “Medical Payments to Others” to cover a guest’s minor injury, not letting it become a lawsuit.
The Small Band-Aid That Prevents a Major Lawsuit
A guest slips in your kitchen and has to go to the emergency room for a few stitches. Your renter’s policy has a small, no-fault “goodwill” fund called “Medical Payments to Others.” It’s like having a high-tech, expensive band-aid in your first-aid kit. You can use this coverage to immediately pay for your guest’s medical bill, no questions asked. By applying this small, quick band-aid, you can often prevent the small wound from getting infected and turning into a massive, painful, and expensive lawsuit.
Stop arguing with your neighbor over a leak. Do file a claim with your own insurer and let them subrogate against your neighbor’s policy instead.
Let the Two Insurance Armies Fight Their Own War
The toilet in your upstairs neighbor’s condo overflows and ruins your ceiling. Arguing with your neighbor is a pointless, emotional battle. You must not fight this war yourself. You should immediately file a claim with your own insurance company. They will pay to fix your ceiling, and then their lawyers will go to war with your neighbor’s insurance company to get their money back. This process is called “subrogation.” You are letting the two professional armies fight it out, while you stay safely behind the lines.
Stop thinking you don’t have enough stuff to justify renter’s insurance. Do add up the cost to replace your clothes, furniture, and electronics instead.
The Price of an Empty Shopping Cart
Look around your apartment. It might not look like much. Now, imagine you have to go to Target with a giant, empty shopping cart and buy every single thing in your apartment again, brand new, at today’s prices. The bed, the sofa, the TV, the computer, every single shirt and pair of shoes, every fork and knife. That shopping cart would cost you tens of thousands of dollars. Renter’s insurance is not for the used stuff you have; it’s for the fortune it would cost to replace it.
The #1 secret for a renter is that your policy is incredibly cheap for the amount of protection it provides.
The Million-Dollar Lawsuit Shield That Costs Less Than Pizza
A renter’s insurance policy is one of the greatest bargains in the financial world. For the price of one or two pizzas a month, you are buying two incredible things. The first is the money to replace every single thing you own. The second, and more important, is a massive, million-dollar liability shield that will protect your entire financial future from a devastating lawsuit. It is the most powerful and important financial parachute you can buy, and it costs less than your Netflix subscription.
I’m just going to say it: A good landlord will require you to have renter’s insurance.
The Landlord Who Wants a Responsible Partner, Not a Risky Tenant
A landlord who requires you to have renter’s insurance is not trying to be difficult; they are being a smart business owner. They are looking for a responsible partner in their investment. Your renter’s policy protects them from having to sue you if you accidentally cause a fire, and it protects them from the headache of a tenant who is financially devastated and cannot pay the rent. It is a sign that you are dealing with a professional, responsible landlord who is running a proper business.
The reason your liability claim is being denied is because you have an excluded dog breed.
The Blacklisted Guest You Let into Your Apartment
Many renter’s and condo insurance policies have a secret “blacklist” of dog breeds that they will not cover. If your dog is on that list—often including breeds like Pit Bulls or Rottweilers—the policy will have a specific exclusion for any liability related to that animal. This means if your dog bites someone, you will have absolutely no coverage for the resulting lawsuit. You have unknowingly invited a blacklisted guest into your home, and your insurance bodyguard will not protect you.
If you’re still not reading your condo’s CC&Rs (Covenants, Conditions & Restrictions), you’re losing sight of your insurance responsibilities.
The Secret, Second Rulebook You Didn’t Know You Were Playing By
Your insurance policy is the first rulebook. But for a condo owner, there is a secret, second rulebook that is just as important: the CC&Rs. This massive legal document dictates your other insurance responsibilities. It will tell you the minimum amount of insurance you are required to carry, and it will detail your responsibility for things like the windows and the plumbing in the walls. Not reading this second rulebook is like playing a high-stakes game without knowing half the rules.
The biggest lie you’ve been told is that the HOA is responsible for everything outside your unit.
The Gray Areas Where You Are on the Hook
It seems simple: you are responsible for the inside, and the HOA is responsible for the outside. But this is a dangerous oversimplification. The reality is full of expensive gray areas. What about the air conditioning unit that sits on your balcony? What about the plumbing that is inside the wall but only serves your unit? The HOA’s bylaws will often define these “limited common elements” as your personal responsibility to insure and maintain. The line is not as clear as you think.
I wish I knew that my renter’s insurance would cover my belongings even when they were stolen from my car.
The Insurance Bubble That Follows You Around the World
Your renter’s insurance is not just for the stuff inside your apartment; it is a magic, invisible bubble of protection that follows your belongings wherever they go. If your laptop is stolen from your car, if your bicycle is taken from the rack at work, or if your luggage is lost on a trip to Paris, your renter’s policy will cover the loss. It is insurance for your “personal property,” and it does not matter where in the world that property happens to be when it is stolen.
This one small action of getting “replacement cost” coverage on your renter’s policy will change your payout dramatically.
The Brand-New Couch vs. the Garage Sale Couch
There are two types of renter’s insurance. “Actual Cash Value” is the default. It will pay you the garage sale price for your five-year-old couch, which might be $50. “Replacement Cost” is the powerful upgrade. It will pay you the full, $1,000 it costs to go to the store and buy a brand-new, similar couch. For just a few extra dollars a month, this one, small action can be the difference between getting a check for a few hundred dollars versus tens of thousands.
Use your loss assessment coverage when the HOA sues a third party and loses, not just for property damage.
The Bad Lawsuit That Becomes Your Personal Bill
“Loss assessment” coverage is not just for a leaky roof. It is also for a bad lawsuit. Imagine your HOA sues a contractor and loses. The judge then orders the HOA to pay for the contractor’s massive legal bills. The HOA will then pass that cost on to you and all the other residents as a special assessment. Your personal “loss assessment” coverage can kick in to pay for your share of this unexpected, communal legal debt.
Stop assuming your roommate is covered by your renter’s policy. They need their own.
The Policy That Only Covers Your Half of the Room
A standard renter’s insurance policy only covers the person who is named on the policy, and any resident relatives. Your roommate is not a relative. They are a separate legal and financial entity. Your policy is like an invisible line drawn down the middle of the apartment. It will pay for your laptop, but not theirs. It will cover your liability, but not theirs. They must buy their own, separate policy to protect their own stuff and their own financial future.
Stop letting your landlord hold your security deposit for damages that should be covered by insurance.
The Small Debt vs. the Huge Liability
You accidentally cause a small kitchen fire that does $5,000 in damage. Your landlord might try to just keep your $1,000 security deposit to “settle” the matter. This is a trap. You should never pay for a covered loss out of your own pocket. You must file a claim with your renter’s insurance. They will handle the entire, $5,000 claim, and your only cost will be your deductible. Don’t pay the small debt yourself when you have a policy designed to cover the entire, huge liability.
The #1 hack for a condo owner is to get the HOA’s certificate of insurance every year.
The Annual Report Card for Your Building’s Financial Health
The HOA’s master policy is one of the most important financial assets of your building. A “certificate of insurance” is the official, one-page report card that summarizes that policy. By getting a copy every single year, you can monitor the health of your investment. You can see if they have dangerously lowered the coverage limits, if the deductible has skyrocketed, or if they have switched to a cheaper, lower-quality insurance company. It is the annual check-up for your shared home.
I’m just going to say it: The person managing your HOA is probably a volunteer who knows less about insurance than you do.
The Amateur Captain of a Very Expensive Ship
Your HOA is a multi-million dollar corporation, but the person at the helm is often just your well-meaning, volunteer neighbor. They are the amateur captain of a very large and expensive ship. They are likely not an expert in finance, law, or the complexities of commercial insurance. You must not blindly trust that they have purchased the correct, adequate coverage for your building. You must be a diligent, informed shareholder who does their own research and asks tough questions.
The reason your claim is delayed is because your insurer and the HOA’s insurer are fighting over who is responsible.
The Two Armies in a Standoff on Your Lawn
A major water loss in a condo is a complex battlefield with two different armies. Your personal insurance company and the HOA’s insurance company will often end up in a high-stakes standoff, with each one pointing their guns at the other and claiming the other is responsible for paying. While these two corporate giants are fighting their war of legal letters and finger-pointing, you, the homeowner, are stuck in the middle, living in a damaged home, waiting for one of them to finally take action.
If you’re still living in a rental without insurance, you’re one clumsy guest away from financial ruin.
The Million-Dollar Glass of Spilled Red Wine
Imagine a guest at your party accidentally knocks over a candle and starts a fire that destroys three units. The resulting lawsuits against you will be in the hundreds of thousands, or even millions, of dollars. Living without renter’s insurance is like hosting a party with a priceless, million-dollar vase in the middle of the room. One clumsy guest, one small, accidental moment, can lead to the complete and utter destruction of your entire financial life.
The biggest lie you’ve been told is that you only need to insure your condo for its market value.
The Price to Buy vs. the Price to Build
The “market value” of your condo is what someone would pay to buy it today. The “replacement cost” is what it would cost a contractor to rebuild it from scratch after a fire. These are two completely different numbers. In a major disaster, the cost of labor and materials can skyrocket, making the price to build much higher than the price to buy. You must insure your condo for its full, current replacement cost, not for the lower, and irrelevant, market value.
I wish I knew my HO-6 policy also covered my storage unit.
The Invisible Bubble That Protects Your Stuff Everywhere
Your condo insurance policy is an invisible, protective bubble. And it’s not just for the stuff inside your condo. It extends to protect your personal property anywhere in the world. This includes the boxes of your treasured belongings that are stored in a separate, off-site storage unit. If that unit is burglarized, or if there is a fire, your HO-6 policy’s “personal property” coverage will be there to pay for your lost items. The bubble follows your stuff.
99% of renters make this one mistake: they cancel their policy the day they move out, losing coverage for incidents that happen during the move.
The Gap in the Armor During the Most Dangerous Part of the Battle
The process of moving is the most chaotic and dangerous part of renting. This is when things get broken, lost, or stolen. Cancelling your renter’s policy on the day you hand in your keys is a huge mistake. What if you accidentally cause damage to the building while moving your heavy sofa? What if your laptop is stolen from your car in between apartments? You must keep your old policy active until you are fully moved in and your new policy is in place, ensuring there is no gap in your armor.
Use your HO-6 policy to cover damage to a neighbor’s unit that originated in yours, not just your own damage.
The Fire That Spreads to the House Next Door
If a fire starts in your kitchen, your HO-6 policy will pay to fix your kitchen. But what if that fire spreads to your neighbor’s unit, causing smoke damage to their walls and furniture? This is what your “liability” coverage is for. It is the part of your policy that protects you when your accident causes damage to someone else’s property. It will pay for the lawyers to defend you and for the cost to repair your neighbor’s unit, saving you from a massive, personal lawsuit.
Stop accepting the HOA’s contractor. Do insist on getting your own estimates for your unit’s repairs instead.
The Company Man vs. Your Personal Advocate
When there is a major loss, the HOA will have their own, preferred contractor. This contractor works for the HOA and the master policy. They are not your advocate. You have the absolute right to hire your own, independent contractor to write an estimate for the repairs inside your unit. This ensures you have a professional on your side, whose only job is to create a detailed, accurate scope of work that will restore your personal property to its original condition.
Stop thinking you need to own a home to have significant liability risk.
The Lawsuit That Doesn’t Care if You Rent or Own
A devastating lawsuit does not care if your name is on the deed. Your liability risk is not tied to your property; it is tied to your actions. If your dog bites a child in the park, if you slander someone on social media, or if a guest is seriously injured inside your apartment, you can be hit with a life-ruining lawsuit. That lawsuit will come after your future wages and your assets, regardless of whether you rent or own. Liability is about what you do, not what you own.
The #1 secret for renters is that bundling your renter’s and auto insurance can save you more than the cost of the renter’s policy itself.
The Discount That Is Bigger Than the Price of the Product
This is the greatest and most illogical secret in the insurance world. Insurance companies will give you a significant “multi-policy” discount on your expensive auto insurance if you also buy a cheap renter’s policy from them. In many cases, the dollar amount of the discount on your car insurance will be larger than the entire annual cost of the renter’s policy. You are literally being paid to take the free, powerful protection of a renter’s policy. It is a financial no-brainer.
I’m just going to say it: If your condo building has a high claims history, your personal insurance rates will go up.
The Bad Neighborhood Tax on Your Personal Policy
Insurance companies see a condo building with a history of water damage or roof claims as a “bad neighborhood.” It is a high-risk area. Even if you have never had a claim yourself, they know that you are living in a place where claims are more likely to happen. Because of this, they will charge you a higher premium for your personal HO-6 policy. You are paying a “bad neighborhood” tax that is based on the sins of the entire building, not just your own personal history.
The reason your claim for a stolen bike was denied is because you didn’t have a “rider” for it and it exceeded the sub-limit.
The Velvet Rope for Your Expensive Toys
Your renter’s or condo policy is like a nightclub with a general admission area. But for your expensive, high-risk toys—like a high-end bicycle, a computer, or jewelry—there is a very low-limit velvet rope. The policy might say it will only pay a maximum of $1,500 for a stolen bike, even if yours was worth $5,000. To get your expensive toys past the rope and into the VIP section, you must buy a special “rider” or “floater” that insures them for their full, appraised value.
If you’re still not understanding the “Unit-Owner’s Coverage B” on your HO-6, you’re missing the point of condo insurance.
The Insurance for the Stuff You Own but Cannot See
“Coverage B,” or Personal Property, is for your visible stuff, like your couch. “Coverage A,” or Dwelling, is for the parts of the building you own but cannot see. This is the most misunderstood part of condo insurance. It is the coverage for your drywall, your built-in cabinets, your plumbing fixtures, and your flooring. This is the coverage that rebuilds the inside of your home after a fire. If you have this limit set too low, you are missing the entire point of your policy.
The biggest lie you’ve been told is that the master policy will make you whole.
The Giant, Leaky Umbrella That Doesn’t Cover Your Head
The HOA’s master policy is a giant umbrella that is supposed to cover the entire building. But it is a very leaky umbrella. It has a massive deductible that you will have to pay for. It will only replace your unit with cheap, builder-grade materials. And it provides absolutely zero coverage for your personal belongings or your living expenses if you are displaced. It is a safety net full of giant, gaping holes, and you are the one who is going to fall through them.
I wish I knew about “contingent coverage” in case the HOA’s insurance lapsed.
The Backup Parachute for a Faulty Main Chute
You trust that your HOA has a good, active insurance policy. But what if they don’t? What if they forgot to pay the premium and the policy has lapsed? Or what if their policy has a giant, hidden exclusion? “Contingent coverage” is a special endorsement on your personal HO-6 policy that acts as your backup parachute. It says that if the HOA’s main parachute fails to open, your personal policy will step in to cover the damage to the building, saving you from a financial freefall.
This one small action of taking pictures of your apartment when you move in will change how you handle the move-out inspection forever.
The “Before” Photo That Becomes Your Get Out of Jail Free Card
When you move out, your landlord might try to keep your security deposit by blaming you for damage that was already there. A set of photos, taken on the day you move in, is your “Get Out of Jail Free” card. It is a time-stamped, visual record of the apartment’s original condition. The photo of the pre-existing stain on the carpet or the crack in the wall is the undeniable “before” picture that proves you are not responsible for the sins of the previous tenant.