You probably need to pay renters insurance when renting an apartment or home. But if this is your first time renting a property, you might wonder how that could affect your monthly budget and how much your renters insurance will be.
You should continue reading if you don't know what to expect.
This comprehensive guide will teach you how much renters insurance is, the average costs in certain states, and the key factors affecting your insurance policy prices.
After reading this piece, you'll feel much more confident and secure in paying for this insurance coverage.
Let us go straight to the real deal.
A renters insurance policy is a type of insurance that protects you against property losses, property damage, and certain types of medical bills that you incur in or around a rental building.
Here is a quick example for better understanding: if someone breaks into your apartment and steals your TV, your personal property coverage could help you get reimbursed for that loss. Is this not nice?
For instance, if a guest comes to your apartment and suffers an injury, you may not have to pay their medical bills if you have renters insurance.
To get this better, check this example: if your apartment floods and you have to live somewhere else for a few months (maybe a hotel or anywhere), your renters insurance coverage will help you manage those expenses. Is this not juicy?
Renters insurance policies can vary in terms of what they cover and cost.
But they're always invaluable insurance policies, particularly for improving peace of mind (and especially if you rent property in a risky or semi-risky part of town of your country).
Do you understand what a renters insurance policy is now? That is great.
You might be making a mistake if you already think renters insurance is pricey.
The next paragraphs will explain to you how much it really costs. Just follow on.
Renters insurance generally costs less than $20 per month. Is this not amazing?
However, renters insurance rates can vary heavily based on your state of residence, how many times you have filed for renters insurance payouts, and a variety of other factors.
On average, you don't need to worry about renters insurance adding too much of a financial burden to your overall monthly payments to your landlord.
You know that a $15 per month average renters insurance payment isn't too expensive; many tenants want to know what they get for the average renters insurance cost.
And this section will show you everything, thanks to Homebody Insurance.
Renters insurance covers:
However, many renters insurance policies also cover different damages, risks, and expenses.
For instance, some policies let you pay a little extra for earthquake damage protection. Any property you lose in your rental apartment because of an earthquake will be covered up to a certain coverage limit.
Furthermore, renters insurance costs only start paying for things after you meet your deductible.
Here is a short example for you to understand better.
If you lose $1000 worth of property to a theft in your apartment building, you should immediately file a renters insurance claim. Your deductible is $500. That means you have to pay $500 toward the reasonable repair or replacement of your lost property before renters insurance companies start paying any money.
As you have read above, the cost of your renters insurance can be affected by many factors.
Let's look at these factors one after the other to understand where your renters insurance rates come from.
Your state is possibly the most important factor determining your renters insurance costs.
Some states have cheaper costs for renters insurance because of lower average theft rates, less population density, and a variety of other factors. You cannot compare Wyoming to Michigan.
Right?
See the list of some expensive states for renters insurance below.
You might be wondering why your renters insurance is so high.
One of the reasons could be that you are renting in one of the below states.
These states are the most expensive in terms of renters insurance payments:
Below is a quick overview of the least expensive states for renters insurance.
The reverse is also true.
Some states make it very easy to pay for renters insurance because average rates are lower than average.
These states include:
While your average state affects how much you'll pay in renters insurance each month, your general location also matters greatly.
On average, metropolitan rentals charge higher prices for renters insurance because there is usually more theft and burglary in metro areas like big cities.
Do you get the gist here?
But any area with a higher than average crime rate or a higher than average risk of natural disasters will drive up renters insurance premiums.
For example, the Los Angeles area has higher renters insurance costs than San Francisco. That's because earthquakes are more likely to affect the LA than the San Francisco area.
Acts of God also affect renters insurance.
Therefore, if you speak to a landlord and find the renters insurance premiums to be a bit high, ask them why that's the case. Intelligently.
You can see how we are helping you save money. Right? It is only Homebody that can do this!
Let us continue.
They might tell you about a history of recent break-ins or crime waves that affected the area. This is invaluable information – if you can avoid it, it's almost always better to rent at a building that doesn't have a history of break-ins or theft!
That is just better.
Naturally, your insurance provider will also impact how much you pay for renters insurance. Providers will charge different rates based on policies, profits, and other factors you might now know.
However, different insurance providers may be cheaper or more expensive as time passes.
Unfortunately, you don't always get the choice to choose your insurance provider. When you sign up for a rental apartment or home, your landlord may require you to purchase renters insurance through them or need you to sign up for a policy through a specific company. It all depends on the policies that your landlord decides to keep.
If your landlord recommends renters insurance from one provider, but you have already had good dealings with another provider, ask them if you can choose your policy provider instead. Some landlords will be okay with this, while others may not. Just ask.
You should pay more attention at this point. Are you ready?
As with all insurance policies, your premiums, deductibles, and overall fees increase as you make more claims.
Therefore, if you have filed a renters insurance claim within the last three years, you should expect a higher-than-average cost for renters insurance for a short while.
That's because insurance companies make a profit based on not having to make payments to their customers.
Insurance companies are profitable because, even though everyone pays for insurance coverage, only a fraction of those individuals will actually need the programs.
If you did have to make a claim and receive a payout from your renters insurance company in the recent past, you've become a higher-risk customer in the eyes of the company.
Eventually, your policy costs and fees will go down, like when you have to make a car insurance claim, and your car insurance payments temporarily increase.
Do you understand?
The kind and amount of coverage you need will also determine the cost of your renters insurance.
On average, if you need more things covered, you must pay your renters insurance company more.
For example, most personal protection coverage in a renters insurance policy protects everyday items like furniture, clothing, etc.
It does not cover repairing or replacing very high-value items, like fine art, jewelry, and more.
You must remove extra coverage to protect those items against theft or fire damage. That, in turn, will add a few dollars or even more to your monthly renters insurance payments.
Extra coverage can be important, especially if you think you are at risk of certain losses.
But you should take stock of your home valuables and the likelihood of losing them to fire, flooding, or theft before signing up for any insurance policy.
That way, you don't pay too much for renters insurance you probably won't need.
I know you have an insight here—all thanks to Homebody.
Another factor that might affect your renters insurance is your coverage type.
For example, most replacement cost coverage policies provide greater protection for lost items or valuables than actual cash value coverage.
But replacement cost coverage policies also cost more overall. That's because:
Consider the coverage type you choose to take out. It may affect how much you pay each month in renters insurance.
Lastly, your deductible amount will impact your monthly renters insurance rates.
On average, the higher the deductible you are willing to pay, the lower your monthly payments will be and vice versa.
For example, say you take out a basic renters insurance policy and have a $500 deductible for lost property due to fire hazards or theft. That policy might only charge you $12 per month.
However, if you take out a different insurance policy and have a $1,000 deductible for lost property, that policy might cost you less than $10 monthly. That's because you are taking on additional risk, and the insurance company can only have to pay you, even if you file a claim, once you meet that $ 1,000 deductible.
Since you know what can affect renters insurance, determine how much you are comfortable or able to pay in terms of your deductible in the event of a disaster.
Then, determine how much you can pay each month regarding renters insurance premiums. That's the best way to strike the perfect balance between deductible amounts and monthly bills.
I know you want to cut all the possible costs and enjoy maximum benefits.
This section teaches you how to cheat on renters insurance without consequence.
Renters insurance can be an unfortunate additional bill at the end of every month.
But if you live in an expensive state or have to pay high premiums for your renters insurance, note that you can lower that cost in various ways.
First, you can take out multiple insurance policies from the same company. Depending on what your landlord requires, this may or may not be possible.
Indeed, many insurance companies practice "bundling" insurance policies to get customers to stick with them for all their insurance needs.
These discounts can be significant, and it's an excellent way to ensure all of your insurance requirements are met while also benefiting from loyalty advantages.
If you like a certain insurance company, try to take out renters, auto, life, and other insurance policies from the same organization to maximize your budget.
Another good way to reduce the cost of renters insurance is to avoid making unnecessary claims.
For example, if someone breaks into your apartment and steals $200 worth of property, and you know your deductible is $500, you already know your insurance company won't help you.
With this information, you should not make a claim even though you indeed lost property to theft. Just pay for the replacements yourself.
In this way, your insurance premiums won't increase temporarily as a response to your filing a claim.
Unlike auto accidents, you are not legally required to report a break-in (unless someone is injured). Use your best judgment when deciding whether or not to make a renters insurance claim.
Lastly, on this note, many insurance companies provide discounts or customers with lower rates if their properties have safety devices, like smoke alarms, sprinkler systems, or burglar alarms in place.
Anything that reduces the risk of property loss or damage in the event of fire or theft minimizes the risk for the insurance company.
Do not be worried about paying renters insurance; Homebody is available for you.
Most renters insurance policies, like Homebody, are less than $20 per month. They only add a little to your overall monthly bills.
Even better, most landlords include your renters insurance payments in your monthly rent, utilities, and more bills.
Plus, you can always ask your landlord upfront whether they require renters insurance and, if so, how much you'll have to pay.
That way, you can budget for it and feel financially secure while yielding the benefits of this insurance coverage with Homebody.
Choose Homebody. Choose Peace.
