Tell me about the property
Address, how many units, who lives where, monthly rent, year built, heating type, and whether the deed is in your name or an LLC. A photo of the current declarations page helps.
Landlord insurance
A rental is a business. Insure it like one.
A home policy is written for a family living in its own house. The moment a tenant pays you rent, you need a dwelling policy, usually a DP-3, with loss of rents and real liability behind it. I write them for two-family homes in Queens, legal accessory apartments in Suffolk and rental houses across Nassau, and I shop every company I work with for the best price available to you.
- DP-3 with replacement cost on the building
- Loss of rents while the unit is repaired
- Liability sized for a landlord, with umbrella options
- Renters insurance for your tenant, set up at the same time
What I'll ask you
- Tell me about the property
- I quote it correctly
- We go through it
- Documents and the lease
Who this is for
Who this is for
Owners with one unit or a handful, in Suffolk, Nassau and Queens.
Two-family and three-family homes
Jamaica, Corona, Richmond Hill, Woodhaven, Elmhurst, Hempstead, Freeport. You live upstairs and rent downstairs, or you rent both floors. Each setup is written differently, and I will tell you which fits yours.
A home with a legal rental unit
If your home has a legal accessory apartment with a tenant, your policy has to reflect it. Some companies write it on a home policy with the right endorsement; others want a dwelling policy. Either way, the rent and the tenant have to be on the application.
The house you moved out of
You bought a bigger place and kept the old cape in Brentwood or Central Islip as a rental. The home policy on it is now the wrong policy. It needs to be rewritten before the tenant moves in, not after.
Rental houses near the LIRR and MacArthur
Ronkonkoma, Holbrook and Bohemia rentals fill up with commuters and airport workers. A straightforward single-family DP-3 with loss of rents and liability is the usual answer.
Investors with several doors
Three or four houses, maybe an LLC on title. I write each dwelling policy correctly, name the LLC the way the deed reads, and put an umbrella over the whole portfolio.
Renovating or between tenants
An empty house is a different risk. If the unit will be vacant for more than a short stretch, the policy needs a vacancy endorsement or a vacant dwelling policy, or claims for vandalism and water can be denied.
Coverage I shop
What I shop for you
A landlord policy has a few parts that matter more than the rest. These are the ones I set on every quote.
DP-3 on the building
The DP-3 covers the structure against anything not excluded, at replacement cost. The basic DP-1 covers a short list of causes at depreciated value and leaves a lot out. For a house you depend on for income, I quote the DP-3 unless there is a specific reason not to.
Loss of rents
When a covered loss makes the unit unlivable, the tenant stops paying and the mortgage does not. Loss of rents, also called fair rental value, pays the rent you would have collected during repairs. I set it to a full year of rent or more.
Premises liability
A tenant's guest falls on an icy walkway, a railing gives way, a child is hurt in the yard. Liability on a rental should be higher than on your own home, because you have less control over what happens there. I quote it that way and add an umbrella when it makes sense.
Landlord contents
The stove, the refrigerator, the washer and dryer, the furniture in a furnished unit. These are yours, not the tenant's, and a dwelling policy covers them only if you add the limit.
Water backup and equipment breakdown
Sewer backup in a basement unit and a dead boiler in January are the two claims landlords on Long Island actually have. Both are endorsements. Both are worth it.
Ordinance or law
Older two-family homes rebuilt after a fire must meet today's code: electrical, egress, fire separation between units. This coverage pays for the upgrade.
Correct named insured and mortgagee
If the deed is in an LLC, the policy is in the LLC. If there is a mortgage, the lender is listed with the right clause. Mistakes here are the reason claims get held up and lenders force-place coverage.
Renters insurance for your tenant
I set up a renters policy for your tenant at the same time and show you how to require it in the lease. It protects their belongings, and their liability coverage responds first when they cause the damage.
What I check
Where landlord policies go wrong
The claim denials I see on rentals almost always come from one of these.
A home policy on a rental
A standard home policy assumes the owner lives there. When the company finds out a tenant does, which happens at claim time, coverage can be reduced or denied. If you moved out and kept the house, call me before the tenant moves in.
The vacancy clause
Most dwelling policies cut off coverage for vandalism, glass breakage and water damage once the property has been vacant beyond a set number of days. The number varies by company. If a unit will sit empty during a renovation or between tenants, tell me and I will add the right endorsement.
Short-term rentals
A standard landlord policy is written for a tenant with a lease. Short-term and nightly rentals are excluded or simply not contemplated, and many towns on Long Island and all of New York City have their own rules on them. If that is your plan, say so and I will tell you what is available.
Not requiring renters insurance
When your tenant's grease fire damages the kitchen, their renters liability should pay before yours does. Without it, your policy pays, your rate goes up, and you chase the tenant in small claims court. A lease clause and a certificate at move-in fix this.
Underestimating loss of rents
A fire in a two-family in Queens can take most of a year to permit, rebuild and inspect. If loss of rents is set to a few months, you carry the mortgage alone after that.
Lead paint in older buildings
Many Long Island and Queens rentals were built before lead paint was banned. Some companies exclude lead liability, some offer it, and some want a certification first. I raise it on every pre-1978 building so you are not surprised.
Oil tanks and old systems
Buried oil tanks, knob-and-tube wiring and aging boilers all get asked about. Honest answers up front place you with the right company. Surprises after binding get policies cancelled.
An illegal unit
I write policies for homes with legal rental units. If a unit is not permitted, a claim involving it is a problem no policy fixes. Ask me what the insurance side looks like before you rent it.
How it works
How it works
I quote it correctly
Dwelling policy or endorsed home policy, loss of rents at a full year, liability sized for a landlord, and the endorsements the building actually needs. Every company I work with, same coverage, side by side.
We go through it
A short call. You see what is covered, what is not, and what the tenant's renters policy will handle instead of yours.
Documents and the lease
Evidence of insurance to your lender, the LLC named correctly, a renters certificate from your tenant, and a note from me before renewal.
Long Island
Landlord insurance across Long Island and Queens
In Queens, the two-family and three-family homes off Jamaica Avenue, in Corona and Elmhurst near Roosevelt Avenue, and through Richmond Hill and Woodhaven are how a lot of families built what they have. Many were bought by one generation and are rented out by the next. These are the policies I write most, and the questions are always the same: who lives where, how old the wiring is, and whether the basement is finished.
In Hempstead, the houses between Fulton Avenue and Hempstead Turnpike, and across Freeport, Uniondale and Elmont, come with older roofs, converted attics and tenants who have been there for years. The DP-3 with loss of rents and a solid liability limit is the standard answer, with lead and ordinance coverage checked on every one.
In Brentwood and Central Islip, the usual story is a family that bought a second house near Suffolk Avenue or Carleton Avenue for relatives, or added a legal accessory apartment to help with the mortgage. I write those as what they are, with the tenant on the application.
In Ronkonkoma, Holbrook and Bohemia, rentals near the LIRR and MacArthur Airport turn over with commuters and airport staff. Short vacancies between tenants are normal, and I make sure the policy allows for them.
In Bay Shore, a building with an apartment upstairs and a storefront on Main Street is not a landlord policy at all; it is a small commercial package. Same for anything with more than four units. If that is what you own, the business insurance page is the right place, and I write those too.
- Office
- 1951 Ocean Ave, Suite 4, Ronkonkoma, NY 11779
- Where I work
- Suffolk County · Nassau County · Queens · Brooklyn
Related lines
Where to read next
Questions
Questions people text me
A dwelling policy built for a house you do not live in. The DP-3 covers the structure against anything the policy does not exclude, at replacement cost, and you add loss of rents, liability and contents to it. The DP-1 is the bare version, a short list of causes at depreciated value. I quote the DP-3 for nearly every rental.
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Next step
Tell me about the property.
Address, number of units and who lives where. I quote every company I work with and send you the comparison in English or Spanish.
or text a photo of your current policy to (631) 823-7630
Quotes depend on your details and each company's underwriting. No obligation.
Hours: Mon to Fri 9am to 7pm · Saturday 10am to 2pm