Investing in property in the Puget Sound area can be expensive, especially with the high costs of property, so reducing long-term costs on your rentals can be crucial to making your money back in the required time frame. One of your bigger expenses is your renters insurance, and, like with your own home, reducing costs there can save you hundreds per year, per plan.
Landlords insurance is vital, and often required by law, so you can’t skimp on it. What you can do is use these tips from Kirkland property management companies to reduce your premiums so you can save money.
Buy All Coverage From the Same Provider – Some providers offers as much as a 10-15% discount for buying two or more premiums from the same company. Essentially, if you have more than one building and the same company is willing to cover them both, you might benefit a great deal. 10% might not sound like a lot, but considering most premiums in Kirkland start at around $50 per month, that can add up over the course of a year, and at the lowest premium offerings will still save you around $60 per year per insured home. Similarly, if the same company offers earthquake and natural disaster coverage, try to get both from the same company.
Ask for Discounts – If you’ve taken steps to make your home more fire resistant, added additional security, or anything else that could make your home more disaster resistant, ask for a discount. If you have a no pets policy, let your insurers know. If you only rent to seniors, let your insurers know. Ask for discounts, and ask if you qualify for any discounts, they won’t always tell you upfront.
Review your Policy At Least Once a Year – Review your policy every year, just before you renew. You can usually save money by switching providers, because most providers offer a discount to newcomers, but make sure you read the fine print before doing so. Another consideration is that some insurance providers offer discounts of up to 10% for companies and landlords who stay with them for 3-5 years. This can be especially valuable if you’re already getting a multiple coverage discount, because you’ll automatically be saving around 20%.
Raise Your Deductibles – If you have homes in a bad neighborhood, frequently get natural disasters, or think that something might happen frequently, this is a very bad idea. However, if hardly anything ever happens at your apartments or homes, then raising your deductible could be a good idea. One consideration is that if you use your insurance all the time, then you want to lower the deductible as much as possible. On the other hand, if you’re paying twice the money for a $500 deductible as you would for a $1,500 deductible, and you only have an accident or issue that requires repair every few years, then the lower premium and higher deductible could make sense. Of course, this will backfire if you’re apartments suddenly become accident prone, but it is a consideration.
Have the Value of Your Property Evaluated – The best way to get a good rate on your landlords insurance is to make sure you’re insuring the right value of property. If it’s lower than the actual value, your rate will be lower, but you won’t get the same amount of money for repairs or in case it burns down. Evaluate the property and make sure you’re insuring it so that you can replace it if something happens.
If you want more help with your Kirkland property management, contact Sterling Johnston and Associates for a free quote on managing your investments, which includes handling insurance.