Landlord insurance (also sold as dwelling-fire or DP-3 coverage) protects the rental structure itself, your liability as the owner, and — critically — the rent you'd lose if a covered loss makes the unit uninhabitable while it's repaired. That last piece, loss of rent or 'fair rental value' coverage, is the single most-overlooked gap when a rental-property owner mistakenly keeps a standard homeowners policy on a home they no longer live in: most homeowners policies simply don't pay a claim once the property is a rental, full stop.
If you financed the property with a DSCR loan, this decision usually isn't optional — your lender is almost always named as mortgagee on the policy and requires proof of adequate dwelling coverage before closing and for the life of the loan. The DSCR investors researching lenders elsewhere on this site are, in practice, the same audience shopping for landlord insurance at the same time — often on the same afternoon they're finalizing financing.
The six companies below range from digital-first landlord-insurance specialists (Steadily, Obie) that quote instantly online and cover almost any property type, to national carriers (State Farm, Allstate, American Family) and a Farmers Group dwelling-fire specialist (Foremost) that generally require an agent but bring decades of financial-strength track record. We name the underwriting entity behind each listing where we could confirm it, because that's who's actually on the hook to pay your claim.
Our top Landlord Insurance
- Licensing
- Steadily Insurance Agency, Inc. is a licensed insurance producer in all 50 states + DC (NPN 19627533). Policies are underwritten either by Steadily's own carrier, Steadily Insurance Company (Arizona-domiciled, NAIC #16963), or placed with partner carriers including Spinnaker Insurance Company (AM Best A- Excellent), Century-National Insurance Company, and Trisura Insurance Company. Steadily's own carrier-specific AM Best rating (if any, distinct from partner carriers) was not independently confirmed and needs verification before publish.
- Specialties
- DP-3 / dwelling fire, Single-family & multi-unit rentals, Short-term rentals (Airbnb/VRBO)
- Instant online quoting and licensed to write in all 50 states + DC
- Broadest documented property-type support: single-family, multi-unit, condos, ADUs, vacant, and short-term rentals
- $250M+ in annualized gross written premium and a $30M Series C (April 2025) at a $355M valuation — well-capitalized for a landlord-insurance specialist
See the math behind this score
- Value6.0 × .30 = 1.80
- Quality7.0 × .25 = 1.75
- Trust & reputation6.0 × .20 = 1.20
- Customer experience6.0 × .15 = 0.90
- Fit & eligibility9.0 × .10 = 0.90
Weighted score= 6.55marks the category median for each pillar across everyone we ranked.
Value: Instant online quoting with no application friction is a real value lever, but Steadily publishes no rate sheet or fee schedule and no premium data specific to the company could be independently confirmed, so competitiveness of the actual price can't be verified either way.
Quality: Broadest documented property-type range in this set: single-family, multi-unit, condos, ADUs, vacant/restoration, and short-term rentals all confirmed on Steadily's own site, with liability written from $300K-$2M into every policy and loss-of-rent included. Multi-unit unit-count cutoffs and replacement-cost-vs-ACV election were not clearly published — flag before citing specific limits.
Trust & reputation: BBB B+, not accredited, 2 complaints on file. Trustpilot star rating (reported inconsistently 4.3-4.6 across secondary sources; direct fetch blocked) and Google review aggregate could not be independently confirmed. No NAIC complaint index found, likely because the underlying carrier volume is still small. Financially well-backed: $250M+ annualized gross written premium and an April 2025 $30M Series C at a $355M valuation (Two Sigma Ventures-led).
Customer experience: Claims handled digitally in-house via the Snapsheet claims/payments platform, replacing a prior third-party administrator. Steadily's own press page cites a USA Today 'Best Customer Service' recognition (self-reported); no independent J.D. Power ranking exists for a company at this scale.
Fit & eligibility: Licensed all 50 states + DC with the widest confirmed property-type acceptance in this comparison (SFR through multi-unit, STR, vacant, condos, ADUs) — the strongest fit score of the six insurers scored here.
SOURCES: https://www.steadily.com/ · https://www.steadily.com/faq/what-is-an-am-best-rated-company · https://www.steadily.com/blog/a-complete-guide-to-apartment-building-insurance · https://www.steadily.com/faq/what-landlord-insurance-does-not-cover · https://www.bbb.org/us/or/beaverton/profile/renters-insurance/steadily-insurance-agency-inc-1296-1000192210 · https://www.steadily.com/press/steadily-30m-series-c · https://news.ambest.com/newscontent.aspx?refnum=234701&altsrc=23 · https://www.snapsheetclaims.com/post/steadily-insurance-chooses-snapsheet-for-superior-claims-experience · https://www.steadily.com/press/steadily-named-best-customer-service-usa-today-financial-services · https://www.steadily.com/licenses
- Licensing
- Part of Farmers Insurance Group of Companies since 2000. AM Best A (Excellent), stable outlook, per secondary sources — AM Best's own site blocked direct automated verification in this pass; confirm before publish.
- Specialties
- DP-3-style Landlord / Landlord Platinum tiers, 1-4 family, Named-peril base with optional open-peril upgrade, Seamless vacant-dwelling conversion (no cancel/rewrite)
- Farmers Insurance Group-backed specialist (since 2000) in dwelling-fire and landlord coverage, AM Best A (Excellent)
- Best-documented short-term/vacation-rental support in this group: up to $1M Coverage A plus loss of rental income, and seamless vacant-dwelling conversion with no need to cancel and rewrite
- 24/7 claims center, mobile app claim filing, and a direct-repair contractor network
See the math behind this score
- Value5.0 × .30 = 1.50
- Quality8.0 × .25 = 2.00
- Trust & reputation5.0 × .20 = 1.00
- Customer experience5.0 × .15 = 0.75
- Fit & eligibility6.0 × .10 = 0.60
Weighted score= 5.85marks the category median for each pillar across everyone we ranked.
Value: No bindable online quote — agent-only distribution with a reported 2-3 business day turnaround for a quote. No Foremost-specific, landlord-product premium data was found; general homeowners premium figures cited by aggregators are not landlord-specific and shouldn't be attributed to this product.
Quality: Best-documented specialty coverage in this comparison: seamless vacant-dwelling conversion without canceling/rewriting the policy, and explicit short-term/vacation-rental support up to $1M Coverage A including loss of rental income — clearer STR terms than any other insurer researched. Named-peril base with an optional open-peril upgrade, and an optional replacement-cost endorsement over the ACV-based standard settlement.
Trust & reputation: AM Best A (Excellent), stable, via Farmers Group backing is a solid signal, but BBB lists Foremost as 'Not Rated' (confirmed via direct fetch), secondary NAIC complaint-index figures conflict and both sit above the 1.0 expected baseline (1.36 vs 2.50), and Foremost's own founding year is disputed (1952 per two sources vs a BBB-listed 1928) — real, unresolved gaps for a company whose own site could not be directly accessed in this research pass.
Customer experience: 24/7 claims center, mobile-app claim filing with photo upload, and a direct-repair contractor network are solid claims infrastructure, but Foremost has no separately reported J.D. Power score (folded into parent Farmers' results) and only a small Trustpilot sample (~34 reviews) is available.
Fit & eligibility: Landlord product caps at 1-4 family dwellings — no dedicated 5+ unit apartment product identified, unlike Steadily, Obie, or State Farm's commercial line. Vacant and short-term-rental breadth is a genuine fit strength for specific landlord use-cases, but state availability for the landlord line specifically is unconfirmed.
SOURCES: https://www.foremost.com/products/landlord-and-rental-home/ · https://www.trustedchoice.com/insurance-articles/c/foremost-insurance-company-review/ · https://www.foremost.com/insurance/vacant-home/ · https://www.foremostagent.com/products/vacationRental · https://www.foremost.com/learning-center/actual_cash_value_or_replacement_cost_value.asp · https://www.bbb.org/us/mi/caledonia/profile/property-insurance/foremost-insurance-company-0372-15002271 · https://www.insuredbetter.com/insurance-articles/reviews/foremost-insurance-company-review/ · https://www.foremost.com/claims/
- Licensing
- Underwritten by State Farm Fire and Casualty Company, State Farm General Insurance Company, State Farm Florida Insurance Company, or State Farm Lloyds depending on state. State Farm Fire and Casualty Company: AM Best A+ (Superior), downgraded from A++ on Nov 14, 2025 (stable outlook). State Farm General (the California entity): AM Best B (Fair), negative ICR outlook — materially weaker than the national rating.
- Specialties
- Rental Dwelling Policy (single-family), Rental Condo Unitowners, Commercial Landlord & Apartment (multi-unit, up to 12 months loss of rent)
- Largest U.S. homeowners insurer by market share (~19%) with a dedicated Rental Dwelling Policy plus separate condo and commercial multi-unit apartment products
- AM Best A+ (Superior) financial strength for the core Fire and Casualty entity, with roughly 19,000 agents nationwide
- Loss-of-rent (fair rental value), replacement-cost dwelling option, and umbrella/flood add-ons all confirmed
See the math behind this score
- Value5.0 × .30 = 1.50
- Quality7.0 × .25 = 1.75
- Trust & reputation6.0 × .20 = 1.20
- Customer experience5.0 × .15 = 0.75
- Fit & eligibility6.0 × .10 = 0.60
Weighted score= 5.80marks the category median for each pillar across everyone we ranked.
Value: No online instant quote for the Rental Dwelling policy — both statefarm.com landing pages route to a local-agent lookup or phone number, not self-serve pricing. No State Farm-specific landlord/rental-dwelling premium figure was found; the only comparable numbers located are for standard homeowners policies, which understate the friction of agent-only access to this product.
Quality: Confirmed coverage across a full rental-property product family: dwelling, personal property, loss-of-rents/fair-rental-value, liability, inflation coverage, and a replacement-cost dwelling option, with umbrella and flood/earthquake add-ons and a separate Commercial Landlord & Apartment product carrying up to 12 months of loss-of-income for multi-unit buildings. Short-term-rental/Airbnb support is not confirmed on State Farm's own pages, and third-party host forums report inconsistent agent responses.
Trust & reputation: Largest U.S. homeowners insurer by market share (~19%) is a real scale/trust anchor, and State Farm Fire and Casualty still carries AM Best A+ (Superior) nationally. But the rating was downgraded from A++ in Nov 2025 after five consecutive years of underwriting losses, and State Farm General — the entity many California landlords would actually be insured through — is rated only B (Fair) with a negative outlook and has non-renewed tens of thousands of rental-dwelling and commercial-apartment policies since 2023. BBB lists State Farm as 'Not Rated.'
Customer experience: State Farm ranked 11th of the carriers reported in J.D. Power's 2026 U.S. Property Claims Satisfaction Study at 690/1000, below the 702 study average — a below-average claims-satisfaction result. A large (~19,000) agent network and a 2026 'Next Gen Good Neighbor' digital-claims initiative are positives, but Trustpilot complaint themes center on pricing increases and slow claims handling.
Fit & eligibility: Broad national footprint minus a real, documented CA new-business freeze and non-renewal wave hitting rental-dwelling and commercial-apartment policies specifically, plus reported (unconfirmed) MA/RI exclusions. Short-term-rental support is unclear/likely limited.
SOURCES: https://www.statefarm.com/insurance/rental-properties/rental-homes · https://www.statefarm.com/insurance/rental-properties · https://newsroom.statefarm.com/rental-property-insurance-for-landlords/ · https://airhostsforum.com/t/insurance-denied-from-state-farm/24263 · https://news.ambest.com/pr/PressContent.aspx?refnum=36760&altsrc=2 · https://uphelp.org/state-farm-will-not-renew-thousands-of-california-insurance-policies-over-the-next-year/ · https://www.bbb.org/us/il/bloomington/profile/insurance-companies/state-farm-insurance-company-0724-6000391 · https://www.insurance.com/home-and-renters-insurance/coverage/j.d.-power-names-best-and-worst-insurers-for-property-claims.html · https://newsroom.statefarm.com/state-farm-details-next-gen-good-neighbor/ · https://www.nerdwallet.com/insurance/homeowners/state-farm-home-insurance-review
- Licensing
- Obie operates as a licensed insurance broker/agency (Obie Insurance Services, LLC and Obie Insurance Group, LLC), not a carrier — policies are placed with underwriting partners. Named partners conflict between sources: Obie's own blog cites Markel and MSI (Baldwin Group's MGA subsidiary), while third-party aggregators separately name American National Lloyds Insurance Company (AM Best A) and Accelerant Specialty Insurance Company (AM Best A-). Acquired by The Baldwin Group (NASDAQ: BWIN) on January 13, 2026. Current carrier lineup needs direct confirmation before publish.
- Specialties
- DP-1/DP-2/DP-3 dwelling fire, Single-family, 2-4 unit & 5+ unit multifamily, Short-term rental / Airbnb endorsements
- Backed by The Baldwin Group (NASDAQ: BWIN) following its January 2026 acquisition
- Confirmed DP-1/DP-2/DP-3 coverage across single-family, 2-4 unit, and 5+ unit multifamily, plus short-term-rental endorsements
- Instant online quoting
See the math behind this score
- Value6.0 × .30 = 1.80
- Quality7.0 × .25 = 1.75
- Trust & reputation4.0 × .20 = 0.80
- Customer experience4.0 × .15 = 0.60
- Fit & eligibility8.0 × .10 = 0.80
Weighted score= 5.75marks the category median for each pillar across everyone we ranked.
Value: Instant online quoting is confirmed directly on Obie's homepage. No Obie-published average premium or fee-transparency data was found; third-party premium estimates are not sourced to Obie directly.
Quality: Confirmed DP-1/DP-2/DP-3 dwelling-fire coverage across single-family, 2-4 unit, and 5+ unit multifamily, plus short-term-rental/Airbnb endorsements and vacant-property eligibility, per Obie's own site. Loss of rent / fair rental value is included per Obie's own copy. Specific liability limit figures and replacement-cost-vs-ACV election details were not found on an Obie-owned page.
Trust & reputation: Real, unresolved red flags: Obie's official BBB profile (fetched directly) shows the business as 'out of business' with only 3 reviews on file, all 1-star, dated July-Sept 2025 — a status that directly conflicts with Obie's live, actively-quoting website and its January 2026 acquisition by The Baldwin Group (NASDAQ: BWIN), and needs manual re-verification rather than being taken at face value. Underwriting carrier partners are also inconsistently reported across sources (Obie's own blog vs third-party aggregators disagree on the carrier lineup). Positive counterweight: acquisition by a NASDAQ-listed insurance distribution holding company is a meaningful financial-backing signal. Trustpilot and Google review aggregates could not be independently verified.
Customer experience: No J.D. Power ranking exists (Obie is a broker, not a carrier, and does not appear in carrier-level satisfaction studies). The only directly-verified review data point — Obie's BBB customer-reviews page — shows 3 reviews, all 1-star; too small a sample to generalize from but not a positive signal, and third-party Trustpilot/Google figures could not be independently confirmed to offset it.
Fit & eligibility: Claims coverage in all 50 states + DC (not independently verified state-by-state) with confirmed support for single-family through 5+ unit multifamily, short-term rentals, and vacant properties — broad property-type fit second only to Steadily in this comparison.
SOURCES: https://www.obieinsurance.com/ · https://www.obieinsurance.com/blog/what-is-obie · https://www.obieinsurance.com/landlord · https://www.obieinsurance.com/blog/dp3-insurance-policy · https://www.obieinsurance.com/blog/short-term-rental-insurance-cost · https://www.bbb.org/us/il/chicago/profile/insurance-agency/obie-insurance-0654-1000120748 · https://baldwin.com/news/the-baldwin-group-completes-acquisition-of-obie-a-leading-investment-property-insurance-platform/ · https://www.bbb.org/us/il/chicago/profile/insurance-agency/obie-insurance-0654-1000120748/customer-reviews · https://www.jdpower.com/business/press-releases/2026-us-property-claims-satisfaction-study
- Licensing
- Underwriting entity for the landlord product varies by state (e.g. Allstate Fire and Casualty Insurance Co., Allstate Property and Casualty Insurance Co. — not confirmed which entity applies nationally). AM Best A+ (Superior), aa- Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating, affirmed Aug 2025.
- Specialties
- Landlords Package Policy (form AS84), up to 4-unit, Fair rental income, up to 12 months, Liability & premises medical
- AM Best A+ (Superior) financial strength, affirmed August 2025
- Fair rental income coverage for up to 12 months, plus liability and premises medical in the standard landlord package
- #2 U.S. homeowners insurer by market share with a large agent network
See the math behind this score
- Value5.0 × .30 = 1.50
- Quality7.0 × .25 = 1.75
- Trust & reputation5.0 × .20 = 1.00
- Customer experience4.0 × .15 = 0.60
- Fit & eligibility5.0 × .10 = 0.50
Weighted score= 5.35marks the category median for each pillar across everyone we ranked.
Value: No online instant quote for the landlord product — agent required per third-party comparison sites (Allstate's own coverage PDF did not render legible pricing detail). No Allstate-specific landlord premium data was found on any comparison roundup despite searching.
Quality: Landlords Package Policy (form AS84) confirmed to include dwelling and other-structures coverage, fair rental income paid up to 12 months, liability, and premises medical, with an optional guaranteed-replacement-cost upgrade. Coverage caps at 4 units, and short-term-rental support (HostAdvantage) is a separate, limited-use homeowners-policy endorsement rather than a real landlord/STR product.
Trust & reputation: AM Best A+ (Superior) financial strength is a strong national signal, and Allstate is the #2 U.S. homeowners insurer by market share (~9%). Weighed against a Kansas DOI 2024 homeowners complaint index of 1.45 (1.0 = expected, state-specific but a real negative data point) and an active, ongoing retreat from new business in California and non-renewals in Florida.
Customer experience: Weakest verified claims-satisfaction result in this comparison: 672/1000 in J.D. Power's 2026 U.S. Property Claims Satisfaction Study, ranked 13th and below the 702 study average. Trustpilot complaint themes center on rate increases, slow adjusters, and billing/cancellation disputes.
Fit & eligibility: 4-unit cap is the tightest property-type ceiling of any insurer scored here bar Foremost; California new-business pause and Florida non-renewal trend reduce availability for a national rental-investor audience, and short-term-rental support is limited to a narrow homeowners add-on rather than genuine landlord/STR coverage.
SOURCES: https://www.allstate.com/landlord-insurance · https://www.allstate.com/resources/allstate/attachments/tools-and-resources/landlord-package-policy-coverage.pdf · https://hosttools.com/blog/short-term-rental-tips/proper-vs-allstate-short-term-rental-insurance/ · https://news.ambest.com/newscontent.aspx?refnum=217377&altsrc=23 · https://insurance.ks.gov/documents/department/publications/complaint-index-report-2024.pdf · https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/899051/000089905125000015/all-20241231.htm · https://www.insurance.com/home-and-renters-insurance/coverage/j.d.-power-names-best-and-worst-insurers-for-property-claims.html · https://www.trustpilot.com/review/allstate.com
- Licensing
- Underwriting entity specific to the landlord product not named on amfam.com (multiple American Family P&C entities exist). AM Best A (Excellent), a+ Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating, stable outlook, affirmed Oct 2024 — 75 consecutive years at A or better.
- Specialties
- Landlord insurance (liability, rent-loss during repairs, unattached structures), Umbrella add-on, NFIP flood add-on
- AM Best A (Excellent) with a 75-consecutive-year track record at A or better
- Landlord policy includes liability, rent-loss during repairs, and unattached structures, plus umbrella and NFIP flood add-ons
- Secondary complaint-index estimates (Insurify 0.50, ConsumersAdvocate 0.36) both land below the 1.0 national median, suggesting a favorable complaint record
See the math behind this score
- Value5.0 × .30 = 1.50
- Quality5.0 × .25 = 1.25
- Trust & reputation6.0 × .20 = 1.20
- Customer experience5.0 × .15 = 0.75
- Fit & eligibility4.0 × .10 = 0.40
Weighted score= 5.10marks the category median for each pillar across everyone we ranked.
Value: amfam.com pages directly contradict each other on whether online quoting is available ('quick pricing... online' on one page vs. 'customized with the help of a licensed agent' on another) — this needs resolution before any access/friction claim is published. No landlord-specific premium data was found; rent-loss coverage during repairs is a genuine value feature but its pricing is opaque.
Quality: Confirmed coverage: general liability, medical payments, rent-loss during repairs, unattached structures, plus umbrella and NFIP flood add-ons. Multi-unit support, vacant-property terms, and replacement-cost-vs-ACV election are not addressed on any amfam.com page found — real documentation gaps versus the specialists in this comparison. Short-term rental is handled only via a homeowners add-on capped at 62 days/year, unsuitable for full-time rental use.
Trust & reputation: AM Best A (Excellent), stable, with a notable 75-consecutive-year track record at A or better. Secondary complaint-index estimates (Insurify 0.50, ConsumersAdvocate 0.36) both land below the 1.0 national median, suggesting a favorable complaint record, though neither was independently confirmed against NAIC's own database. Weighed against class-action settlements over total-loss valuation (Johnson v. American Family) and Missouri structural-damage depreciation practices (Hirsch v. American Family) — real property-claims-practice concerns.
Customer experience: J.D. Power's 2025 U.S. Property Claims Satisfaction Study scored American Family 680/1000, essentially at the 682 study average — a middle-of-the-pack result, neither a standout strength nor weakness.
Fit & eligibility: Narrowest footprint in this comparison — landlord insurance is offered across only 19 core states, well short of the multi-state/national reach of every other insurer scored here, and short-term-rental support is minimal (62-day cap via a homeowners add-on, not a landlord product feature).
SOURCES: https://www.amfam.com/insurance/landlord/overview · https://www.amfam.com/resources/landlord-toolbox/insurance · https://www.amfam.com/insurance/home/coverages/short-term-rental · https://newsroom.amfam.com/am-best-affirms-american-familys-a-financial-strength-rating-and-stable-outlook/ · https://insurify.com/homeowners-insurance/american-family-review/ · https://www.americanfamilytotallosssettlement.com/ · https://www.jdpower.com/business/press-releases/2025-us-property-claims-satisfaction-study/ · https://www.amfam.com/underwriting-companies
Our top pick
Steadily
- Licensing
- Steadily Insurance Agency, Inc. is a licensed insurance producer in all 50 states + DC (NPN 19627533). Policies are underwritten either by Steadily's own carrier, Steadily Insurance Company (Arizona-domiciled, NAIC #16963), or placed with partner carriers including Spinnaker Insurance Company (AM Best A- Excellent), Century-National Insurance Company, and Trisura Insurance Company. Steadily's own carrier-specific AM Best rating (if any, distinct from partner carriers) was not independently confirmed and needs verification before publish.
- Specialties
- DP-3 / dwelling fire, Single-family & multi-unit rentals, Short-term rentals (Airbnb/VRBO)
- Instant online quoting and licensed to write in all 50 states + DC
- Broadest documented property-type support: single-family, multi-unit, condos, ADUs, vacant, and short-term rentals
- $250M+ in annualized gross written premium and a $30M Series C (April 2025) at a $355M valuation — well-capitalized for a landlord-insurance specialist
How we score
Every listing on this page is scored against the same published rubric: Value (30%), Quality (25%), Trust & Reputation (20%), Customer Experience (15%), and Fit & Eligibility (10%), each on a 1-10 scale with a cited rationale, combined into a weighted overall score out of 10. Scores are evidence-based — every pillar cites the sources we consulted, and we say so plainly when facts conflicted or couldn't be verified. Ranking on this page is by merit score only; no insurer can pay for a higher position, though some listings may carry affiliate links disclosed per our Advertiser Disclosure.
- Value
- What you pay versus what you get.
- Quality
- How good the product, service, or offer itself is.
- Trust & reputation
- Track record, third-party ratings, complaint history, and licensing / regulatory standing.
- Customer experience
- Support, claims handling, onboarding, and overall ease of doing business.
- Fit & eligibility
- Who qualifies, availability, and geographic coverage.
Scores reflect our independent research as of the date shown on each provider. Compensation never changes a provider's score.
Frequently asked questions
How is landlord insurance different from homeowners insurance?
Homeowners insurance is written for an owner-occupied home and typically excludes or voids coverage once the property is rented to a tenant. Landlord insurance (DP-3 / dwelling-fire coverage) is written specifically for non-owner-occupied rental property: it covers the dwelling structure and your liability as a landlord, but generally excludes the tenant's own personal belongings (which is what a renters policy, purchased separately by the tenant, is for). If you convert a home you used to live in into a rental, you almost always need to switch policies — staying on a homeowners policy can mean a denied claim exactly when you need coverage most.
How much does landlord insurance cost?
Landlord insurance commonly runs somewhat higher than an equivalent homeowners policy — insurers price in the added risk of a tenant-occupied property and the loss-of-rent coverage bundled into most policies. Exact pricing varies significantly by insurer, state, property type, and coverage limits chosen; several insurers in this comparison don't publish rate sheets at all, so getting real quotes from two or three insurers for your specific property is the only reliable way to compare cost.
What is loss of rent (fair rental value) coverage, and do I need it?
Loss of rent coverage (sometimes called fair rental value coverage) reimburses you for the rental income you lose while your property is uninhabitable due to a covered loss — a fire that requires months of repair, for example. It's triggered only by a covered peril, not by an unrelated vacancy or a tenant who simply stops paying rent (that's a different risk, sometimes covered by a separate rent-guarantee or lease-default product). Nearly every insurer in this comparison includes some form of loss-of-rent coverage standard, but the coverage period and dollar cap vary — worth confirming directly, especially for a mortgaged property where a long vacancy during repairs would strain your cash flow.
Do I need landlord insurance if the property is owned by an LLC?
Yes — an LLC or other legal entity doesn't insure the physical property; the insurance policy does. Many insurers can name an LLC as the named insured or as an additional interest on a landlord policy, but this needs to be set up correctly at the time you buy the policy (or when you transfer title into the LLC) — a policy still written to you personally after title moves to an LLC can create a coverage gap. If your lender required an LLC for the loan, ask both your insurer and your loan servicer how the policy's named-insured line needs to read to satisfy the mortgagee-clause requirement.
Does landlord insurance cover short-term rentals like Airbnb?
It depends heavily on the insurer, and the coverage isn't automatic. Some of the companies in this comparison explicitly support short-term/vacation rentals within their landlord or dedicated STR product (with specific dollar limits and rules), while others only offer short-term-rental coverage as a narrow homeowners-policy add-on capped at a limited number of nights per year — which isn't a real solution for a property rented short-term most of the year. If short-term rental is your model, confirm the specific policy (not just the insurer's brand) explicitly covers that use before you rely on it.
Should I add an umbrella policy on top of landlord insurance?
Most landlord policies cap liability coverage well below what a serious injury lawsuit could cost — a personal or commercial umbrella policy sits on top of your landlord policy's liability limit and extends it, often in $1M increments, once the underlying policy's limit is exhausted. For an investor with multiple rental properties, an umbrella policy is one of the most cost-effective ways to raise total liability protection, since it covers all scheduled properties (and often other assets) under one additional policy rather than raising each individual policy's limit separately.
Whichever insurer you choose, read the loss-of-rent coverage period and dollar cap before you compare headline premiums — a policy that's slightly cheaper but caps loss-of-rent at three months instead of twelve can leave you covering a mortgage payment out of pocket during a long rebuild. If you're financing with a DSCR loan, confirm your lender's minimum dwelling-coverage and mortgagee-clause requirements with your loan officer before binding a policy, since a mismatch can delay closing or trigger a force-placed (and far more expensive) insurance requirement later.
This comparison focuses on companies that actively write landlord/DP-3 policies as of this research pass; several listings above carry open manual-verification flags (state availability, specific underwriting entity, or reputation data that couldn't be independently confirmed) — treat the scores as a starting point for your own quote comparison, not a substitute for reading the actual policy language for your property and state.
Related guides
Guides & reviews
Steadily Review
Independent Steadily landlord insurance review: DP-3 coverage, short-term rental and multi-unit acceptance, financial backing, and gaps to watch.
Read the reviewReviewState Farm Review
Independent State Farm landlord insurance review: rental dwelling coverage, agent network, the California non-renewals, and a split AM Best rating.
Read the reviewReviewObie Review
Independent review of Obie landlord insurance: instant online quoting, a multi-carrier lineup, the Baldwin Group acquisition, and thin reputation data.
Read the reviewReviewForemost Review
Independent Foremost landlord insurance review: Farmers-backed dwelling-fire coverage, standout vacant and short-term rental terms, and gaps to weigh.
Read the reviewReviewAmerican Family Insurance Review
Independent review of American Family landlord insurance: a strong financial track record and low complaints, offset by a narrow 19-state footprint.
Read the reviewReviewAllstate Review
Independent review of Allstate's Landlords Package Policy: A+ financial strength, up to 12 months of lost rent, a 4-unit cap, and a weak claims score.
Read the reviewGuideDP-3 Policies Explained: Coverage, Exclusions, and Loss of Rent
What a DP-3 dwelling-fire policy actually covers, common exclusions and add-ons, and how loss-of-rent coverage is sized and paid out.
Read the guideGuideLandlord Insurance vs Homeowners Insurance: What Rental Owners Actually Need
Why a standard homeowners policy doesn't cover a rental property, what a landlord (DP-3) policy actually adds, and how LLC ownership changes what you need.
Read the guideThe information on this page is for general informational purposes only and is not financial, legal, or investment advice, nor an endorsement or recommendation of any company, product, or service. Rates, terms, and availability change frequently and vary by applicant — verify details directly with any provider before making a decision, and consider consulting a qualified professional about your situation.