What Is the Difference Between Home and Dwelling Insurance?
Homeowners insurance addresses the coverage needs of homeowners who live in the insured property, which is in good repair and valued above the minimum coverage limit available.
Homeowners insurance
Homeowners insurance provides the following coverages:
- Dwelling
- Other Structures
- Personal Property
- Loss of Use
- Personal Liability
- Medical Payments to Others
An HO-3 or HO-5 policy covers Dwelling and Other Structures on an open-perils basis. This means that the policy will cover direct losses that aren’t specifically excluded.
Under an HO-3 policy, Personal Property is covered on a named-perils basis, which means only the specified causes of loss are covered. Some examples of common named perils are:
- Fire or lightning
- Windstorm or hail
- Explosion
- Riot or civil commotion
- Aircraft
- Vehicles
- Smoke
- Vandalism or malicious mischief
- Theft
- Falling objects
Dwelling insurance
Dwelling insurance addresses the coverage needs of landlords who don’t live on the insured property. It also can cover a home that is not owner-occupied or is valued below the minimum coverage limit available for a homeowners policy.
Dwelling insurance provides the following coverages:
- Dwelling
- Other Structures.
- Personal Property
- Fair Rental Value
Unlike homeowners insurance, dwelling insurance does not cover theft of personal property.
Liability and theft coverages are available by customizing a dwelling policy with an endorsement.
Dwelling insurance may be right for you if:
- You are a landlord renting out a 1–4 family dwelling,
- You own and occupy a 1–4 family dwelling that doesn’t meet underwriting guidelines, or
- Your home is at a higher risk of windstorm damage.