What is wall-in insurance? If you own a condo or are just considering purchasing one, you should be familiar with Walls-in insurance. So as you know, there are two different meanings for this term. However, they both surround condo insurance.
In this article, we will walk you through everything you need about Walls in insurance. So that you can easily understand what it means when insurers and condo owners make use of this phrase.
What is Walls in Insurance Coverage?
When you see the word walls in insurance, it can mean any of the below, depending on the context:
- H0-6 Condo insurance: Walls-in insurance is another word for this policy. As a condo owner, you buy to protect your liability and property inside your condo unit.
- As a type of HOA master policy: Wall-in coverage is a type of HOA master policy. In addition to your condo insurance, your condo association or HOA has a master policy that covers the common areas and exterior structure shared among the members of the HOA.
You can use the above explanation to know the type of walls in insurance an insurer, a website, or a document is talking about. If you are discussing personal insurance, that is the first definition. But if we are discussing which property part your HOA insurers cover, then that is the second definition.
What does Walls-in Insurance Cover?
Walls in insurance cover various parts of your condo. Below are full details on what exactly is covered by each type.
Wall-in insurance for condo owners
The HO-6 insurance policy covers everything in your personal condominium unit, from the walls inward. This includes every one of your personal properties, i.e., your clothes, furniture, electronics, and more. It may or may not include appliances such as a fridge, dishwasher, washer, or dryer. This Walls-in insurance also includes liability coverage. This means it can help pay for legal and medical bills if a guest is injured in your condo. However, it does not cover liabilities for injuries that happen in common places, such as a swimming pool or parking lot. These parts are for the HOA’s to insure.
Walls-In HOA Master Policy
There are various types of master policies for condo associations. They are bare walls-in, all-in, and walls-in. Bare walls-in cover the least, walls-in cover somewhere in the middle, and all-in cover the most.
- Bare walls-in: It covers liability and property in common spaces of the condo building, such as a parking lot or swimming pool. And the structure of the whole building itself, up to the drywall inside the personal condo units
- Walls-in, also known as studs in coverage or single entity coverage, covers all the things that the above covers. This includes attached fixtures such as flooring, cabinets, lighting, and countertops inside each unit. Unless the fixtures have been upgraded or altered by the condo owner.
- All-in: Also known as inclusive coverage, it covers everything that Walls covers. Including appliances in each individual unit. It may also cover fixtures that have been recently added by the condo unit owner.
As a condo owner, you don’t have power over the type of policy your HOA buys. But you need to know. When you know what it covers and what it does, you can adjust your HO-6 to fill in this gap. If you don’t have your HOA’s insurance policy document copy, you should contact your association administration to get one.
What Type of Wall-in Insurance do I need?
If you are going for a single condo unit, you should take out an HO-6 insurance policy. It is a type of home insurance that is made just for condos. It ensures your properties inside the unit and your liability. However, it won’t cover the structure of the building, such as the roof and framing. Just like I have stated above, the building falls under the HOA’s insurance.
How Much Does Walls-in Insurance Cost?
This coverage for condo owners costs about $300 to $1,000 in a year, or $25 to $85 in a year in the USA. However, you should know that the actual cost of condo insurance varies widely for different individuals and in different states.
Your condo insurance rate will be based on various factors such as your credit score, insurance history, where you stay, your insurance history, the value of your belongings, and many more. Just as the rule states, the more coverage you need, the higher your premiums will be. So, if you have lots of expensive belongings to insure, you can expect the insurance to be more expensive than the coverage.
How do I Purchase Wall-in insurance?
By now, it should be very clear that walls in insurance are a part of condo insurance. So you will need to purchase condo insurance to have it included in your coverage. If it is not listed in your policy, you will have to tell your insurer to add it to it. But it is typically added to your condo insurance or HOA policy. You can easily purchase condo insurance from various insurance companies or agents in the United States. They all offer different rates, so you will need to compare well to get the one that matches your budget.