Renters Insurance Guide for Grace Residents

Section 1: What renters insurance covers

A renters policy does four things: replaces your belongings, pays if you are responsible for an injury or damage, pays for somewhere to stay if the home becomes unlivable, and covers your things when they are away from home.

• Your belongings. Furniture, electronics, clothing, dishes, everything you own, against fire, smoke, theft, vandalism, wind, hail, frozen pipes and other listed events. Choose replacement cost coverage, not actual cash value, so you are paid what it costs to buy the item new.
• Your liability. If a guest is hurt in your home, your dog bites someone, or you accidentally start a fire or leave a tub running and damage the unit below, this pays the claim and your legal defense. Under your Grace lease you are responsible for damage you or your guests cause, so this is the coverage that protects your savings.
• Loss of use. If a covered event makes the home unlivable, this pays for a hotel or temporary housing and extra living costs while repairs are made.
• Your things away from home. Most policies cover belongings stolen from your car, from a storage unit, or while you travel.

What it does not cover

• The building itself. That is the owner’s policy.
• Your roommate’s belongings, unless they are named on your policy.
• Flood damage from outside the home (a separate policy), and sewer backup unless you add it. Sewer backup is common in Denver basements and worth the few extra dollars.
• Damage from pests, or from neglect. Report leaks and problems to Grace as soon as you see them.
• Your car. That is your auto policy, even if it is parked in the garage.

Section 2: What it costs and how much to carry

A typical Colorado policy runs about $170 a year, or about $14 a month, for $30,000 in belongings coverage, $100,000 in liability and $10,000 in loss of use. Bundling with your auto insurance usually brings that down further.

• Belongings: walk through each room and add it up. Most people underestimate. $20,000 to $40,000 is a common range for a two-bedroom home.
• Liability: $100,000 is a floor. $300,000 costs only a few dollars more per month and is what we would carry.
• Deductible: $500 is standard. A higher deductible lowers the premium but means more out of pocket on a small claim.
• Pets: tell the carrier about your dog. Some breeds are excluded from liability coverage, and a bite claim with no coverage is a very bad day.

Section 3: Does Grace require renters insurance?

No, and we strongly recommend it. Your lease says the same thing: “Landlord recommends and urges Tenant to secure adequate renter’s property and liability insurance.”

Here is why we recommend rather than require.

• The policy is yours. It protects you, your belongings and your savings. Under Colorado law the landlord cannot make you file a claim, cannot be paid from your policy, and cannot cancel it. A requirement would not change what the policy does for anyone.
• Your responsibility does not depend on it. Under your lease you are responsible for damage you or your guests cause, whether or not you have insurance. A renters policy is how you make sure that responsibility does not come out of your own pocket.
• We would rather you understand it than check a box. A requirement gets you a policy on move-in day. Understanding it gets you a policy you keep, with limits that actually fit what you own.

If you are an owner reading this page because a lender or carrier asked whether “tenants are required to carry insurance,” our Rental Property Insurance Guide for Owners covers that question from your side.

Section 4: If you rent a condo or townhome

Your building’s HOA carries a master insurance policy. It covers the structure and the common areas. It does not cover your belongings or your liability, and it is not a substitute for renters insurance.

Many residents in condo buildings assume the HOA policy covers everyone inside. It covers the building from the foundation to the walls of each unit, plus the roof, hallways, parking and pool. If a fire starts in a neighbor’s unit and smoke ruins your furniture, the HOA policy pays to rebuild the structure. Your furniture is your renters policy. If a leak from your unit damages the unit below, that is your liability coverage, not the HOA’s. Everything in Sections 1 to 3 applies exactly the same way in a condo.

Section 5: How to get it

1. Call the agent who writes your auto insurance and ask for a renters quote. Bundling is usually the cheapest route.
2. Or get quotes online. Most carriers issue a policy in under ten minutes.
3. List the address exactly as it appears on your lease, and add any roommates named on the lease to the policy (or have them buy their own).
4. Choose replacement cost coverage for your belongings and at least $100,000 of liability.
5. Save a copy of the declarations page in your resident portal documents, and update the policy when you move.

Make a home inventory now

Walk through the home with your phone and take a video of every room, every closet and every drawer. Say what things are as you go. Save it to the cloud. If you ever have a loss, that ten minute video is the difference between a smooth claim and a frustrating one.

Section 6: What to do if something happens

1. Get safe. For fire, gas or flooding, get out and call 911 first.
2. Report it to Grace right away. Submit a maintenance request in your resident portal or call the 24/7 maintenance line at (303) 255-1990 ext. 16. We coordinate repairs to the home and handle the owner’s claim.
3. Call your renters insurance carrier to open a claim for your belongings or your living costs. Grace does not file this for you, and the owner’s carrier will not cover it.
4. Take photos of everything before you move or throw anything away, and keep receipts for any hotel or emergency purchases.

Frequently asked questions

• Does the owner’s insurance or Grace’s insurance ever cover my belongings?

  No. The owner’s landlord policy covers the building and the owner’s liability. Grace’s insurance covers Grace’s operations as the manager. Neither covers anything you own. The one exception is if the owner or Grace is found legally responsible for the loss, and that is decided by the carriers after the fact, not something you can count on.

• I have a roommate. Do we need two policies?

  One policy can usually cover everyone named on it, and some carriers only cover people related to the policyholder. Ask. The safe answer is for each adult on the lease to carry their own policy; at $14 a month it is not worth the gap.

• I have a dog. Does that change anything?

  Yes. Tell the carrier the breed. Some carriers exclude certain breeds from liability coverage or charge more. A dog bite claim is one of the most common and most expensive renters liability claims, and the lease makes you responsible for your pet.

• The home became unlivable. Who pays for my hotel?

  It depends on the cause. When Colorado’s warranty of habitability requires the landlord to provide comparable housing, Grace handles that through our displacement process and your Executive Property Manager will walk you through it. In every other situation, including most fires and many water losses, the loss of use coverage on your renters policy is what pays for a hotel and your added living costs. Rent remains due under your lease while you are displaced unless Grace tells you otherwise in writing.

• My belongings were damaged by a leak from the unit above me. Who pays?

  File with your own renters carrier first; they will pay you and then pursue the responsible party. Without a policy you would have to prove the neighbor’s negligence yourself to recover anything.

• Do I need to give Grace proof of my policy?

  No. We recommend keeping a copy of your declarations page in your portal documents so you can find it fast after a loss, but we do not collect or track policies.

• Can I get renters insurance after I move in?

  Yes, any time, and it starts the day you buy it. The best time is before move-in day; the second best time is today.

• Does renters insurance cover my security deposit?

  No. Your deposit is held in Grace’s trust account under Colorado law and is returned based on the condition of the home at move-out. See Security Deposits in Colorado.

Renters insurance is the cheapest insurance most people will ever buy, and the one they most regret skipping. Ten minutes and about $14 a month covers everything you own and protects your savings if something goes wrong. If you have questions about your lease or coverage, we are glad to help.