Condo Insurance
Condo Insurance, Made Clear
Condo insurance — an HO-6 policy — covers the part of your home your condo association's master policy doesn't. The line between the two is where most condo owners get caught off guard. Here's how an HO-6 works and the piece people most often miss.
Your HO-6 versus the association's master policy
Your condo association carries a master policy on the building, but what it covers varies:
- "Bare walls-in" master policies cover the structure only up to the unfinished walls — leaving your flooring, cabinets, fixtures, and improvements to you.
- "All-in" or "single-entity" policies cover original fixtures and finishes, but typically not your upgrades or your belongings.
Knowing which type your association has tells you exactly how much your HO-6 needs to cover. Read the master policy or ask your association.
What an HO-6 covers
- Interior building property — flooring, cabinets, built-ins, and improvements, depending on where the master policy stops.
- Personal property — your belongings.
- Loss of use — living costs if your unit is uninhabitable after a covered loss.
- Personal liability and medical payments to others.
- Loss assessment — your share of a special assessment the association levies after a covered loss to common areas. This is the coverage condo owners most often overlook.
Where the gaps hide
- Assuming the master policy covers your belongings or your renovations — it usually doesn't.
- Carrying too little loss-assessment coverage for a large common-area claim.
How to think about it
Match your interior coverage to where the master policy leaves off, insure your belongings for what they're worth, and carry enough loss-assessment coverage for your building's risk. This is general education, not advice for your specific unit; Sage AI can walk through your scenario, and a licensed agent can confirm.