A rental isn't your home — and insuring it like one gets claims denied.
The day you rent a property out, a homeowners policy is the wrong policy — and if you file a claim, the insurer can discover the tenant occupancy, deny it, and void the coverage. A landlord (rental dwelling) policy is built for tenant-occupied property: it insures the building, your premises liability, and the coverage that actually protects a real-estate investor — the rent you'd lose if the place goes offline. Here's how it works, what it won't touch, and how it pairs with your tenant's renters coverage. Placed through an independent agency that represents Auto-Owners.
The short answer
A landlord (rental dwelling) policy — usually a DP-3 — insures the building at replacement cost, other structures, the appliances and contents you provide, your premises liability, and the coverage that defines it: fair rental value, which replaces the rent you lose while a covered loss makes the property uninhabitable. It does not cover your tenant's belongings — that's their renters policy. And it's the policy a rental legally needs: keeping a homeowners policy on a rental can get a claim denied. Own more than one? Auto-Owners can put an unlimited number of properties on one schedule — a single rental to 100-plus, single-family through 4-plex. Backed by an A+ (Superior) carrier, placed only through an independent agent like Cribb.
Built for a building someone else lives in.
A rental dwelling policy protects the owner's interests — the asset, the liability, and the income — not the household inside.
The dwelling
Rebuilds the structure after a covered loss. On a DP-3 it's open-perils and replacement cost — the right baseline, versus the older DP-1 form that pays depreciated actual cash value.
Other structures
Detached garages, fences, sheds, and decks on the property. Easy to under-set — worth checking if the rental has real outbuildings.
Landlord personal property
The appliances, window units, lawn equipment, or furnishings you provide for the rental. This is your property in the unit — not the tenant's belongings.
Landlord liability
Protects you if a tenant or visitor is injured on the property and you're held responsible — a step from the "personal" liability on a homeowners policy to "premises" liability as the owner. Often carried at $300,000 to $1 million or paired with an umbrella.
Fair rental value (loss of rents)
Replaces the rental income you lose while a covered loss makes the property uninhabitable — so the mortgage, taxes, and insurance keep getting paid while the unit is offline and being repaired.
Vandalism & more
Vacancy and vandalism can be handled with the right form and endorsements, and coverage should be reviewed between tenants when a unit sits empty. We set these to match how the property is actually used.
When the unit goes offline, the rent still comes.
A homeowners policy pays for your hotel if you're displaced. But you don't live in a rental — so what you need isn't a hotel, it's the rent. That's fair rental value, and it's the coverage that keeps an investment property from becoming a monthly loss.
The coverage that protects the mortgage.
Say a fire or a major water loss makes your rental uninhabitable for eight months while it's rebuilt. Your tenant stops paying rent — as they're entitled to — but your mortgage, property taxes, and insurance don't pause. Fair rental value pays you the rent you would have collected during those months, so the asset can sit "offline" without draining your savings.
It's typically set as a percentage of the dwelling limit and capped at a number of months, so on a $300,000 dwelling you might carry roughly $60,000 of loss-of-rents coverage. The right number depends on your actual rent and how long a rebuild would realistically take in this market — which is a conversation, not a default box.
Don't leave a homeowners policy on a rental.
It's the most expensive mistake a new landlord makes. A homeowners policy insures an owner-occupied home; once it's a rental, that policy no longer matches the risk. File a claim and the insurer can run a residency check, find that you don't live there, deny the claim, and void the policy for the occupancy it never agreed to cover — leaving you with a damaged building and a full mortgage. If it's a rental, it needs a landlord policy. We make the switch clean.
One rental or a hundred, on one schedule.
Auto-Owners lets you schedule your rentals on one policy instead of juggling a separate policy and renewal for every property — from a single rental to 100 or more.
Coverage that scales with the portfolio.
Most landlords start with one door and end up managing several. Rather than a stack of standalone policies with different renewal dates and no one seeing the whole picture, Auto-Owners offers a schedule with no cap on the number of properties — a single rental up to 100-plus, ranging from single-family homes to duplexes, triplexes, and 4-plexes. Each property carries its own limits for dwelling, loss of rents, and liability, all on one account.
For a growing investor that means one policy, one renewal, and one agent who sees the entire portfolio — so limits stay consistent, new acquisitions get added cleanly, and nothing slips through a gap between separate policies. Properties with five or more units move into commercial territory, and we place those too — so the whole portfolio stays under one roof as it grows.
Your building, their belongings.
Require renters insurance in the lease — it protects you too.
Your landlord policy never covers the tenant's furniture, electronics, or clothes. If a fire destroys the unit, your policy rebuilds the structure and replaces your appliances, but the tenant's belongings are only covered if the tenant carries their own renters insurance. Requiring it in the lease protects the tenant — and it protects you, by keeping a tenant from trying to come after your policy for their lost property. We can write your landlord policy and set your tenants up with renters coverage so both sides are covered.
Three things to get right on a landlord policy.
First, use a DP-3 with replacement cost, not a stripped-down actual-cash-value form. Second, size fair rental value to your real rent and a realistic rebuild timeline, and carry premises liability high enough to pair with an umbrella. Third, require tenants to carry renters insurance and match the policy to how the property is used — long-term versus short-term changes everything.
What a landlord policy won't cover.
A rental dwelling policy protects the owner — a few things sit outside it entirely.
Your tenant's belongings
Furniture, electronics, and clothes inside the unit belong to the tenant and are only covered by their own renters policy — never by your landlord policy.
The tenant's liability
If your tenant causes injury or damage through their own negligence, that's their renters liability, not yours. Your premises liability covers your responsibility as the owner.
Short-term / Airbnb use
Frequent short-term rental isn't what a standard DP-3 or homeowners policy is built for, and a claim can be denied. It usually needs a short-term-rental or commercial policy — tell us how you host.
Backed by an A+ (Superior) carrier.
AM Best rates the members of Auto-Owners Insurance Group — the companies behind your Arkansas rental dwelling policy — with a Financial Strength Rating of A+ (Superior) and a Long-Term Issuer Credit Rating of "aa" (Superior), stable outlook, per its rating action dated October 31, 2024. A+ (Superior) is the second-highest of AM Best's rating levels and sits in its top "Superior" category. A financial strength rating is an opinion about an insurer's ability to pay claims — its solvency — not a grade of how a specific claim is handled, and not a recommendation. The current rating is at ambest.com.
Where we earn it on a rental.
The quiet landlord mistakes are a homeowners policy left on a rental, a DP-1 actual-cash-value form where a DP-3 belonged, loss of rents set too low for the real rent, and no requirement for tenant renters insurance. We put the property on the right form at replacement cost, size the rents and liability to the asset, pair it with an umbrella, and get your tenants covered. We don't adjust your claim and can't overrule an adjuster — but we make sure the policy matches how the property is used, and we'll compare Auto-Owners against 40-plus markets.
A bit more than a homeowners policy — for good reason.
Industry estimates put a landlord policy at roughly 15 to 25 percent more than a comparable homeowners policy on the same house — a general planning figure, not a quote, not carrier-specific, and not a guarantee. You're paying for the tenant-occupancy risk and for the rental-income protection a homeowners policy doesn't include. Actual premium turns on the rebuild value, roof and age, protection class, the coverage form and limits, loss-of-rents amount, and claims history. Send the property details and we'll build the real figure with you, Auto-Owners against 40-plus carriers.
Two sides of the same rental.
Auto-Owners landlord insurance questions.
Do I need landlord insurance if I already have a homeowners policy on the property?
Yes, and this matters more than most people realize. A homeowners policy is written for an owner-occupied home. Once you rent the property out, keeping that homeowners policy on it is a material misrepresentation — and if you file a claim, the insurer can conduct a residency investigation, discover you don't live there, deny the claim, and void the policy for the tenant occupancy it never agreed to insure.
That can leave you with a damaged building and a full mortgage. A landlord or rental dwelling policy (commonly a DP-3) is built for tenant-occupied property and adds the coverages a homeowners policy doesn't, like loss of rents. If the home is a rental, it needs a landlord policy, full stop.
What does landlord insurance cover?
A landlord or rental dwelling policy covers the building — ideally on an open-perils, replacement-cost basis (a DP-3) — plus other structures like a detached garage or fence, the landlord-owned contents you provide such as appliances, and premises liability for injuries you're responsible for as the property owner.
The coverage that sets it apart is fair rental value, also called loss of rents, which replaces the rental income you lose while the property is uninhabitable after a covered loss. What it does not cover is your tenant's belongings — those are the tenant's responsibility through their own renters insurance.
What is fair rental value or loss of rents coverage?
Fair rental value coverage pays you the rental income you would have collected while a covered loss makes the property uninhabitable and it's being repaired. If a fire or major water loss puts your rental out of service for eight months, the tenant stops paying rent — as is their right — but your mortgage, taxes, and insurance keep coming due. Loss of rents bridges that gap.
On a landlord policy it's typically set as a percentage of the dwelling limit and capped at a number of months, so on a $300,000 dwelling you might carry around $60,000 of loss-of-rents coverage. For an investor relying on rent to carry the property, it's the most important coverage on the policy.
Does landlord insurance cover my tenant's belongings?
No. Your landlord policy covers the building, your landlord-owned property, your liability, and your rental income — never the tenant's furniture, electronics, or clothes. If a fire destroys the unit, your policy rebuilds the structure, but your tenant's belongings are only covered if the tenant carries their own renters insurance.
This is exactly why smart landlords require renters insurance in the lease: it protects the tenant, and it protects you from a tenant trying to come after your policy for their lost property. We can set your landlord policy and help your tenants get renters coverage so both sides are protected.
What if I rent the property short-term on Airbnb or VRBO?
Short-term rental changes the picture. Neither a standard homeowners policy nor a standard landlord DP-3 is designed for frequent short-term guests, and a claim can be denied if the use doesn't match the policy. Frequent short-term rental usually needs a specialty short-term-rental policy or a commercial form that treats the hosting as a business; if you occupy the home part of the year, an eligible home-sharing endorsement may cover some activity.
Platform programs like AirCover or VRBO's liability coverage are helpful backstops, not a replacement for property insurance that matches how you actually use the home. Tell us how many days you host versus occupy, and we'll match the policy to the use.
Can I put multiple rental properties on one policy?
Yes — this is one of Auto-Owners' strengths for investors. Rather than a separate policy and renewal for every property, Auto-Owners offers a schedule with no cap on the number of properties, from a single rental to more than a hundred, ranging from single-family homes to duplexes, triplexes, and 4-plexes. Each property carries its own dwelling, loss-of-rents, and liability limits, all on one account.
That means one policy, one renewal, and one agent who sees the whole portfolio, so limits stay consistent and new purchases get added cleanly. Properties with five or more units move into commercial territory, which we also place — so the entire portfolio can stay under one roof as it grows.
How do I get an Auto-Owners landlord quote in Bentonville or Rogers?
Start at our personal lines quote form or call (479) 286-1066. Tell us about the property — its rebuild value, age and roof, how many units, and the monthly rent — and whether you own other rentals or have your home and auto with us, since that can help on price.
We'll set the dwelling at replacement cost, size the loss-of-rents and liability, and quote Auto-Owners against 40-plus other carriers. Because Auto-Owners only sells through independent agents, an agency like ours is the only way to buy it.
If our coverage explainers are useful, mark Cribb Insurance as a preferred source so more Northwest Arkansas property owners can find our local, plain-English guides.
Insure the building — and the income it brings you.
Send us the property details — rebuild value, units, monthly rent — and we'll put it on the right rental dwelling form, size the loss of rents and liability, and quote it against 40-plus carriers. If you're still carrying a homeowners policy on a rental, we'll fix that before it costs you a claim.
Cribb Insurance Group Inc. is an independent insurance agency licensed in Arkansas. We are not Auto-Owners, and this page is not endorsed, sponsored, reviewed, or approved by Auto-Owners. "Auto-Owners" and "Auto-Owners Insurance" are service marks or trademarks of Auto-Owners Insurance Company and its affiliates, used here nominatively to identify products we are appointed to place. Auto-Owners' Arkansas rental dwelling policies are issued by Auto-Owners-affiliated underwriting companies.
This page describes landlord / rental dwelling coverage in general, industry-standard terms for informational purposes only. It is not a policy, not an offer of insurance, and not a guarantee of coverage, availability, eligibility, or price. Dwelling, other structures, landlord-owned personal property, premises liability, fair rental value / loss of rents, optional vandalism and vacancy coverage, coverage forms (such as DP-1, DP-2, and DP-3), replacement-cost and actual-cash-value valuation, limits, deductibles, endorsements, and exclusions are set by the carrier, vary by state and by policy and over time, are subject to the carrier's underwriting approval and eligibility, and apply only as written in the policy actually issued to you. A landlord policy does not cover the tenant's personal property or the tenant's liability, which require the tenant's own renters insurance. Insuring a tenant-occupied property under an owner-occupied homeowners policy may result in denial of a claim and cancellation or voiding of the policy. Short-term rental (for example, Airbnb or VRBO) may require a specialty or commercial policy; platform-provided protections are not a substitute for property insurance matched to actual use. Flood and earthquake are excluded and require separate coverage.
Statements about landlord insurance costing roughly 15 to 25 percent more than a comparable homeowners policy, and illustrative figures for loss-of-rents and liability limits, are general industry estimates and examples, not quotes, not carrier-specific, and not guarantees; your premium and coverage are determined at quote and by the policy issued. Discounts are subject to the carrier's rules and eligibility and are not guaranteed.
Financial strength ratings are opinions of an insurer's ability to meet its ongoing insurance obligations, are subject to change, are not recommendations to purchase, hold or terminate any policy, and do not address an insurer's claims-handling practices; current ratings are at ambest.com. The A+ (Superior) rating referenced applies to the members of Auto-Owners Insurance Group.
Last reviewed July 2026.