Many people believe that they are fully insured because they have a Condominium Association insurance policy as part of the monthly maintenance fees they pay. THIS I S NOT TRUE. In most cases, association policies do not cover your kitchen cabinets and other fixtures as well as your interior walls. Furthermore, the association policy never covers your personal liability or personal property.
If you wish to have personal liability coverage as well as coverage for the interior of your condo, your furniture, your clothing, and other personal property, you will need a personal Condominium Unit Owner's Policy.
In addition to providing the above-mentioned coverage's, a unit owner's policy will provide Loss Assessment Coverage and Loss of Use. Loss Assessment Coverage protects you when the condominium master policy's limits are insufficient to cover a loss. You can be assessed with a loss even if the damage or liability does not affect your unit.
Loss of Use will help pay your expenses if you cannot live in your home due to a covered loss. This applies even if your unit does not suffer any damage. For example, if you have to evacuate due to a fire in another unit.
Your condo/townhouse by-laws outline the coverage provided by the condominium master policy. Consult your association for interpretation of your by-laws to determine what is/is not covered by your association's policy.
Smitha Ramchandani is a licensed real estate professional at Weichert Realtors' Morristown West, New Jersey office. She is an expert in buying and selling of townhouses and condominiums. She is renown as the Condo/Town-house specialist in much of North Central New Jersey and is a resource for buyers and sellers not to mention her real estate colleagues, who consult her when looking for new inventory coming to the marketplace. You can reach Smitha at: 973-252-8245 (Res.) or 1-877-CONDO-00 (toll free, Res.) or online at: http://www.thetownhouseexpert.com or http://www.Morris-Homes.com
