Vacant Home Insurance
Vacant home insurance covers an empty dwelling for perils such as fire, vandalism, theft, and certain water damage that a standard homeowners policy typically restricts once a home sits unoccupied past a set period, often around 60 days. It may also include liability protection for injuries on the property while the home stands empty.
An empty house is not a lower risk to your insurer. It is often a higher one. Once a home sits unoccupied beyond a set period, a standard homeowners policy typically restricts or suspends coverage, which can leave you exposed at exactly the wrong moment.
What does vacant home insurance cover?
- Physical damage to the empty dwelling from covered perils such as fire and certain weather events.
- Vandalism and malicious mischief, which standard policies often limit or exclude once a home is vacant.
- Theft and attempted theft, including damage from break-ins.
- Water damage from covered causes, subject to policy terms.
- Broken glass and related damage.
- Liability protection if someone is injured on the property.
Who needs it? Owners living through a transition: a home undergoing renovation, a property tied up in probate or an estate, a house listed for sale and standing empty, a rental sitting between tenants, and a property held for redevelopment or acquired as a distressed asset.
Many standard homeowners policies begin restricting coverage once a home has been vacant roughly 60 days, and the exact trigger and terms vary by policy. In California, earthquake and flood are typically handled through separate coverage, so a vacant-dwelling policy generally will not include them. If the empty period is tied to major remodeling, a course of construction approach may fit the work better than a vacancy policy alone.
How we help: We start by confirming whether your situation counts as vacant or unoccupied under your current policy, since the two are treated differently. From there we walk you through a dedicated vacant-dwelling policy or, in some cases, a vacancy permit endorsement that can restore protection to your existing coverage.
