Homeowner's Insurance Policy

Definition of "Homeowner's insurance policy"

Shon McGuire real estate agent

Written by

Shon McGuireelite badge icon

Adams Cameron & Co. Realtors


Homeowner’s insurance is a kind of property insurance that covers risks commonly encountered by homeowners.

There are several kinds of homeowner’s insurance policies:

Homeowners-1 (HO-1) - the most basic coverage. Basically, HO-1 provides homeowners protection against catastrophic losses only. HO-1 is a Named Peril Policy, that is; a policy that specifies exactly what it covers.

Homeowners-2 (HO-2) - known as a mid-range policy, the HO-2 provides broader coverage than the HO-1, but it’s not as robust as the HO-3, for instance. It is also a named peril policy.

Homeowners-3 (HO-3) - is the most common homeowner’s policy in the US. The HO-3 is midway between a named perils policy and an open perils policy. That is because under the HO-3, your personal properties (appliances, furniture, cars…) are insured via named perils but the house itself is insured under an Open Peril Policy, which is a list of exclusions of damages insured by the policy. If it’s not on the list, the insurance will cover it.

Homeowners-4 (HO-4) - also known as renter’s insurance,  the HO-4 is a policy made for people renting a property.

Homeowners-5 (HO-5) - the HO-5 is one of the most comprehensive homeowner's insurance available. An elite policy, the HO-5 is an upgraded version of HO-3, as it also includes the personal properties under the open perils policy and not just the house.

Homeowners-6 (HO-6) - the HO-6 is for people renting condos and townhomes. Also known as the condo insurance or the townhome insurance, the HO-6 is similar to the HO-4 in scope, but it deviates from it regarding the way some aspects are calculated.

Homeowners-8 (HO-8) - the HO-8 is designed to protect older homes and remodeled buildings that are difficult to replace if destroyed. It is similar to HO-1 as it is also a basic coverage, but the HO-1 usually evaluates the house via replacement cost approach, whereas it’s difficult to do that with HO-8, which typically uses the actual cash value.

 

Real Estate Advice:

Search our Glossary Terms
 for the specific definitions of all the types of homeowner's insurance.

And find a real estate agent to help you decide which type of homeowner's insurance is the best for you.

image of a real estate dictionary page

Have a question or comment?

We're here to help.

*** Your email address will remain confidential.
 

 

Popular Real Estate Terms

British thermal unit-a unit of energy associated with the creation of heat. Prior to 1929, it was defined as the amount of heat required to raised the temperature of 1 pound of water 1 ...

Method of construction where vertical siding is attached to a horizontal framing structure. Often found in the design of agricultural buildings. ...

The definition of a property brief is a document including the summarization of the attributes and characteristics of the property. Officially issued legal records are supposed to include ...

Study of real estate activities including demand, price, location influence, and current trends. ...

A method of brick construction where the bricks are laid with their sides facing outward. ...

A developer is a person that designs or creates something that could be a concept, structure, product or service. An idea can be turned into something real, tangible and the person that ...

Act of postponing a closing for another day or place. Adjournments of closing can occur for a variety of reasons including the lack of an appropriate closing statement, one or more parties ...

Market analysis method where sales of similar properties in proximity neighborhoods are compared. The comparable sales methodology is extremely useful if the properties being compared are ...

Property deed in which the grantor limits the title warranty to the grantee. A grantor does not warrant a title defect to the property occurring from a happening before the time of his ...

Popular Real Estate Questions