Homeowner's Insurance Policy
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.
Popular Real Estate Terms
Also called financial leverage. The use of borrower funds to magnify return. Trading profitably on the equity, also called favorable financial leverage, means that the borrowed funds ...
The legal definition of conversion is the act of using property or funds with which one has been entrusted for purposes other than those for which the property was intended to be used by ...
The American Society of Appraisers, also referred to as ASA, is the largest voluntary membership, a multi-discipline trade association that stands for and promotes its appraiser members. ...
Method of valuing a property through examination and comparison of recent sales of comparable properties. ...
Purchase of part of property or property rights when condemnation takes place. The owner must be justly reimbursed. ...
One who has died with a valid will in effect. ...
Changing property ownership. An example is the sale of a home to another. ...
A right or interest in property held by a third party, which often limits the use and diminishes the value of the property, but usually does not prevent the transferring of title. The more ...
Real estate, home and life insurance use numerous ambiguous terms you should know because you can significantly benefit from them. Let’s discover what the word boot usually applies to ...
Have a question or comment?
We're here to help.