While renter's insurance and rental house insurance sound like the same thing, they are really not the same at all, even though they are both forms of homeowner's insurance. They are very different in nature, and you will need to make sure you get the right type if you need either of these. Here are the main differences to understand about renter's insurance and rental house insurance.

Renter's insurance is for tenants

Renter's insurance is a form of insurance that is designed to be purchased by tenants. Anyone that rents the place where they live can purchase renter's insurance. While some landlords require that tenants have renter's insurance, others allow this to be optional. When you have renter's insurance, you have coverage over the things you own that you have inside your rented unit. Your policy also provides coverage for things you own that you may store in your car or leave at work, and it also provides liability coverage that protects you from certain types of lawsuits.

With renter's insurance, you can also add coverage for additional living expenses, and this is something that would offer benefits to you if you were forced to evacuate your rented unit for a time period. If a fire damaged the building and you had to move out for two months, this coverage would help you pay for the additional expenses you would incur by being forced to move out temporarily.

Rental house insurance is for homeowners that are renting a house out

Rental house insurance is very different from renter's insurance, and it is a type of insurance designed for people who own homes that they rent out. If you moved to a new house and kept your other house as a rental property, you would need to purchase rental house insurance. You would be the landlord in this situation, and your house would be a rental property. To cover a rental property like this, you would buy a rental house insurance policy. This policy would protect the structure of the house but would not protect the contents if they were destroyed or stolen. Your tenant would need to purchase a renter's insurance policy for this purpose.

Insurance can be a confusing thing to many people, but you can always learn more about it by talking to an insurance agent. Insurance agents can answer all your questions about home insurance and help you choose the right types of policies and coverages for your needs.