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Ohio Condo Insurance: Your HOA's bad day can become your bill.

Many condo policies carry a small default for loss assessment. A master policy deductible on the whole building can be far bigger. We compare carriers and close the gap.

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The Quick Answer

A condo policy (HO-6) covers your unit's interior, your belongings, your liability, loss of use and loss assessment. Your association's master policy covers the building and common areas, and the boundary between the two is set by your declaration and bylaws, not by either policy. Master policies come in three types: bare walls-in, single entity and all-in. The number to watch is the master policy deductible. It can be large, and associations can assess it to owners, while many HO-6 policies start with a low loss assessment default. Sewer and sump pump backup is usually excluded unless you add a water backup endorsement, and flood needs its own policy for your belongings. eGoodwin Insurance, an independent agency in Marion and Powell, reads the master policy with you and compares several carriers. Call (740) 387-8335.

Your policy covers
Drywall in, plus assessments
Start with
The master policy declarations page
Biggest gap
Loss assessment vs. the master deductible
Call first
(740) 387-8335
Ohio Condo Insurance, The Short Version

One number on your policy is probably small. Your building's deductible probably isn't.

Condo insurance looks simple. The association insures the building, you insure your stuff, and everyone gets on with life. That story holds up until the building has a serious problem. In Ohio that's often a spring storm with high winds and hail, a tornado warning that turns real, or a winter freeze that bursts pipes across several units.

When a loss exceeds the master policy limits, or the master policy has a large deductible that somebody has to pay, the board can levy a special assessment and split the cost among every owner. Now it's your bill, in an amount you didn't choose. Some master policies use a percentage wind and hail deductible, calculated on the building's insured value. Run it once with round numbers: for example, a community insured for $10 million with a 1 percent wind and hail deductible would owe $100,000 before the master policy pays on a storm claim. Split among 50 units, that's about $2,000 per owner.

Your HO-6 has a coverage built for exactly this, called loss assessment. The default limit on many policies is small, often around $1,000. Raising it often costs relatively little. One more piece of fine print to ask about: some policies cap the portion of an assessment that comes from the master deductible, no matter how much loss assessment coverage you bought. We check that clause by name.

The second thing nobody tells condo owners: your declaration and bylaws, not your policy, define where the association's responsibility ends and yours begins. Older communities and amended declarations can draw that line differently. So the right way to insure a condo is to start with the master policy declarations page and the declaration, then build the HO-6 to fit the gap they leave. As an independent agency, we then compare several carriers to find the best fit. Bring the paperwork.

Three master policies. Yours decides what you need.

Ask your association which one your building carries. It's the most useful question a condo owner can ask, and most owners have never asked it.

Master type 1
Bare Walls

Bare Walls-In

Covers the structure and common areas and stops at your studs. Everything inside is yours: drywall, flooring, cabinets, counters, fixtures and appliances. This needs the most dwelling coverage on your HO-6.

Master type 2
As Built

Single Entity

Covers your unit as it was originally built, but not what you've done since. Your renovated kitchen and the floors you replaced are improvements, and improvements are yours. Middle of the road, and the most commonly misunderstood.

Master type 3
All-In

All-Inclusive

Covers fixtures and finishes inside the unit too, leaving you mainly your belongings, your liability and assessments. It costs the association the most and needs the least from you.

The big one
Match It

Loss Assessment

Pays your share when the association levies a special assessment after a covered loss or to meet its master deductible. The default is often small. Match it to the highest deductible on the master policy, and ask whether deductible-driven assessments are capped.

Commonly missed
Your Reno

Improvements & Betterments

The kitchen you redid, the floors you upgraded, the built-ins. Even a generous master policy usually insures the unit as originally built. Your upgrades belong in your dwelling limit, at what they'd cost to redo today.

Core
$300k+

Personal Liability

The guest who falls, and the burst supply line in your unit that soaks the condo below. In stacked buildings, water travels down and finds neighbors on the way. This is the coverage that answers for them.

Add it
Backup

Water Backup

Sewer, drain and sump pump backup is usually excluded unless you add a water backup endorsement. It matters most for lower-level units and townhome-style condos with basements.

Not covered
Common Areas

The Building Itself

Roof, exterior, hallways, elevators, pool and parking. That's the master policy's job, funded by your dues. Your exposure there isn't the repair cost, it's the assessment that follows when the master policy falls short.

Not covered
Upkeep

Maintenance Assessments

An assessment has to come from a peril your policy covers. Resurfacing the pool, replacing a worn-out roof or refilling an underfunded reserve is maintenance, and no policy pays for that. Read the reserve study before you buy. For rising water, your belongings need their own contents flood policy.

Do you know your loss assessment limit?

Almost nobody does, and it's often small. Send us your declarations page and your association's master policy page, and we'll find the gap.

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Getting It Right

How to actually insure a condo, in order.

There's a right sequence here, and it doesn't start with your own policy. It starts with two documents you may never have read.

1. Get the master policy declarations page

Ask your property manager or board. It's a routine request, and owners are usually entitled to see what the association carries.

You're looking for two things. Which type it is: bare walls-in, single entity or all-in. And the deductibles, per peril, especially any wind and hail deductible, because that's the number most likely to become an assessment with your name on it. If the master deductible is six figures, a small loss assessment limit on your policy isn't protection, it's a formality.

2. Read the declaration for the boundary

This is the step people skip and later regret. Your declaration, not either insurance policy, decides who pays for what after a loss. Windows, balconies, patios and plumbing are the usual battlegrounds, and different declarations draw the lines differently. Older buildings and amended declarations can surprise you.

3. Build the HO-6 to fill the actual gap

Now the policy makes sense. Your dwelling limit covers what the master policy doesn't, including your improvements at today's cost. Your personal property reflects what you actually own, with valuables scheduled. Your liability is sized for stacked living, where your burst hose can become a neighbor's ceiling. Your loss of use reflects what a comparable place rents for nearby. Your loss assessment matches the master policy's biggest deductible, with the deductible-assessment cap checked by name. And a water backup endorsement covers the sewer and sump pump backup a standard HO-6 leaves out.

4. Plan for Ohio weather inside the unit

Ohio winters bring frozen and burst pipes, ice dams and heavy snow on roofs. Spring and summer bring severe thunderstorms, straight-line winds, hail and the occasional tornado. The master policy handles the building, but water from a burst pipe in your unit can still land on your HO-6, and on your neighbors. If you travel in winter, keep the heat on and know where your unit's water shutoff is.

5. Watch what's happening to your association

When a master policy gets higher deductibles, lower limits or narrower terms, that risk doesn't disappear. It moves to the owners, as bigger assessments when something goes wrong. So the year your association's insurance gets worse is the year your loss assessment limit matters most. If your board sends a notice about the master policy, bring it to us and we'll tell you what it did to your exposure. On interpreting the declaration or any dispute with the association, talk to an attorney. We handle the insurance side.

Did your association just change its master policy?

Cuts to the master policy move risk onto owners. If a notice landed in your mailbox, bring it in and we'll show you what changed for you.

Review My Exposure Call (740) 387-8335

Every building is different. So is every policy.

A stacked unit, a townhome, the condo you rent out, the one you just put an offer on. Each one changes the answer.

Stacked & mid-rise units

Water only travels one direction, and it's toward your downstairs neighbors. Liability matters more here than in almost any other kind of home you can own.

Townhomes & condo communities

Some townhomes in Dublin, Powell, Westerville and Lewis Center are condos on paper and some aren't. That decides whether you need an HO-6 or a standard home policy. The declaration settles it, not the architecture.

Renovated units

If you've redone the kitchen or the floors, the master policy likely insures the unit as originally built. Your upgrades are yours, and they belong in your dwelling limit.

Buyers under contract

Read the reserve study and the master policy before you close, not after. An underfunded association is a future assessment with your name on it, and no policy covers maintenance.

Condos you rent out

An HO-6 is written for an owner who lives there. Once a tenant moves in, you need a landlord policy, and your declaration may limit how many units can be rented at all. We work with real estate investors every day.

Lower-level & basement units

Garden-level units and townhome-style condos with basements carry the most backup risk. A water backup endorsement and the right limit matter here more than anywhere else in the building.

Bring the master policy page. We'll do the rest.

We'll tell you which type your association carries, what it leaves you and what your HO-6 should actually say, then compare several carriers. Free.

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Condo insurance across Ohio. Condos and townhomes from Marion to Columbus.

Condo and townhome communities in Dublin, Powell, Westerville, Lewis Center, Worthington and Columbus, and units in Marion and Delaware. Every association is different. Tell us where the unit is.

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Ohio condo insurance questions. Straight answers.

What does condo insurance actually cover?

An HO-6 policy covers your world from the drywall in: your unit's interior and improvements, your personal property, your personal liability, loss of use if the unit can't be lived in, and loss assessment, the piece almost everyone under-buys.

It doesn't cover the roof, exterior, hallways, pool or parking. Those belong to the association's master policy, and the line between the two is drawn by your declaration and bylaws, not by either insurance policy.

What's the difference between my HO-6 and the HOA master policy?

The master policy is bought by the association and paid for through your dues. It covers the building and common areas, and sometimes parts of the units. Your HO-6 is your own policy for what the master policy leaves to you, plus your belongings, your liability and your share of assessments.

The two are meant to fit together without gaps or overlap. The only way to know where the seam is: read the master policy declarations page and your declaration, then build the HO-6 around them.

What is loss assessment coverage, and why does everyone say it matters?

When a loss exceeds the master policy limits or triggers a large master deductible, the board can levy a special assessment and divide the bill among all owners. Loss assessment coverage on your HO-6 pays your share.

The catch: many policies start with a low default, often around $1,000, while a master policy deductible on a whole building can be far larger. Raising the limit often costs relatively little, and it's one of the best values on the policy.

What are the three types of HOA master policy?

Bare walls-in covers the structure but nothing inside your unit. Single entity covers the unit as originally built, but not your upgrades.

All-in covers interior fixtures and finishes too. Which one your building carries decides how much dwelling coverage you personally need. Declarations vary from community to community, so read yours.

Who pays the master policy's wind and hail deductible after a storm?

Often, the owners do. Some master policies carry a wind and hail deductible calculated as a percentage of the building's insured value. For example, on a building insured for $10 million, a 1 percent deductible would be $100,000, and associations can assess that to owners.

Here's the fine print that matters: some HO-6 policies cap the portion of an assessment that comes from a master policy deductible, regardless of your overall loss assessment limit. Ask that question by name before storm season.

Does condo insurance cover sewer or sump pump backup?

Usually not, unless you add it. Most HO-6 policies exclude water that backs up through a drain or sewer, or overflows from a failed sump pump. A water backup endorsement adds that coverage back, up to the limit you choose.

It matters most for garden-level and lower-level units, and for townhome-style condos with finished basements. Ask whether your master policy covers backup for the building and what it leaves to you.

Does condo insurance cover flooding?

No HO-6 covers rising water. The association can insure the building against flood with its own policy, and if the building is underinsured, the shortfall can come back to owners as an assessment.

Your belongings need a separate contents flood policy, which may be available through the NFIP and is often modest in cost for a condo owner. NFIP policies generally have a 30-day waiting period. For communities near the Olentangy, the Scioto, Alum Creek or Big Walnut Creek, we check both layers.

Who pays when water damage crosses between units?

It's the most common dispute in condo living, and it's fact-specific. It turns on where the water came from, who owns the plumbing that failed, and negligence.

Roughly, water from association-owned lines is the association's responsibility for the structure, though your interior may still fall to your HO-6 depending on the master policy type. Water from a pipe inside your unit is yours, and if it soaks the units below, your liability coverage answers for their damage.

Is condo insurance required in Ohio?

Not by state law. By your lender, almost certainly, if you have a mortgage.

And often by your declaration or bylaws, which can require unit owners to carry an HO-6 with minimum limits. Even without a requirement, going without leaves your interior, belongings, liability and share of any assessment uncovered.

How much dwelling coverage do I need on a condo?

It depends on the master policy type. Under bare walls-in, you insure everything from the studs in: flooring, cabinets, fixtures and interior walls. That's a substantial number.

Under single entity, you insure your improvements and betterments at what they'd cost to redo today. Under all-in, you need relatively little dwelling coverage. Start with the master policy declarations page, then build the HO-6 to fit the gap.

What's the difference between condo insurance and renters insurance?

Ownership. A renters policy (HO-4) covers belongings and liability but no part of the structure, because you own none of it.

A condo policy (HO-6) adds dwelling coverage for the interior you do own, plus loss assessment for your share of the association's shortfalls. If you rent out a condo you own, you need a landlord policy instead, and your tenant needs renters insurance.

What should I check before buying a condo?

Three documents before you fall in love: the master policy declarations page (which type, and every deductible), the declaration and bylaws (where the association's responsibility ends and yours begins, and any insurance requirements on owners), and the reserve study (an underfunded association is a future assessment with your name on it, and no policy covers maintenance).

We read the insurance pieces with buyers all the time, at no charge.

My HOA just changed its master policy. What should I do?

Bring us the notice.

When a master policy shrinks, with a higher deductible, lower limits or a switch from all-in to bare walls, the risk doesn't disappear. It moves to the owners as bigger assessments and bigger personal coverage needs. A few minutes with the new declarations page tells you what changed for you and what your HO-6 needs to absorb it.

Why use an independent agent for condo insurance?

We're an independent agency, so we represent multiple insurance companies and compare several HO-6 options for you. Loss assessment limits, deductible-assessment caps and water backup options vary by carrier, and those differences matter more than the price alone.

We've been in the community since 1990, with offices in Marion and Powell. Call (740) 387-8335 and bring your master policy page.

Still have questions? Call (740) 387-8335. We'll give you a straight answer.

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Find the gap before the assessment does.
Free, local and in plain English.

Bring your declarations page and your association's master policy page. We'll show you where your coverage ends and compare what it costs to close the gap.

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