Real Estate Investing in the Real World
Real Estate Blog
SUNDAY, APRIL 15, 2007

I got through my Friday the 13th closing with no problems, so I'm now the happy owner of a new four-unit property in the Montrose section of Houston. 

A last hitch was getting the place insured, and to my surprise I found a dearth of companies willing to quote me a rate.  Here in a nutshell are my experiences.  Note that insurer rules and policies vary from state to state, but here's what I ran into trying to get a policy for a fourplex in Houston:

Nationwide:  was willing to make me a quote for a policy, but required me to switch the insurance policy for my primary residence to Nationwide as a prerequisite.  I'm happy with my current insurer (USAA) so this was a non-starter.  No quote.
Allstate:  The "good hands" people.  Refused to insure any property with galvanized plumbing.  This property has been thoroughly rennovated, including much of the plumbing - but the building was built in the '30s, which essentially insures that there is still some of the stuff around.  No quote. 
State Farm:  Agent informed me that they consider a four-unit multi-family residence to be an apartment - meaning: commercial.  The agent referred me to a relative of his who got me a quote from a small carrier which was prohibatively expensive. .
USAA:  I've used USAA before and have generally been hapy with them.  But unfortunately there is a limited number of non-owner occupied properties that they're willing to invest for any individual, and I'm already maxed out.  No quote. 
Farmers:  Gave me a fast on-the-spot quote over the phone at a good rate. ***see update, below

So the winner: Farmers. I'm a new customer.   ****  Update:  See below

Lesson:  I waited too late in the game to take care of this so I caused myself some unnecessary stress.  Do yourself a favor; start early and give yourself some slack time. 

**** April 18th Update - Farmers: run for your life.  I'm in the middle of a post-closing horror story that I'll write about soon (when I have time).  But consider this an official revocation of the blue ribbon that I'd awarded Farmers.  Stay tuned...

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Comments(42)
posted by: Chris Smith
Comments
April 16, 2007
12:19 AM
I have run into the same problem. State Farm in particular seems to find multi-family a major problem for some reason. Our current carrier for most of our multi-family property is American Family Insurance.
April 16, 2007
09:51 AM
Steve: I'll give American Family a try next time around. Thanks!
April 18, 2007
12:39 AM
Comment
April 18, 2007
01:44 AM
If I may ask, how much did Farmers quote you for? Does it include general liability insurance? I own 3 fourplexes in Edinburg and would like to cross reference. Thanks Ricardo
April 18, 2007
08:08 AM
Izalco : Send me a comment via the "contact us" page and I'll give you some more details via email. ************Follow up to Izalco: I got your note (sent via the "contact us" page) but you left the "contact details" field blank, which means I got your email but have no way to write you back.
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