Weeks of scouring Craigslist and scanning the city streets in search of “For Rent” signs finally paid off! You scored a sweet pad, paid your first and last months’ rent along with a deposit, borrowed your buddies’ truck and moved all your stuff – hello full independence!

Well, you’re almost there. But there’s one more thing you absolutely need to get: Renters Insurance.

Insurance for Renters is a Big Deal, but it Won’t Cost you Big Bucks

Since insurance for people renting only involves the contents inside the structure (your stuff, not the building itself) – it’s pretty inexpensive.

Let’s say you do something stupid like throwing a scarf over a lamp to “set the mood” with dim lighting – Then get so caught up you forget to take it off in the morning. You go off to school or work, then come back to find your apartment in flames.

Sure, your landlord has insurance to fix the damage to the apartment itself – but that won’t cover all the stuff you have inside! Now you’ve got no furniture, no TV, no computer – no clothes!

What Does Renters Insurance Cover?

Your stuff is covered from all sorts of potential nightmare scenarios under a basic personal property policy:

• Fire or smoke
• Lightning
• Vandalism
• Theft
• Explosion
• Windstorm
• Water damage (not including floods)

Not only will insurance cover the stuff you lost as a result of all those scenarios – msot renters insurance policies offer additional living expenses if you can’t live in your apartment as a result of the damage.

There’s More!

Renters insurance personal liability also covers your behind if that sweet puppy of yours takes a bite out of the kids next door and the parents sue you. On top of that, let’s say someone is over and eats it big time after tripping over the mess you left on the floor – renters insurance covers your responsibility for people injured at your home, so no worries!

Which Insurance is Right for you?

There are two types of renters insurance policies you can buy:

• Actual Cash Value: Pays to replace your stuff, but not for what you paid for it, but rather what it’s worth today according to the insurance company.
• Replacement Cost: Pays for the actual cost of replacing your possessions, NOW.

Both types come with limits -- so if you have really expensive things that exceed the limits, you can buy a “floater.” That’s a separate policy that goes above and beyond the standard coverage, even taking care of replacing it if you loose it!

To decide which is best for you, think about your stuff and the potential scenarios to figure out what type you need.

• How much is it worth? For example: Do you have a pricey plasma TV and a new Mac Book Pro to protect or is your most valuable asset a fridge full of food?
• Do you have a dog that could bite the next door neighbor?
• Do you have people coming over that might sue your for getting injured? Do you have assets worth being sued for?

No matter the answer, be sure to at least get renters insurance for your personal property. Even if all you’ve got is a closet full of hand-me-downs and a computer that dates back to 2002 – replacing those things will cost you a pretty penny, especially if you find yourself without a place to live.