RENTER'S INSURANCE: Don't Stay Home Without it!

Just because you don't own your NYC apartment, doesn't mean it will be any less expensive if you damage everything - or anyone - inside it. And you can wish upon a star that you will never need renter's insurance, but if something happens and you don't have it, you will be really, really sad and possibly broke and homeless. It's just not worth not having.


So why don't some renters insure their NYC apartment the minute after they sign the lease? Here are four common fantasies that keep many renters from getting the coverage they need:


1) My Fairy God-Landlord's looking out for me! No, your Fairy God-Landlord is looking out for his/her building - not you, not your property. If fire guts your NYC apartment, your landlord will replace walls, floors, and any large fixtures and appliances that came in the original lease agreement, but that's it. Your computer, your clothes, your furniture? Renter's insurance will replace them with new stuff!


And if you can't live in your apartment while repairs are being made, most renter's insurance policies offer an allowance for alternate living arrangements, like a hotel.


2) I don't have enough gold to pay the insurance trolls! Renter's insurance varies according to where you live and what you want and need covered, but for the most part, it's surprisingly cheap. If you can afford an NYC apartment rental but not can't afford $15 to $40 a month for insurance? You're living waaaay to close to the bone...


3) My building, neighbors and neighborhood are all charmed, how can I not live in my NYC apartment happily ever after? Too bad there's a wicked world just beyond your doorstep, Bubble Baby, and you and your property will have to venture out there sometime! Renter's insurance can cover you if your property gets stolen or damaged while temporarily outside your apartment, like in your car or a delivery truck.


And what if evil from the outside world in the form of a litigious jerk slips in your apartment bathroom, breaks his ankle, and wants you to pay? Renter's insurance will cover the jerk's medical expenses.


4) My stuff is crap. Really, it's crap... OK, so when you leave the tub on and all you're your crappy stuff in your NYC apartment turns to paste, you're not exactly heartbroken. But you will be when you find out the water leaked destroyed the faaar less crappy belongings of your downstairs neighbor! Yep, you're on the hook for it. Renter's insurance can replace not only your crap with new stuff, but you neighbor's nice stuff with new nice stuff as well.


And EVERYONE lives happily ever after...


4 Myths About Renter's Insurance [msn.com]