Property Types

Insurance for a Florida rental home

A home rented to others usually needs a dwelling or landlord policy, not a standard owner-occupied home policy. Short stays and long leases may be treated differently.

Check Your Eligibility Browse Insurance Companies

Quick answers

What Is a DP-3 Policy, and How Is It Different From an HO-3?A DP-3 is built for a property the owner doesn’t live in. It generally covers the structure and liability, not a tenant’s belongings.

Does the Carrier Need to Know Whether This Is a Long-Term or Short-Term Rental?Yes. Many carriers price or restrict short-term rentals differently, and some decline them altogether.

Who Insures the Tenant’s Belongings, and Who Insures the Building?The owner insures the building; the tenant insures their own belongings. Landlords often require tenants to carry renters insurance.

What Does a Carrier Ask About Vacancy Between Tenants?Extended vacancy is viewed as higher risk. Some policies limit or exclude coverage after a set vacancy period.

Which Florida Carriers Write Non-Owner-Occupied Dwellings?Not every carrier writes this segment. Availability varies by property type and rental use. Confirm current appetite with an agent.

Sourced from Florida DFS homeowners guidance and standard dwelling-fire (DP-3) policy practices. Last verified: August 2026.

What Is a DP-3 Policy, and How Is It Different From an HO-3?

A DP-3 (dwelling fire) policy is built for a property the owner doesn’t live in, and it generally covers the dwelling structure and the owner’s liability, but not personal property belonging to a tenant.

An HO-3, by contrast, is built around owner-occupancy and typically includes broader personal-property and loss-of-use coverage for the owner living in the home.

Insurance for Rental Properties — A rental property is typically insured on a landlord (DP-3) policy, not the HO-3 used for an owner-occupied home.

Does the Carrier Need to Know Whether This Is a Long-Term or Short-Term Rental?

Yes. Many carriers price and underwrite short-term rentals (nightly or weekly) differently from long-term leases, and some decline short-term rentals altogether.

Not disclosing short-term rental use to a carrier that doesn’t allow it can put coverage at risk at claim time, so this is worth confirming directly.

Who Insures the Tenant’s Belongings, and Who Insures the Building?

The owner’s DP-3 policy generally insures the building itself; a tenant’s personal belongings are typically the tenant’s own responsibility, usually through a renters (HO-4) policy.

Many landlords require tenants to carry renters insurance as a lease condition, partly to avoid disputes over who’s responsible for a tenant’s damaged belongings.

What Does a Carrier Ask About Vacancy Between Tenants?

Extended vacancy is generally viewed as higher risk by carriers, since an unoccupied home is more vulnerable to undetected damage, vandalism, or slow-developing issues like water leaks.

Some policies limit or exclude coverage after a set vacancy period, so understanding the policy’s vacancy terms matters between tenants.

Which Florida Carriers Write Non-Owner-Occupied Dwellings?

Not every carrier that writes owner-occupied homeowners policies also writes non-owner-occupied dwelling policies, and appetite varies by property type and rental use.

Checking current availability directly with an agent is more reliable than assuming a carrier that insures owner-occupied homes will also insure a rental.