Apartment Buildings

You take pride in the maintenance and appearance of your apartment building, keeping it clean and safe for your tenants. Having quality insurance is important and believe it or not, it doesn’t have to cost you an arm & a leg. You can have Faller Insurance Agency shop your coverage with our many “A” Rated companies to find the best product that fits your budget and needs. Click here to get a quote.

There are several areas to consider when looking for insurance for your building. Make sure your policy includes the following

• Special Form: Includes all direct physical loss subject to exclusions and limitation
• Loss of Earnings: Actual loss sustained for 12 months rent
• Mechanical Breakdown: Repair & maintenance of air conditioning & heating equipment
• Building Ordinance or Law: Additional coverage for compliance with local law
• Bodily Injury & Property Damage: Usually $1,000,000 per Occurrence/$2,000,000 Annual Aggregate – higher limits may be available
• Medical Payments: Pays first dollar coverage for injury to guest on premises; usually $5,000 or $10,000.

Chicago apartment buildings are a great investment. Here 10 things you can do to protect your apartment building:

1. Be sure you get property and liability insurance from a trusted agent. If your building catches fire or your guests trips and falls on your property, your insurance policy is there to protect you.

2. If you have the old wood porch in the back, make sure you have it inspected regularly, or have a new one installed. Be sure that it was built to city code.

3. Carefully screen new tenants by checking references, employment and their credit report.

4. Don’t allow grilling on the porches or balconies. They’re a fire hazard.

5. Making your building pet and smoke free not only make the building a more pleasant environment, it will reduce the likelihood of a liabiity claim or a fire.

6. Make sure your smoke alarms are working. Hard wiring your smoke alarms are recommended because they save lives.

7. Make sure dryer screens and vents are cleaned regularly. Fires can occur when lint builds up in the dryer or in the exhaust duct. Lint can block the flow of air, cause excessive heat build-up, and result in a fire in some dryers. It;s a good idea to hang a sign up for tenants reminding them to clean the dryer screen or filter.

8. Maintain the exterior of your building. Freshly painted windows and trim keeps out the water that would eventually rot out the wood damaging the interior. It is highly likely that your insurance policy will not cover dry-rot or deterioration.

9 . Update your utilities. If you have knob & tube wiring (from the 1900 -1930) it may not be safe to handle current electrical needs, creating a potential fire hazard.

10. Strongly encourage your tenants to have Renters Insurance. Depending on the municipality, you may even require it in your lease. It not only protects their personal property, but if they cause a fire or other damage, their liabiity coverage protects you, the property owner.

A little prevention goes a long way. Make sure you do what is necessary to protect your investment. Faller Insurance Agency is here to help guide you with loss prevention tips for your building.

Our service area includes Chicago, Evanston, Skokie, Niles, Park Ridge, Edgebrook, Edison Park, Jefferson Park, Rogers Park, Lakeview, Lincoln Square, Lincoln Park and more!