Condo Insurance vs. Homeowners Insurance in NYC

Updated Oct 11, 2026 · 6 min read

Condo Insurance vs. Homeowners Insurance at a Glance

A house has one homeowners policy (an HO-3) for the building, your belongings and your liability. In a condo, insurance is split in two. The condo's master policy, paid for through your common charges, insures the building. Your own policy, usually called an HO-6 or condo unit-owner policy, covers what the master policy doesn't. Homeowners insurance isn't the right policy for a condo apartment.

What the Building's Master Policy Covers

Every offering plan's projected budget (Schedule B) includes a line for insurance, and the footnotes usually list the coverage. In budgets filed since 2020, here's what shows up most:

• Property coverage on the building, often at full replacement cost.
• General liability for accidents in common areas. The standard limit is $1 million per occurrence and $2 million total; 934 of the 1,182 budget insurance footnotes we read state exactly that.
• Umbrella coverage on top of that. Where the footnote gives a limit, the median is $5 million in buildings of 12 or fewer units (109 budgets) and $10 million in buildings with more than 30 (87 budgets).
• Directors and officers (D&O) coverage for the board, in 649 budgets.
• Sometimes equipment breakdown (boilers and machinery), crime/fidelity coverage, and flood insurance.

At least 42% of recent plans say in so many words that the master policy insures the building "including all of the Units," typically excluding furniture, furnishings or other property supplied or installed by owners. 31% also say it covers the fixtures (often the kitchen and bath fixtures and equipment) "initially installed therein." Other plans describe the same coverage in different words.

The plan for 134 Weirfield Street in Bushwick is typical: the master policy covers "all of the Units and the fixtures initially installed therein by the Sponsor," but not "furniture, furnishings, or other personal property supplied or installed by Unit Owners."

What You Need to Insure Yourself

• Your belongings. Furniture, clothes, electronics, art. About 75% of recent plans tell owners to insure their contents or personal property.
• Your upgrades. If you renovate the kitchen or add built-ins, the master policy typically covers only what the developer put in. Plans call your additions "improvements and betterments"; 32% of recent plans use that phrase about insurance.
• Your liability. If your bathtub overflows and floods the apartment below, the master policy's liability coverage is for the common areas, not for you.
• The master policy's gaps. Some small buildings carry only basic coverage. At 178 Throop Avenue, a 7-unit building in Bed-Stuy, the plan says the policy "does not include claims for damage to interior of Units. As such, Unit Owners must obtain an HO6 insurance policy."

Good to know: HO-6 coverage is named in about 13% of recent plans. 840 Halsey Street in Bed-Stuy says such insurance, "commonly referred to as an 'HO-6 Policy,' will be paid for by the Purchaser."

Is Condo Insurance Required?

Your building can require it, and so can your lender. In our reading, most plans encourage owners to buy coverage ("should consider," "are urged to"), and 438 recent plans (32%) say owners must or shall obtain coverage of their own, such as liability or contents insurance.

A few go further and set a minimum. 324 West 108 on the Upper West Side requires an owner's policy with personal liability of at least $300,000. Bleecker Street Gardens in Bushwick requires owners to carry liability insurance of at least $1,000,000. These are rare: we found a minimum for apartment owners' liability in 9 of the 1,358 plans we searched.

The catch: even if your plan only recommends coverage, your mortgage lender will likely require it, and a single leak can cost far more than a year of premiums.

"Walls-In" vs. "All-In"

You'll hear insurance agents talk about whether a building's policy is "walls-in" (bare walls only, leaving the kitchen, bathrooms and floors to you) or "all-in" (covering the original finishes too). Offering plans rarely use either term; only 10 of the recent plans we searched say "walls-in."

Instead, look for whether the master policy covers fixtures "initially installed by the Sponsor." If it does, your HO-6 mainly needs to cover belongings, upgrades and liability. If not, you'll need more building coverage of your own.

What About Flood?

Standard policies generally exclude flood. 247 of the recent budget insurance footnotes we read mention flood, whether as coverage on the master policy or as an exclusion, and about 4% of recent plans say the property is in a high-risk FEMA flood zone (Zone A, AE or VE). Bennett Condominium in Long Island City budgets for mandatory flood insurance because it's in Zone AE. By contrast, 175 Huron in Greenpoint, in Zone X, notes that flood isn't included but could be added.

How to Check a Building's Insurance

• Read the insurance footnote under Schedule B. It lists each coverage and its limit.
• Search the plan for "initially installed" to see whether original fixtures are covered.
• Search for "HO-6" and "shall obtain" to see whether your own policy is required.
• Ask about the deductible. If the board can pass a deductible on to the owner whose apartment caused a claim, ask your agent about loss assessment coverage.

Insurance costs have also been climbing. See how condo insurance costs have changed. Read any building's plan on The Condo Book Project, or search "condos that require HO-6 insurance."

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