Do ya'll get property insurance for vacant land?

[beppington]

I recently purchase vacant land with the intent of building a house there some time in the future (2-5 years). Just wondering if it's advisable to get property insurance on it? i.e. What if some trespasser twists their ankle in a post hole I dug & haven't put a post in yet ... or a big, dead branch falls from a tree & lands on them ... things like that.

 

[dmccarty]

Check your policy. Our policy covered the land.

After people started building nearby I started thinking about getting an Umbrella policy. After our car accident, which was not our fault, I bought the Umbrella policy and increased our limits on our car insurance. A car accident that is your fault could really mess you up financially.

I don't remember the exact cost but the Umbrella with 2 or 3 million dollars of liability coverage was not expensive compared to loosing everything.

I sometimes mow our private road that is owned by the land owners. Some of the road is mine. Some theirs. I also grade the road from time to time. I want coverage, especially with mowing, in case something happens. I am real careful with mowing and I don't do it for them often anymore but it only take a second for something bad to happen. The consequences of that one second Oh S...t can last a lifetime.

The best thing you can to to protect from trespasser liability is to post the land in a legal manner. If they trespass and get injured it will be hard if not impossible for them to sue successfully.

Later,
Dan

 

[sandman2234]

Adding a liability policy to your homeowners for a separate location happens all the time. I did it to cover a rental house while it was empty and homeowners had canceled and pulled out of the state

 

[tallyho8]

We only have one insurance company in our area that will write residential liability policies and they are VERY expensive compared to what we paid before Katrina.

I had to get a liability policy from them to cover a rental home. The only good part is that they are pretty cheap to add each additional property to the policy.

I owned 160 acres in the Arkansas Ozarks for many years without liability as the laws there protect property owners from trespassers claims but when I started leasing out hunting rights on it I made the lessees get a large liability policy to protect me.

 

[Riderguy]

You may also want to post No Trespassing signs and mark a number of trees with the purple No Tresspassing paint. I have 18 acres and have done that. Granted you can still get sued, so an Umbrella policy is a good suggestion also. The signs just help when the lawyer asks the injured party why they violated the No Tresspassing order.

Scott

 

[dmccarty]

You may also want to post No Trespassing signs and mark a number of trees with the purple No Tresspassing paint. I have 18 acres and have done that. Granted you can still get sued, so an Umbrella policy is a good suggestion also. The signs just help when the lawyer asks the injured party why they violated the No Tresspassing order.

Make sure that the posted signs and paint meet legal requirements for your particular state. In NC painting the trees has no legal standing regarding posting my land. Signs have to be 120 square inches, posted at least X number of feet along the property line, etc.

If I put up one sign 6"x12" that said Stay Out post along 1,000 feet of property line, a smart lawyer is going to get the trespass charge dismissed.

Later,
Dan

 

[sweettractors]

I recently purchase vacant land with the intent of building a house there some time in the future (2-5 years). Just wondering if it's advisable to get property insurance on it? i.e. What if some trespasser twists their ankle in a post hole I dug & haven't put a post in yet ... or a big, dead branch falls from a tree & lands on them ... things like that.

We post ours and also get liability insurance. It is not terribly expensive. Ken Sweet

 

[300UGUY]

We only have one insurance company in our area that will write residential liability policies and they are VERY expensive compared to what we paid before Katrina.

I had to get a liability policy from them to cover a rental home. The only good part is that they are pretty cheap to add each additional property to the policy.

I owned 160 acres in the Arkansas Ozarks for many years without liability as the laws there protect property owners from trespassers claims but when I started leasing out hunting rights on it I made the lessees get a large liability policy to protect me.

I was stunned to find out what my parents had to pay for insurance in Florida. Wind insurance in particular. 4K per year for a modest home is not unusual.

 

[beppington]

This would be just vacant land insurance, no structures to insure.

 

[tallyho8]

I was stunned to find out what my parents had to pay for insurance in Florida. Wind insurance in particular. 4K per year for a modest home is not unusual.

They are lucky if they can even get it in a Homeowner's policy. They canceled my wind insurance after Katrina and no insurance company at all will offer a homeowner's policy with wind insurance in our area.

The only wind insurance available is a policy through the state for people who can't get insurance and it is 10 times higher than our old policy was and covers nothing but the home. It does not cover our garage, barn, fences, trees or any outbuildings which are worth more than my home is.

Since I don't have a homeowner's policy I had to get a special liability policy which is also outrageously priced. Without a homeowner's policy the most I can lose is my house. Without a liability policy I could lose my house, rental property and life savings.