According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics (https://www.bjs.gov), apartment dwellers are 50 percent more likely to be victims of theft than people who own homes. Despite that fact, only “55 percent of U.S. renters, or 61 million people, currently have renter’s insurance policies”, according to a 2022 survey conducted by the folks at SafeHome.org.

Many renters feel insurance simply costs too much. Others either didn’t know that renter’s insurance was available or thought that the value of their personal property was too low to justify purchasing coverage. In a nutshell, their observations could not be more wrong.

Renter’s insurance is inexpensive and definitely worth the money. To drive home the point, an Apartments.com survey showed that the majority of renters who do carry insurance pay an average of just $10 to $15 per month to protect themselves from loss of a place to live, legal liability, theft, fire and lightning damage, weather-related causes (wind, hail, etc.), smoke damage and auto burglary (https://www.apartments.com/blog/the-benefits-of-renters-insurance).

Most tenants underestimate the value of their personal property. It is not uncommon for the cost of a total loss to exceed $10,000 to $20,000, even if a person insures “just the basics.”

Think of it this way: How much would it cost to replace virtually everything you own: clothing, bedding, TVs, stereos, tools, cameras, computers and phones, kitchen and bath items, jewelry, artwork and furniture?  The cost can be staggering. What if someone is injured on your property and you were sued for medical expenses? Again, the cost can easily be in the thousands of dollars.