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The best landlord insurance – for the lord of the manor

Landlord insurance you'll want to shout about from the rooftop.

As a landlord, you want to protect your most important asset. If anything ever went wrong at your investment property the dollar signs start adding up. Landlord insurance will protect you from damage to your property, defaults on your rent and many other things outlined in the policy. You'll want to find the best policy that works for you, so that's why our insurance experts read through the PDS's to pull out the jargon. So you can find the most important features that are important to you.

Finding the best landlord insurance

As the cost of living crisis wears on, it makes sense to get the best landlord insurance because you don't want to risk losing income on your investment property.

To help you find the best option for your needs, our insurance experts selected 4 policies based on factors such as cost, popularity, benefits and inclusions. We looked at 16 landlord insurance brands, analysed over 35 benefits and looked through each provider's product disclosure statements to see exactly what is and isn't covered.

Remember, there's no single best landlord insurance policy that suits everyone, since each of our needs are slightly different depending on the property we own, but we can help narrow down your options.

Budget Direct home insurance

What we like about Budget Direct:

  • It's the most popular landlord insurer on Finder – it had more clicks than any other landlord provider between January 2023 and May 2023 based on our data. Budget Direct placed ahead of QBE and Qantas respectively.
  • It covers the essentials like fire, storm, rainwater and theft (or attempted theft). It also pays you lost rent if your investment property becomes uninhabitable because of an insured event. Other insurers cover these benefits, but Budget Direct is often cheaper.
  • You get 30% off your first year's premiums when you buy a combined home and contents policy online – no landlord insurer on Finder offers a bigger discount.
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  • As the name implies, Budget Direct provides low-cost, no-frills policies. If you want a more comprehensive (and expensive) policy, it might not be for you. For example, you need to pay extra if you want cover for tenant malicious damage and floods.

Budget Direct Landlord Insurance

Top pick for short term rentals: QBE

QBE logo

What we like about QBE landlord insurance:

  • It's one of the only insurers in Australia to offer cover for short term rentals of less than 3 months – ideal if you're renting out your entire property or holiday home on Airbnb. You don't need to have a lease agreement in place to be covered, just some kind of booking record, such as one made through a holiday rental platform.
  • QBE is the only insurer we found that will cover damage by tenants' pets for up to $4,000. It's also the only insurer we found that covers accidental damage by your tenants or paying guests.
  • It's also our Green Insurer of the Year winner. It will replace your home and the items in it with eco-friendly upgrades if damaged or destroyed.
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  • Youi landlord insurance can also cover short term rentals. However, we selected QBE as our top pick because its product disclosure statement (PDS) provides much clearer information about what it will cover and the type of properties it will cover. Youi also doesn't specify it covers damage by tenants' pets.

QBE Landlord Insurance

Top pick for perks: Qantas

Qantas Life Insurance Logo

What we like about Qantas:

  • Finder's research of 16 providers found Qantas to be the most price-competitive. It had the cheapest combined (home & contents) policy at $1,444.54 per year. What's more, at $1,221.34 it offered the lowest price for standalone buildings insurance.
  • Qantas policies are underwritten by Auto & General. This is the same firm that underwrites Budget Direct. It means you get the same level of cover as a Budget Direct policy – but you also earn Qantas Points. You earn 1 Qantas Point for every $1 you spend on your premium.
  • A Qantas landlord policy will cover your investment property for common risks such as fires and theft. It can also pay you a rental income for up to 12 months if your property's damaged by an insured event and unsafe to live in.
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  • Just like Budget Direct, a Qantas landlord insurance policy doesn't automatically cover floods and malicious damage. If you want cover for either of these events, you'll need to pay more. You will also need to pay extra for tenant default and theft by tenants and their visitors.

Top pick for total replacement cover: ANZ

ANZ home insurance

What we like about ANZ:

  • If your property is destroyed, ANZ will cover the entire rebuilding costs. It is the only insurer to include full building replacement as a standard feature across all home and landlord building insurance products.
  • Its policy takes the onus off you as a landlord. With the majority of insurers, you need to estimate how much your property would cost to rebuild (the sum insured). This commonly leads people underinsuring their property (80% of homes in Australia are underinsured). For example, say you insure your property for 1 million but it costs 1.2 million to rebuild, you would be 200k out of pocket. With ANZ's full building replacement, this won't happen to you.
  • It's one of the most comprehensive landlord insurance policies in Australia. It automatically covers events many others don't such as floods, malicious damage and electrical motor burnout and power surges.
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  • Because it's much more comprehensive, you'll likely pay more for an ANZ policy compared to the budget insurers. Our research found a combined home & contents policy with ANZ may cost $1,843.97 per year, which placed it outside of the top 3 brands we identified for our value pick.

ANZ Landlord Insurance

Editor's top landlord insurance pick for October 2024

James Martin
In addition to our best landlord insurance picks, Finder's editor for insurance James Martin has reviewed landlord insurance policies in October 2024 and selected a policy that he believes is good value and worth considering.

Good option for Winter 2023

Qantas Life Insurance Logo

What we like about Qantas landlord insurance: Amid high interest rates and sky-high insurance pricing, anything to keep a lid on bills should be warmly welcomed. New Finder research suggested Qantas offers comparatively low pricing for both buildings-only and combined cover. Keep in mind it's a less comprehensive policy than some others. You may want to add rent default cover and legal expenses on to your policy if these are important to you. Qantas is backed by a major insurer – Auto & General – which will bring added peace of mind for some.

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What type of landlord insurance do you need?

There are 3 types of landlord insurance. The one you need depends on the property you own and whether or not it is furnished:

Home

Landlord building insurance

This covers loss or damage to the building itself. It's probably best if you own a freestanding house that is unfurnished.

Contents

Landlord contents insurance

This covers damage to the items you keep at the property. It's best for people who own a furnished strata property such as an apartment, which strata insurance may cover.

home and contents

Landlord building and contents

This protects the building and your items (not the tenants). It's suited to property owners with furnished houses (e.g. white goods, curtains, carpets).

shield with tick
Why landlord insurance matters
While a bond is often enough to cover minor damage, it's usually only equal to 4 weeks of rent. Landlord insurance can cover you for the entire rebuild costs and pay you for lost rent. This is helpful if you rely on your rental income to pay your own bills.

More tips to find the best landlord insurance policy for you

If you're still looking for a policy, these 3 questions could help narrow down your search:

Number 1

Do you own a unit or apartment?

If so, then you probably don't need landlord building insurance – the strata insurance you pay will cover you.

Number 2

Is your property furnished or partly furnished?

Then you might want to get contents insurance to cover the items you keep at your property (in addition to building insurance if you own a freestanding house). Even if you only have items such as carpets, blinds and white goods, it can be worth getting. If something happens, the costs could be significant.

Number 3

Do you want cover for rent default?

Rent default pays you an income if your tenant stops paying the rent – for example, if they lose their job or fall ill. You'll need to pay extra if you want this included in your policy.

Once you've narrowed down your options to a handful of insurers, it's worth getting quotes from each insurer. This will help you see who comes out on top for price.

Isn't my home insurance enough?

Home insurance is essentially what it says on the box. Insurance to cover your home in the event of something going wrong at home. Landlord insurance works in a similar way as home insurance but includes extra things to cover a rental property. Depending on what policy you choose you'll be able to claim for things like damage to your property, types of water damage, lost rent or even tenancy default. You can also add in optional covers for appliances you furnish the property with. Remember to check the policy PDS for a list of inclusions and exclusions before you sign up.

Compare to find the best landlord insurance policy for you

These are our top landlord insurance picks but there are other policies out there. You can use our table below to compare all the landlord insurance policies available on Finder.

1 - 5 of 9
Name Product AUFHO-LAN Tenant Default and Damage Loss of Rent Accidental Damage Sum Insured Safeguard Cooling-off Period Cheapest way to pay
Youi Landlord Building and Contents Insurance

Optional

The reasonable rental amount for up to 12 months
20 days
Annually
Cover for investment property from fire, theft and numerous weather events.
Budget Direct Landlord Home & Contents Insurance

Optional

10% of the sum insured amount of your property
Optional
21 days
Annually
Save 30% on your first year's premium when you buy a combined home and contents policy online. T&Cs apply.
QBE Landlord Home & Contents Insurance
The lesser of: Up to 24 months of lost rent, or 20% of your sum insured amount
21 days
Annually
Get 10% off for buying a combined policy, plus an additional 10% in the first year for signing up online. T&Cs apply.
Qantas Landlord Home and Contents Insurance

Optional

10% of the sum insured amount of your property
Optional
21 days
Annually
Earn up to 40,000 Qantas Points with every Qantas Landlord Insurance policy you take out by 29 January. T&Cs and exclusions apply.
ANZ Landlord Home & Contents Insurance

Optional

Rental amount
21 days
Monthly or Annually
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Why you can trust Finder's insurance experts

free
We're free
You pay the same as buying directly from the landlord insurer. Better still, we regularly run deals that you won't find on any other site – plus, our tables make it easy to compare policies.
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We're experts
Our team of insurance experts have researched and rated dozens of policies as part of our Finder Awards and published hundreds of guides to make it easier for you to compare.
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We're independent
Unlike other comparison sites, we're not owned by an insurer. That means our opinions are our own and we work with lots of landlord insurance brands, making it easier for you to find a good deal.

FAQs about the best landlord insurance policy

James Martin
This article was reviewed on 25 May by . James is the insurance editor at Finder and he's written on a range of insurance and finance topics for over 7 years.
Gary Ross Hunter's headshot
Editor, Insurance

Gary Ross Hunter was an editor at Finder, specialising in insurance. He’s been writing about life, travel, home, car, pet and health insurance for over 6 years and regularly appears as an insurance expert in publications including The Sydney Morning Herald, The Guardian and news.com.au. Gary holds a Kaplan Tier 2 General Advice General Insurance certification which meets the requirements of ASIC Regulatory Guide 146 (RG146). See full bio

Gary Ross's expertise
Gary Ross has written 668 Finder guides across topics including:
  • Health, home, life, car, pet and travel insurance
  • Managing the cost of living
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Co-written by

Editor

James Martin was the insurance editor at Finder. He has written on a range of insurance and finance topics for over 7 years. James often shares his insurance expertise as a media spokesperson and has appeared on Prime 7 News, WIN News, Insurance News, 7NEWS and The Guardian. He holds a Tier 1 General Insurance (General Advice) certification and a Tier 1 Generic Knowledge certification, both of which meet the requirements of ASIC Regulatory Guide 146 (RG146). See full bio

James's expertise
James has written 232 Finder guides across topics including:
  • Car, home, life, health, travel and pet insurance
  • Managing the cost of living
  • Money-saving tips

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4 Responses

    Default Gravatar
    marcusAugust 11, 2024

    Can you please let me landlord insurers that will insure your property that don’t require a current tenancy agreement in Victoria?

      AvatarFinder
      AngusSeptember 23, 2024Finder

      Hi Marcus, Without a tenancy agreement of some sort, many insurers will be relucant to offer landlord insurance, since there won’t be clear evidence of how much income is at stake in the event that a claim needs to be made. If it’s for a property which is newly listed, evidence of promoting the property for rent online or via an agent would be relevant, but those details would need to be updated once an actual tenant was in place. Hope this helps.

    Default Gravatar
    CherylJanuary 11, 2024

    Is there any Landlord Insurance which covers the scenario where a tenant sublets her residential rental when she goes on holidays, eg 2 months in France. She has not responded to request to answer if she is/is not doing so but the “visitor” has just confirmed she is paying the tenant to stay. This is in NSW.

      AvatarFinder
      SarahFebruary 14, 2024Finder

      Hi Cheryl,

      This depends on which insurer you are with and what the specifics of your policy us. Many landlord insurers require a property manager to be professionally letting the property as part of the policy eligibility as this minimises their risk of something going wrong, so if this is a clause in your policy, it could cause some issues. I would recommend you contact your insurer to double check what applies in your situation.

      Best of luck!

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