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Landlord & investor property insurance in Maryland

Steadily-appointed for DP-3, multi-unit, short-term rental, and portfolio coverage

Rockville, MD • Serving Maryland landlords since 2011

If you own a rental property in Maryland — a Rockville townhouse you kept after moving, a condo in North Bethesda, a basement apartment in Silver Spring, or a small portfolio of single-family homes across Montgomery County — your homeowners policy is the wrong product. Once a tenant moves in, the owner-occupancy assumptions behind an HO-3 stop being true. The right product is a landlord (dwelling fire) policy written for tenant-occupied property. Terrapin Insurance Group is a Rockville independent agency appointed with Steadily, a carrier built for landlords and short-term-rental hosts, and we compare it against Tapco and our other markets when a property falls outside Steadily’s appetite.

Get a Maryland landlord insurance quote, usually same day. Call 240-243-0042 or request a rental property quote online. Have the property address, year built, roof age, monthly rent and lease type ready.

Rental Licensing in Montgomery County: DHCA, Rockville, Gaithersburg and Takoma Park

Montgomery County Code Chapter 29 requires a rental housing license before a property may be rented or even advertised for rent. The Department of Housing and Community Affairs (DHCA) licenses single-family homes, townhomes, condominium units, accessory dwelling units and multifamily buildings. The stakes are real: a landlord without a county rental license cannot pursue a tenant for unpaid rent in the District Court of Maryland and can be cited by the county. A narrow exception lets an owner-occupant rent rooms in the home they live in.

Location matters. DHCA does not license rentals inside the Cities of Rockville, Gaithersburg or Takoma Park; those cities run their own programs. In Rockville, a single-family house, townhome or condominium needs a City of Rockville Rental Property License, and the property must pass inspection before the license is issued. Licensing and insurance are separate requirements, but they meet at the same point: the inspection that earns your license is also the best time to fix the trip hazards and code issues a liability claim would later focus on.

Maryland Lead Paint Registration for Pre-1978 Rental Units

The Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE) requires residential rental properties built before 1978 to be registered with its Lead Rental Registry and kept current, and since January 1, 2015 those units need a new lead inspection certificate at each change of occupancy. A large share of Montgomery County’s rental stock, including Rockville’s post-war neighborhoods, falls under that date. From an insurance standpoint, many landlord policies exclude or sharply limit lead-related liability, so compliance is your primary protection. When we quote a pre-1978 property, we show you how each carrier treats lead so there are no surprises.

DP-3 vs. Homeowners Insurance for Montgomery County Rentals

A DP-3 dwelling policy covers the building on an open-peril basis, typically at replacement cost, and is sized to what it would cost to rebuild in today’s Montgomery County construction market, not to the purchase price or an online value estimate. It leaves out the personal-property coverage you no longer need (your tenant’s belongings are theirs to insure, usually under a renters policy), and it adds landlord coverages an HO-3 does not carry. Most HO-3 carriers can deny a claim if they discover a home has been consistently rented, so the time to switch is before the first tenant moves in, not after the first loss.

Loss of Rents, Vacancy and Liability: What Maryland Landlords Should Carry

Condo Rentals in Rockville and North Bethesda: HO-6 vs. Dwelling Policy

Renting out a condo unit is common around Rockville Town Square, Twinbrook and the Pike corridor. The association’s master policy covers the building as defined in your bylaws, but the unit interior, improvements, loss assessments and your liability as a landlord sit with you. Depending on the carrier, that is written either as a unit-owners (HO-6) policy with a rental endorsement or as a landlord policy designed for condo units; Steadily writes condo rentals directly. Maryland law also lets an association charge a unit owner up to $10,000 of the master policy deductible when a loss starts in that unit, so loss assessment coverage matters. See our condo insurance page and Montgomery County condo guide.

Basement Apartments, ADUs and Short-Term Rentals in Montgomery County

Accessory dwelling units, including basement apartments in an owner-occupied home, must be licensed with DHCA and are inspected at application. Because you still live in the house, the right structure is usually your homeowners policy with the rental disclosed and endorsed, or a carrier that writes the arrangement directly; our guide to insuring a basement apartment or ADU in Rockville covers the options.

Short-term rentals have their own rules. Montgomery County’s short-term residential rental license, administered by DHCA, requires the property to be the owner’s primary residence, caps occupancy at six adult overnight guests and two per bedroom, and must be renewed every year. Properties inside the City of Rockville should confirm current rules with the city. On the insurance side, a long-term DP-3 does not fit Airbnb or Vrbo stays; Steadily writes short-term rental coverage built for transient guests and furnished units.

How to Get a Maryland Landlord Insurance Quote from Terrapin

  1. Send the property address, year built, square footage, roof age and any updates to electrical, plumbing or HVAC.
  2. Tell us how it is rented: long-term lease, short-term, owner-occupied with a basement unit, or vacant.
  3. Share your current declarations page and mortgage company, if any, so the new policy lines up without a gap.

We run the property through Steadily first, compare alternatives where they fit, and bind with your lender and licensing paperwork in mind. For more background, read our Montgomery County landlord insurance guide, or browse our Rockville, Bethesda and Silver Spring pages.

Ready to insure your rental? Call 240-243-0042 or get your landlord insurance quote. Our office is at 1300 Piccard Dr. #201, Rockville, MD 20850.

Common Maryland landlord insurance questions

Is landlord insurance required in Maryland?

Maryland does not require landlord insurance by statute, but mortgage lenders require dwelling coverage on any financed rental property. Even on a paid-off property, going without coverage on a rental is one of the highest-risk gambles a small investor can take; a single tenant-caused fire or guest-injury lawsuit can wipe out years of rental income and the equity in the property.

What's the difference between landlord insurance and homeowners insurance?

Homeowners (HO-3) policies are written for the owner-occupant. They include personal property coverage for your belongings inside the home, loss-of-use coverage if you have to move out, and liability coverage tied to your residency. Landlord policies (DP-3 dwelling fire) drop the personal-property coverage you no longer need (your tenant's belongings are not yours to insure), add loss-of-rents coverage to replace lost rental income during a covered loss, and reshape liability around the premises-liability exposure of being a landlord rather than an owner-occupant. Same building, different form.

Does my standard home policy cover me if I rent the house out?

Almost never, and continuing to carry an HO-3 on a rental is a recipe for a denied claim. Standard homeowners policies are written assuming owner-occupancy. Once a property is consistently rented to tenants, the insurer can deny claims on the grounds the policy was misrepresented. The right move is to convert to a DP-3 landlord policy (we use Steadily for most Maryland rentals) before the first tenant moves in. If you're keeping the home as a future return, ask us about a dwelling policy with a vacancy endorsement for the gap periods.

Do I need landlord insurance for Airbnb?

Yes. Platform host protections are not a substitute for your own policy. Short-term rental hosts need either a landlord policy with a short-term rental endorsement (Steadily writes these directly), a home-sharing endorsement, or a dedicated short-term-rental policy, depending on how often you rent and whether you live there. In Montgomery County, a short-term residential rental license from DHCA also requires that the property be your primary residence.

What if my tenant gets hurt on the property?

That's premises liability, and it's one of the main reasons a landlord policy exists. If a tenant trips on a loose step, slips on an icy walk you were responsible for clearing, or is injured by a known but unrepaired hazard, you can be sued personally. A DP-3 landlord policy includes liability coverage, commonly written at limits from $300,000 to $1,000,000, that pays defense costs and judgments. Landlords with multiple properties or significant assets often add a $1M personal umbrella on top.

How much does landlord insurance cost in Maryland?

It varies widely by property. The biggest drivers are the rebuild cost of the building, its age and the condition of the roof, plumbing and electrical systems, the location, the deductible, your claims history, and whether it is rented long-term or short-term. Two rentals on the same street can price very differently. The fastest way to a real number is a quote; Steadily, our primary landlord market, usually returns one the same day, and we compare it with other carriers where they fit.

What's loss of rents coverage?

Loss of rents (sometimes called fair rental value) replaces the monthly rental income you lose while a covered loss is being repaired. If a tenant-caused kitchen fire makes the unit uninhabitable for four months, your loss of rents coverage pays the rental income you would have collected during those four months. We typically write 12 months of loss of rents on Maryland DP-3 policies because Montgomery County permit and contractor timelines can run long, especially after major losses. It's one of the most under-purchased coverages in the landlord market.

Are short-term rentals covered?

They can be, but only with the right policy. A standard DP-3 written for a long-term tenant generally does not fit short-term rental activity. Steadily writes purpose-built short-term rental coverage (Airbnb/Vrbo) as either an endorsement on a landlord policy or a standalone product, with liability tailored to transient occupancy and contents coverage for the furnishings you provide. If you mix long-term and short-term tenants on the same property over the course of a year, we structure the policy around the predominant use and disclose the rest.

Do I need a separate policy per property?

For investors with a handful of properties, separate policies per address are usually simplest. As a portfolio grows, a Steadily portfolio policy or a small commercial package can consolidate billing and renewal dates and make mid-term changes easier. We help Maryland investors compare both structures and switch when the portfolio approach makes sense.

What about a multi-unit building?

2-4 unit buildings (duplex, triplex, quadplex) fit DP-3 with multi-unit endorsements through Steadily; 5+ units typically move into commercial property coverage and we route through MGT or Erie commercial depending on the operation. The dividing line matters because the form, the underwriting, and the regulatory treatment all change at 5 units. If you own a triplex in Silver Spring or Takoma Park, you're still in the DP-3 world; if you bought a 12-unit apartment building, you've moved to commercial.

What's required for a Montgomery County rental license?

Montgomery County Code Chapter 29 requires a rental housing license from the Department of Housing and Community Affairs (DHCA) before a property may be rented or advertised for rent, and an unlicensed landlord cannot sue for unpaid rent in District Court. DHCA does not license properties inside the Cities of Rockville, Gaithersburg or Takoma Park, which run their own programs; Rockville requires an inspection before it issues a rental license. Rental units built before 1978 must also be registered with the Maryland Department of the Environment. If a licensing office, lender or property manager asks for proof of insurance, we provide a certificate on request.

Can I bundle landlord with my home and auto?

Sometimes, but a bundle is rarely the deciding factor once you're past the first rental property. Most landlord-specific carriers (including Steadily) don't write your owner-occupied home and auto, and many homeowners carriers limit how many rentals they will write. The cleaner approach is usually to keep your home and auto with one carrier (often Erie, Geico, or AIC), and route rental properties through Steadily. We coordinate the renewals so you have one annual review covering everything.

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