Insurance by Industry
Insurance built for off-campus student housing landlords
From single-family rentals near Boise State to apartment complexes in the San Antonio metro, student housing carries risks that standard landlord policies often miss.
Off-campus student housing insurance is a bundle of commercial coverages designed to protect landlords who rent to college students, covering the physical property, lost rental income, and liability claims that come with housing a rotating tenant base. Student rentals sit in a different risk category than long-term residential rentals: higher turnover, more wear, and a tenant population that may not carry renters insurance of their own. Bittick shops coverage across multiple carriers to build a policy stack that fits your property type and your exposure, whether you own one house near a campus or a multi-unit complex. We are licensed in CA, CO, ID, NV, OR, TX, VA, and WA.
What this coverage includes
Commercial property coverage for your building and contents
Commercial property insurance pays to repair or rebuild your structure after a covered loss, such as fire, windstorm, vandalism, or certain water damage. It also covers landlord-furnished contents inside the units, things like appliances, window treatments, and common-area furniture you provide. Because student housing properties range from converted single-family homes to mid-size apartment buildings, the right limit depends on the actual replacement cost of your structure, not just its market value. A Bittick advisor can walk you through how that number is calculated so you are not underinsured when it matters most.
General liability for third-party injuries and property damage
General liability insurance covers bodily injury and property damage claims made against you as the property owner. If a tenant slips on an icy exterior stairway in January, trips on a broken step, or a guest damages a neighbor's vehicle while on your property, this coverage pays for defense costs and any damages you are found liable for. Student housing properties often have higher foot traffic than standard rentals, which increases the frequency of these kinds of incidents. This is the foundational coverage every student housing landlord needs in place before anything else.
Rental income protection when a unit goes off-line
Business interruption coverage, sometimes called rental income or loss of rents coverage, replaces the rental income you lose when a covered loss forces a unit out of service. If a kitchen fire makes an apartment uninhabitable for two months during the school year, your mortgage payment does not pause while the unit is being repaired. This coverage bridges that gap. It is especially valuable for student housing because leases often run on academic calendars, and a loss during August move-in season can cascade into a full semester of vacancy.
Employment practices liability for tenant and staff claims
Employment practices liability insurance, known as EPLI, covers legal defense and damages when someone accuses you of discrimination, harassment, wrongful eviction, or other alleged misconduct in the management of your property. Tenants can file these claims just as employees can, and the cost to defend one, even a meritless complaint, can run into the tens of thousands of dollars before it ever reaches a courtroom. EPLI also covers claims from any maintenance staff or leasing agents you employ directly. This is a coverage many smaller landlords overlook until they receive a demand letter.
Equipment breakdown, cyber liability, and catastrophic event coverage
Equipment breakdown coverage pays for the sudden mechanical or electrical failure of HVAC systems, boilers, and other major building systems, repairs that property insurance typically excludes because they are not caused by an external peril. Cyber liability coverage matters if you collect rent online, store tenant personal data, or use property management software, a breach exposing tenant financial information can trigger notification costs and regulatory exposure. Depending on where your property sits, flood insurance (written separately through the NFIP or private markets) and earthquake coverage may also belong in your program. Standard property policies exclude both.
Pairs well with
Umbrella / Excess Liability
Student housing claims, particularly severe injury claims, can exceed standard liability limits quickly. An umbrella policy layers additional limits above your general liability and other underlying policies for a relatively low added premium.
Learn more ›Flood Insurance
Standard commercial property policies do not cover flood damage. Properties near the Boise River, the Snake River Plain, or in any FEMA-designated flood zone need a separate flood policy, either through the NFIP or a private flood carrier.
Commercial Auto Insurance
If you or your employees drive to inspect, maintain, or service your rental properties using a vehicle owned by the business, a personal auto policy will not cover that use. Commercial auto fills the gap.
Learn more ›Workers Compensation
If you employ maintenance technicians, leasing staff, or cleaning crews, Idaho law requires workers compensation coverage. A claim from an injured employee without it can expose you personally to the full cost of their medical care and lost wages.
Learn more ›Renters Insurance (tenant-facing recommendation)
Requiring tenants to carry renters insurance does not protect you directly, but it reduces the likelihood that a tenant will pursue you for their own personal property losses. Many landlords make it a lease condition.
Learn more ›What this coverage protects against
Common risks and how this coverage addresses them. Tap any scenario to expand.
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Frozen pipe bursts in a Boise rental during a hard January cold snap.
The risk
Temperatures dropped below zero for three consecutive nights and a pipe in an exterior wall burst, flooding the lower unit of a duplex near BSU. The tenant's belongings were damaged and the unit needed two months of repairs before it was rentable again.
How this coverage helps
Commercial property coverage paid for the water damage repairs and unit restoration. Business interruption coverage replaced the lost rent for the two months the unit sat off-line, keeping the owner's mortgage current while the work was completed.
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Tenant alleges discriminatory denial of lease renewal.
The risk
A student tenant whose lease was not renewed filed a fair housing complaint alleging that the non-renewal was discriminatory. The landlord had a legitimate business reason, but still faced an administrative hearing and potential civil suit with attorney fees accumulating from day one.
How this coverage helps
EPLI coverage paid for the landlord's legal defense throughout the administrative process. The complaint was ultimately dismissed, but defense costs alone exceeded $18,000, a figure the landlord would have absorbed out of pocket without the policy.
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Guest injured on a broken handrail at a Meridian student rental.
The risk
A visitor to one of the units tripped on a porch handrail that had worked loose from its post and suffered a wrist fracture. The injured party filed a personal injury claim against the property owner, seeking medical expenses and damages.
How this coverage helps
General liability coverage paid the claimant's medical bills and the owner's legal defense costs. The claim settled without going to trial, and the total payout stayed within the policy's per-occurrence limit.
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Central HVAC fails in a summer heat wave across a four-unit building.
The risk
The central air conditioning system in a four-unit complex seized up in late July. The compressor failure was mechanical, not caused by fire or any covered external peril, so the standard property policy did not respond. Replacing the unit cost over $9,000.
How this coverage helps
Equipment breakdown coverage paid for the compressor replacement and the refrigerant recharge. Without it, the landlord would have faced the full repair bill plus potential claims from tenants dealing with uninhabitable heat during the Treasure Valley's hottest month.
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Online rent portal breach exposes tenant payment data.
The risk
A property management software vulnerability allowed unauthorized access to the payment records of 34 tenants, exposing bank account and routing numbers. State law required written notification to each affected tenant and a credit monitoring offer, costs the landlord had not budgeted for.
How this coverage helps
Cyber liability coverage paid for the mandatory breach notification process, credit monitoring services for affected tenants, and the forensic investigation to confirm the scope of the breach. It also covered a regulatory defense cost when a state inquiry followed.
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Fire in one unit forces the entire building off-line for repairs.
The risk
A cooking fire in a second-floor unit spread into the wall cavity of a three-story apartment building, requiring the entire structure to be vacated for four months while fire and smoke damage was remediated. All six units went dark during the fall semester.
How this coverage helps
Commercial property insurance covered the full cost of remediation and repairs. Business interruption coverage replaced the rental income from all six units for the duration of the repair period, and the umbrella policy stood ready in case any tenant injury claims had exceeded the underlying liability limits.
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Flood damage hits ground-floor units after heavy Snake River runoff.
The risk
Rapid spring snowmelt in the mountains pushed the Snake River drainage into low-lying areas of Canyon County. A landlord's two ground-floor units took on several inches of water. Their commercial property policy excluded flood, a fact they discovered after filing the claim.
How this coverage helps
A separate flood policy written through the NFIP covered the structural damage and the landlord-owned appliances in the affected units. The payout allowed the owner to begin remediation within days rather than waiting on out-of-pocket funds to accumulate.