Improvement and Betterments

Improvement and Betterments- How are they insured in your condominium?

The condominium insurance certificate has a section titled "how are improvements and betterments covered". We have included this information to help you understand what coverage the master policy affords for improvements and betterments so you know what homeowner insurance to purchase on your unit. Insurance companies have their own unique way of insuring improvements and betterment on a master policy. The choice falls into four major categories: "all-in", "all-in per condo documents", "per condo documents" or "original specifications". See definitions below:

All-in	This means the master policy will insure any improvements to the building made by unit-owners. Even though the unit-owner might have spent large sums of money to modernize the kitchen and bath, the improvements would be covered on the master policy. The unit owner doesn’t need to insure the improvements on a homeowner’s policy. The insurance companies that offer "all-in" coverage usually do so with an endorsement. See the sample policy forms on our website.
All-in per Condo Docs	The insurance policy refers to the insurance section of the condominium documents to interpret what is covered on the master policy. If you see "all-in per condo documents" it means we have interpreted the master policy condominium document and feel it will adequately cover all improvements made by unit-owners.
Per Condo Docs	The insurance policy refers to the insurance section of the condominium documents to interpret what is covered on the master policy. If you see "per condo documents" it means we have interpreted the master policy condominium document and feel there is either no coverage for improvements made by unit-owners or the condominium documents are too ambiguous.
Original Spec's	Coverage only includes property in "units" and private storage areas which were initially installed in accordance with your condominium's original plans and specifications. If you have original specification coverage it means improvements or betterments are not covered on your master policy.

Building Coverage: What is your building limit?

Master policies differ on the maximum limit they will pay in the event of a catastrophe. See definitions below

RC	Replacement Cost	Your policy will cover claims up to the building limit on a replacement cost basis
ERC	Extended Replacement Cost	The policy will cover claims on a replacement cost basis and adds 25% to the building limit in the event you have a catastrophe. For example, if your building has a $10,000,000 replacement cost limit the ERC endorsement means your actual limit is $12,500,000 in the event of a total loss.
GRC	Guaranteed Replacement Cost	This definition means claims will be paid on a replacement cost basis but the amount of insurance is unlimited. We have displayed a ratable limit on the certificate to show you what your insurance company is using to rate the policy.

Flood Insurance

If your building has flood insurance it will be included on the condominium certificate. Our certificate displays "the flood zone on policy". This is not necessarily the current flood zone because it is impossible for our office to constantly update flood zone since we don’t get updates from FEMA.

Electronic copies of your condo documents

Walls-in Coverage: What does it mean when your bank asks you to purchase "Walls-in coverage"? It means that if the master policy is offering less than "all-in coverage", the unit-owner must purchase a "Walls-in policy" or "Homeowner policy". If the master policy does not cover unit improvements, the bank is requiring the unit-owner to buy the coverage. “Fannie Mae” has created this new term in their December 16, 2008 regulation. See the Fannie Mae letter on our web-site. "Changes to Insurance Regulations”.