Renters Insurance in New Jersey
Your landlord’s insurance covers the building, not your things. Renters insurance protects your belongings, pays if you accidentally injure someone or damage the property, and covers a hotel if your apartment becomes unlivable. Stonebrook helps renters across Lakewood, Ocean and Monmouth counties find the right coverage.
Reviewed by Nate Feuerman, High Net Worth Insurance Producer at Stonebrook
Last updated
Quick answers
What does renters insurance cover?
Your belongings, your personal liability, and extra living costs if a covered loss forces you out of your rental.
Does my landlord’s insurance cover my belongings?
No. Your landlord’s policy covers the building and the landlord’s liability, not your furniture, clothing or electronics.
Is renters insurance required in New Jersey?
Not by state law, but many leases require it, often with a minimum liability limit.
How much renters insurance do I need?
Enough to replace everything you own at today’s prices. Most people underestimate, so walk through it room by room.
What renters insurance covers.
A renters policy, sometimes called an HO-4, has the same core parts as a homeowners policy, minus the building.
Personal property
Furniture, clothing, electronics, seforim and kitchenware, after fire, theft, smoke, burst pipes and other covered causes. Ask for replacement cost.
Loss of use
Hotel, meals and added living costs while your rental is repaired after a covered loss.
Personal liability
Injuries to guests and damage you cause to the building or to neighbors, such as a kitchen fire or an overflowing tub.
Medical payments
Small medical bills for guests hurt in your apartment, regardless of fault.
Water backup
Water that backs up through a drain or overflows a sump pump, which matters most in basement apartments.
Scheduled valuables
Jewelry, watches and silver insured for their appraised value. See jewelry and collections.
How much renters insurance do you need?
Your personal property limit should cover what it would cost to buy everything new today, not what you paid or what it would sell for.
Walk through each room and add it up. Furniture, clothing, kitchen items and books add up faster than most people expect.
Choose replacement cost rather than actual cash value, so a claim pays for new items instead of depreciated ones.
What would it cost to replace?
Jewelry, watches and other valuables should be scheduled separately.
Get a renters quoteBasement apartments, two-families and first homes.
Across Lakewood and the surrounding towns, many families rent a basement apartment, one side of a two-family home, or an apartment in a larger building. In each case, the owner’s policy is written for the owner, not for you.
If a pipe bursts upstairs or a fire starts next door, your landlord’s insurance repairs the building. Replacing your furniture, clothing and seforim, and paying for somewhere to stay, is up to your own renters policy.
Basement apartments face extra water risk. Ask us about water backup coverage, and whether contents-only flood insurance makes sense for your address.
When you are ready to buy, the same coverage carries into a homeowners or condo policy, and we can make that switch with you.
Stonebrook is an independent insurance agency.
We don’t work for one insurance company. We work with more than 25 carriers, so we can compare renters coverage across carriers instead of selling you a single company’s policy.
Since 1982 we have helped New Jersey families from our office in Lakewood, and we place coverage in all 50 states through our carriers and partners. When something changes, or when you have a claim, you call people who know you.
Coverage that works together.
Most families need more than one policy. Here is how the pieces fit.
Renters insurance questions, answered.
What does renters insurance cover?
Renters insurance covers your personal property, your personal liability, medical payments to guests, and extra living costs if a covered loss makes your rental unlivable. It does not cover the building itself, which is the landlord’s responsibility.
Does my landlord’s insurance cover my belongings?
No. A landlord’s policy covers the building and the landlord’s own liability. Your furniture, clothing, electronics and other belongings need your own renters policy.
Is renters insurance required in New Jersey?
New Jersey law does not require it, but many landlords require it in the lease, often with a minimum liability limit and with the landlord listed as an interested party.
How much renters insurance do I need?
Enough personal property coverage to replace everything you own at today’s prices, plus liability of at least $300,000 in most cases. Use the estimator on this page as a starting point.
Does renters insurance cover a burst pipe or water damage?
Usually, for sudden and accidental water damage to your belongings, such as a burst pipe. Water backup through a drain and flood from outside are excluded unless you add water backup coverage or buy a flood policy.
Does renters insurance cover my roommate or family?
It covers you and resident relatives in your household. Unrelated roommates generally need their own policy.
Are my things covered outside my apartment?
Usually yes. Personal property coverage generally applies to your belongings anywhere in the world, such as items stolen from your car or a hotel room, subject to your deductible and policy limits.
Is my child’s property covered while away at school or yeshiva?
Often, up to a limited percentage of your personal property coverage, if the child is a resident of your household. Check your policy, or ask us to.
Let’s protect everything you own, wherever you rent.
Take 30 seconds to take the first step towards better coverage.
Get a quote.
Tell us what you need and we’ll take it from there.