Commercial habitational coverage for apartment buildings and multifamily property across Metro Detroit and Michigan — building limits and replacement cost, habitational liability, loss of rents, ordinance or law, equipment breakdown and excess capacity. Placed by an independent Rochester Hills agency that reads the schedule before it markets it.
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An apartment building is a property account first and a liability account second, and the two are usually written together. These are the lines that carry the weight on a multifamily program.
The building limit, and how it is valued. Replacement cost is the usual objective on habitational risks, but the limit has to be supported — carriers compare the stated figure against their own reconstruction estimate, and a limit that looks low invites a coinsurance conversation at claim time rather than at binding.
Tenant, guest and invitee injury arising out of the premises: common areas, stairwells, parking, sidewalks and grounds. Habitational is rated apart from other commercial occupancies because the public is resident on site around the clock rather than visiting during business hours.
Rental income while units are untenantable after a covered loss, payable through the period of restoration rather than to a calendar date. On a multi-unit building the realistic question is how many months of rebuild the limit is actually funding, not whether the coverage is on the policy.
Older buildings rarely get rebuilt to the code they were built under. This coverage addresses the value of the undamaged portion, the cost of demolition, and the increased cost of construction to meet current code — three separate coverage parts that are commonly sublimited and are worth reading individually.
Boilers, chillers, rooftop units, elevators, pumps and electrical distribution equipment. Mechanical and electrical failure is generally excluded on the property form, so this fills a gap that becomes expensive in a building with central heat or an elevator.
Additional capacity above the primary liability limit, and often the practical answer where a lender or a larger schedule calls for limits the primary market will not write alone. Whether the umbrella follows form over every underlying line is worth confirming rather than assuming.
Two buildings with the same unit count can price very differently. On habitational risks the underwriting conversation is mostly about the physical condition of the building and what has already gone wrong in it.
Year built matters less than what has been replaced since. Carriers commonly ask for the dates of electrical, plumbing, heating and roof updates, and may decline or surcharge where older wiring or certain panel types remain in service. Documented updates with dates frequently move terms more than any other single item.
Roof age, covering type and whether the existing covering was torn off or layered over. Some habitational markets restrict older roofs to actual cash value or apply a separate wind and hail deductible, so a recent tear-off with an invoice on file is worth having ready before the submission goes out.
Water is the frequency driver on multifamily. Aging supply lines, failed water heaters, freeze losses in unheated or vacant units, and sewer backup all recur — and in a stacked building one failure can damage several units below it. A pattern of water claims can affect deductibles and available markets more than a single large fire.
What a building would sell for and what it would cost to rebuild are different numbers, and in parts of Metro Detroit they can differ substantially in either direction. Property limits are built from reconstruction cost, so a limit set from a purchase price or an assessment is one of the more common valuation problems we see.
Occupancy percentage, tenant mix, and whether any portion is commercial or short-term. Vacancy provisions in the property form can suspend or reduce certain coverages once a building has been vacant beyond a stated period, which is a live issue during turnover, renovation or lease-up.
Currently valued loss runs, usually three to five years across all carriers. Underwriters read frequency as a management signal, so water and premises-liability claims are reviewed alongside what was done afterwards. Habitability and mold-related allegations are often addressed by exclusion or sublimit and are worth checking on any quoted form.
Not every carrier asks for every item, but a habitational submission moves faster when this is assembled up front. For a schedule, most of it is wanted per location.
Direct answers to what multifamily owners ask before moving a program.
Most Michigan apartment owners carry commercial property on the building, habitational general liability, loss of rents, and equipment breakdown where there is central mechanical equipment, with ordinance or law added on older buildings and an umbrella above the primary liability limit. Workers' compensation applies where there are employees such as onsite maintenance or management staff, subject to the statutory criteria. What any specific program should include depends on the building, the ownership structure and lender requirements, and coverage responds subject to the policy terms, conditions, limits and exclusions as written.
Building limits are generally built from replacement cost — what it would cost to rebuild — not from market value or the assessed value. The two figures are independent: a building can be worth less on the open market than it would cost to reconstruct, or considerably more, depending on the submarket. Carriers typically run their own reconstruction estimate and compare it to the requested limit, which is why a limit derived from a purchase price often gets questioned during underwriting.
It can, when loss of rents or business income coverage is included and the loss is caused by a covered peril. Coverage generally runs through the period of restoration — the time reasonably required to repair or replace — rather than to a fixed date. The practical question on a multi-unit building is whether the limit reflects a realistic rebuild timeline, since permitting and construction on an older structure can run well beyond an owner's initial estimate.
Yes. Multiple buildings are commonly written on a single commercial package using a statement of values that lists each location with its own limits. A schedule usually gives one renewal date and one point of contact, and can support blanket limits where the carrier allows it. Each location is still underwritten individually, so one building with heavy water losses or an older roof can affect the terms offered on the whole schedule.
Often significantly. Roof age and covering type are among the first items a habitational underwriter looks at, and older roofs may draw a separate wind and hail deductible, a settlement basis of actual cash value rather than replacement cost, or a declination — the thresholds vary by carrier and by roof type. A documented tear-off and replacement, with the date and invoice available, is one of the more effective things an owner can bring to a submission.
At minimum: the property address, unit count, year built, construction type, square footage, roof age, the dates of any electrical, plumbing and heating updates, the current building limit, annual rental income, and currently valued loss runs. Ownership entity and mortgagee details are needed to issue. For several buildings, a statement of values listing each location lets the whole schedule be marketed at once instead of building by building.
Titanium Shield Insurance Agency is an independent commercial agency in Rochester Hills. We review multifamily programs against the building's actual condition, valuation and loss history, and place property, habitational liability, loss of rents and excess coverage across carriers rather than through one company.