What insurance does a property manager need?
There's no one-size answer. The right mix depends on how you work, who you work for, and what your contracts ask for. These are the coverages a property manager typically looks at first:
Professional liability
The core coverage for property managers: claims that a management decision, a lease error, or an eviction mistake cost an owner or tenant money, with limits up to $1,000,000 per claim typically available.
General liability
Covers third-party injuries and property damage at the properties you manage, and it's often what owners and HOAs require proof of before signing a management agreement.
Cyber liability
Tenant applications, rent payments, and personal information move through your systems constantly, and this addresses breach response costs if that data is exposed.
Coverage always depends on your specific situation. The fastest way to see what fits is to get a quote and review your options.
What does it protect against?
The risks that matter aren't abstract. They're the everyday accidents of the work. A few scenarios that turn into real claims:
A landlord says your management decision cost them money
You approve a maintenance vendor who does substandard work, or you misjudge a market rent and the unit sits vacant for months. The owner alleges your management decision cost them money, which is exactly the kind of claim professional liability is built for.
A lease or eviction error surfaces later
A renewal deadline gets missed, or an eviction notice is served incorrectly and has to be refiled. Errors in the paperwork that governs a tenancy are a defining professional liability exposure for property managers.
A tenant or visitor is hurt at a managed property
A tenant trips on a broken stair you were responsible for maintaining, or a visitor slips on ice in a parking lot you manage. General liability is designed to help cover the resulting medical claim.
A phished inbox exposes tenant financial data
Rent payment portals and applications hold tenant bank details and personal information, and a compromised email account or a breached system can expose all of it at once. Cyber liability is built for the response costs and third-party claims that follow.
Certificates of insurance
For property managers, certificate requests usually come from the property owner: many management agreements require proof of professional liability and general liability before a manager takes over a building or portfolio, and HOAs sometimes ask for the same. Olli's general liability policies include instant certificates, so proof is ready whenever an owner asks for it.
New to certificates? Start with our guide to the certificate of insurance: what's on one, who asks for it, and how to provide yours.