Does Master Policy Cover My Condo Upgrades?
Usually not. Most master policies cover the building as built, so upgrades like flooring or cabinets need your own HO-6 policy.
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Bare Walls vs. All-In
Your HOA's master policy is written one of two ways. Bare walls covers only the structure as originally built. All-in covers original fixtures too, but still not what you added. Check the HOA's bylaws or ask the board which type applies.
What Counts as Upgrades
Flooring, cabinets, countertops, and upgraded fixtures installed after the unit was built are typically yours to insure. An HO-6 policy calls this coverage A, additions and alterations. The amount you choose should reflect what it costs to replace those upgrades today, not what you paid originally.
Setting Your Coverage Amount
Too little coverage A means paying out of pocket after a loss. Add up what you spent on upgrades, or what similar ones would cost to install now, and use that as your starting number. Your declarations page shows the limit you currently carry.
Master Policy Gaps
If the master policy only covers bare walls and your upgrades get damaged in a covered event, the gap between what the HOA pays and what repairs cost is yours unless your HO-6 covers it. Additions and alterations coverage is built to close exactly this gap.
The Gap Is Yours to Cover
If your HOA's policy stops at bare walls, every upgrade you added is uninsured until your HO-6 says otherwise. Compare policies to find coverage A limits that actually match what you spent.
Who Pays When Water Comes From the Unit Next Door
A pipe bursts in the unit above you and ruins your ceiling, your flooring, and the cabinets you installed last year. The question of who pays doesn't come down to whose pipe it was. It comes down to what each policy covers and whether anyone was negligent. If the leak was a sudden accident, like a supply line failure, it's usually treated as a covered peril under the policies involved rather than a liability claim against your neighbor.
Your HO-6 policy typically covers the damage to your unit regardless of where the water started, including your coverage A upgrades, your personal property, and the cost of repairs. You file with your own insurer, they pay out according to your limits and deductible, and in many cases they pursue the neighbor's insurer afterward if negligence was involved. That process, called subrogation, happens between insurers. It is not something you need to manage yourself.
If the neighbor left a window open during a storm or ignored a known leak for weeks, that changes things. Their liability coverage, which is also part of an HO-6 or similar policy, may end up responsible for your damage. But proving negligence takes time, and most people don't want to wait on that outcome before fixing their home. Filing under your own policy first is usually the faster path, and your insurer sorts out reimbursement later if it applies.
Loss assessment coverage fits into this picture too, though differently. If the HOA's master policy has to pay for damage to common areas from the same event, like the pipe inside a shared wall, and the master policy deductible is high, the HOA may bill unit owners through a special assessment to cover the gap. Loss assessment coverage on your HO-6, often a few thousand dollars by default, reimburses you for your share of that bill. It's a separate protection from the one that covers your flooring, and both matter in a situation like this. Check your declarations page for the limit you carry, and raise it if the HOA's master deductible is large relative to that number.
How Is Townhome Insurance Different From a Condo HO-6
A townhome often comes with more to insure than a condo. Many townhome HOAs only insure the roof, the exterior walls, and shared land, not the whole structure. That means your own policy may need to cover everything from the studs out, not just the inside finishes. Ask the HOA directly what their master policy includes before assuming an HO-6 is the right fit.
If your HOA's master policy doesn't cover the building structure at all, you likely need an HO-3 policy instead of an HO-6. An HO-3 insures the dwelling itself, the roof, the walls, the foundation, along with your personal property and upgrades. This is common for townhomes where each owner holds title to the land under their unit, unlike a condo where the HOA typically owns and insures the structure.
Some townhome communities fall in between. The HOA might insure the exterior walls and roof but leave interior load-bearing walls, plumbing, and wiring to the owner. In that case an HO-6 with higher coverage A limits could still work, but the amount needs to reflect structural repairs, not just flooring and cabinets. Read the HOA's governing documents or ask the board directly which parts of the building its policy actually covers.
Getting this wrong leaves a real gap. An owner who assumes the HOA covers the roof, then finds out after a storm that it doesn't, is left paying for a major repair with a policy that was never built for it. Before buying any policy for a townhome, find out exactly where the master policy's coverage ends and confirm your own policy picks up from there.
Before You Pick a Number
Find the HOA's master policy type and your loss assessment limit, then add up what your upgrades would cost to replace today. Those three numbers decide what your HO-6 actually needs to cover.
