Reading Your HOA Documents for Insurance
Check the master deed, bylaws, and master policy's declarations page to see what the HOA covers, so your HO-6 fills the gap.
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Look for one thing in the master policy. Is it bare walls or all-in. Bare walls means it covers the building's structure only, so your HO-6 has to cover the drywall, flooring, cabinets, and fixtures inside your unit. All-in means the HOA's policy already covers those, and your HO-6 mainly covers belongings and liability. The declarations page states the coverage type directly. Your bylaws also show the loss assessment amount the HOA can charge each owner after a shared loss, which your HO-6 should match with loss assessment coverage.
What your HO-6 is actually standing behind
A bare walls policy leaves your unit's interior uncovered unless your HO-6 matches it. Compare coverage built for condos and townhomes so the gap between the master policy and your own isn't one you find out about after a loss.
What happens when a neighbor's pipe floods your unit
Water damage in a condo building rarely stays in one unit. A pipe fails two floors up, and by the time anyone notices, it has come through your ceiling and ruined your floors. Whose policy pays depends on where the water started and what your master policy covers, not on who was careless. If the HOA's master policy is bare walls, the building's pipes and structure are covered under that policy, but the damage to your drywall, flooring, and belongings falls to your HO-6. Your HO-6 pays your claim, then your insurer may seek reimbursement from whoever was at fault, which is a process between insurers and not something you need to manage yourself.
Loss assessment works differently from a direct claim, and it catches a lot of owners off guard. When damage affects common areas or multiple units, like a roof, a shared wall, or the building's plumbing, the HOA's master policy pays what it covers, then charges each owner a share of whatever is left, often through the deductible or a gap in coverage. That charge is the special assessment, and it can run from a few hundred dollars to tens of thousands depending on the damage and the building. Loss assessment coverage on your HO-6 reimburses you for that charge up to the limit you carry. Your bylaws usually state how assessments are calculated and whether they're capped, and that figure is what your loss assessment limit should match.
Townhome insurance often works differently because of how the building is owned. A condo building is one structure under one roof with shared walls and often a shared roof. A townhome is frequently owned fee simple, meaning you own the land under your unit and sometimes the exterior walls and roof outright, even if an HOA still handles the landscaping and clubhouse. When that's the case, the HOA's master policy may only cover the common areas and shared amenities, not any part of your building's structure. Your policy then looks more like a standard homeowners policy, covering the full structure, not just the interior, which means your dwelling coverage limit needs to reflect the full cost of rebuilding your unit, not just its contents and finishes.
The master deed is where this gets settled on paper. It defines the boundaries between what the HOA owns and insures and what belongs to you as the unit owner, sometimes down to which side of a wall is whose. Some deeds draw that line at the unfinished drywall, others at the paint. When a loss happens and it isn't clear whose policy should respond, the master deed is the document both insurers will check first, so it's worth reading before a claim forces the question.
Why the master deed matters more than anyone tells you
Most owners never open the master deed until a claim is already in dispute. It's a dense document, full of legal description and survey language, and it's tempting to skip straight to the HOA's insurance summary instead. But the summary tells you what the HOA bought. The master deed tells you what you own, which is the question that actually decides whose policy pays first.
The boundary language usually shows up under a heading like "unit boundaries" or "description of units." It might say the unit consists of the airspace and surfaces from the unfinished drywall inward. Or it might extend further, to include the drywall itself, built-in cabinets, and fixtures. A few feet of difference in that definition changes whether a cracked pipe inside your wall is a structural repair the HOA's policy handles or an interior repair that falls to your HO-6. Read it once, before anything happens, so you're not parsing legal language while water is still coming through the ceiling.
If you're buying into a condo or townhome, ask for the master deed and the master policy's declarations page before closing, not after. A real estate agent or the HOA's management company can usually provide both. Compare the boundary language in the deed against the coverage type in the declarations page. If the deed says your unit includes the drywall and the policy is bare walls, you know exactly what your HO-6 needs to carry for dwelling coverage. If the numbers don't line up, that's worth raising before you own the place, not after a claim shows you the gap.
One more thing worth checking. Some master deeds get amended over the years, especially in older buildings, and the amendment might redraw the boundary without updating the HOA's insurance to match. If the HOA can provide meeting minutes or amendment records, a quick look confirms the deed you're reading is the current one. It's a small amount of reading for a document that, in a dispute, outranks what either insurer assumed.
Before you need it
Pull your HO-6's dwelling and loss assessment limits and set them next to the master policy's coverage type and your bylaws' assessment figure. If they don't match, that's the gap to close now.
