What do I need for my tiny house insurance in Maryland?

Currently, people who want to live in tiny houses in Maryland have to do it from RV parks and mobile home parks.

There are no zoning laws in the state that allow people to live in RVs on their own properties or on rented land, but many people are pushing to make a change to that.

Since just outside of Maryland proper in Washington, D.C., one of the biggest tiny house movements in the country is happening.

Residents see it as an opportunity to make cities like Annapolis and Baltimore more tiny house friendly like Washington, D.C. Make sure to use our free quote tool above! 

Insuring your Tiny House on Wheels (THOW) in Maryland

Even though tiny houses have to stay on the move in Maryland, there are things you can do to insure them. You will need to figure out what type of insurance you need while you are building and while you are towing your house to different locations in Maryland.

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Coverage during Construction

Construction coverage for your tiny house is important because there are many things that could go wrong while you are building your tiny house.

Insurance is there for the unforeseen things so you need to keep that in mind when you are working on building your tiny house.

Builder Insurance

Since RVs are legal and popular in Maryland, there are RV builders who are certified by the RVIA. They are able to build RVs to suit your needs and that can include a tiny house on wheels (THOW).

While your tiny house will be considered an RV in name, it will be protected by various guarantees RVIA builders have.

All RVIA builders are required by the association to carry insurance on their builds.

The insurance policies they have will help prevent you from being held responsible for damage to people or property, will allow your materials to be protected and will help ensure your money is going to go toward the build.

Doing It Yourself

Building your own tiny house in Maryland is risky because you may not be able to designate it as an RV.

If your tiny house is not officially an RV, parks have a right to refuse to allow you to stay there and you may find yourself without a place to park your tiny house.

If you are going to build your own tiny house, it may be a good idea to join NOAH and find plans that can help you build a tiny house that can be certified as an RV.

Coverage during Towing

Since Maryland does not officially allow tiny houses, you will need to have coverage for a recreational vehicle while you are towing your tiny house.

Whether you have an actual RV policy on your tiny house or you choose an alternative insurance option, you should consider the limits and what you want to have covered.

Talk with several insurance agents to figure out who can give you the best coverage possible.

RV Policy

You can only get an RV policy if your home is RVIA certified or if you have it designated as an RV. Maryland has guidelines for RV insurance and different insurance agents will need to follow them when they are giving you a policy.

Keep that in mind when you are shopping around for the best policy.

Since an RV insurance policy is regulated, you can expect that it will have the coverage you need.

You can choose from basic coverage that usually only covers liability, moderate coverage that will help with collision costs and full coverage that gives you liability, comprehensive and collision.

RV insurance will also cover your belongings inside the tiny house which might be one of the only ways you can have your belongings in your tiny house covered.

Alternative Coverage

One option you have for alternative coverage is endorsement coverage. Alternative coverage may not be available from all insurance agents so shop around to see if you can obtain this coverage. With

With trip endorsement, your cargo will be covered under your basic auto insurance policy. You will need the state minimum liability coverage on your tow vehicle.

State minimum requirements in Maryland is:

• $30,000 per person bodily injury (up to $60,000 per accident).
• $15,000 property damage for each accident.
• $30,000 per person (up to $60,000 per accident) for uninsured motorist coverage.

Beyond this, various insurance agencies may suggest you carry collision coverage if you are going to be using a trip endorsement to tow your tiny house. Collision coverage will protect your vehicle and tiny house if you are in an accident.

Coverage while Parked in Maryland

Since there is no area in Maryland that currently allows you to park your tiny house full time, you will need to consider the coverage required for moving around locations throughout the state.

While tiny house owners in other states will be able to take out homeowner’s policies on their tiny homes, you will not have that ability in Maryland until the state changes their laws.

If you have an RV auto insurance policy, that will cover your belongings, but if you do not, you will need to consider another type of coverage.

Renter’s insurance is generally reserved for those who are renting homes in Maryland, but since you are technically renting property to keep your tiny house on, you can use a renter’s insurance policy.

Your auto insurance agent can provide you with the policy and can even bundle it together for you. The policy will cover the things you own inside of your tiny house, but will not cover your tiny house.

For this reason, you may want to add comprehensive coverage to your auto policy.

Comprehensive will cover your tiny house if it’s stolen if it has damage done to it from a natural disaster and if something happens to it that was part of an unforeseen event.

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Saving on Insurance

Planning ahead is the only way you can save money on a tiny house in Maryland. In fact, planning ahead may be the only way you can live in a tiny house in Maryland.

You need to be prepared with the following:

• type of insurance you’re going to use
• type of builder who is going to put your house together 
• the parks you plan to stay in

Many people in Maryland are pushing for a change in the laws, but it could still be a long time before that happens so be prepared for how you will live in and protect your tiny house until then.

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