A great many Mesa properties have a second dwelling on them: a converted garage, a guest house, a unit above the workshop. Renting one out changes the policy on the whole property, not just the part being rented.
A second occupied dwelling on the parcel makes the property a two-unit risk, whoever lives in the main house.
Three things about renting out part of where you live.
A standard form contemplates the family that lives there. Introduce a paying tenant in a casita and the property no longer matches that description. Some carriers accommodate it with an endorsement, some require a different form entirely, and some will not write it. Carrying on without saying anything is the option that fails at a claim.
Their guests, their deliveries, their use of the shared yard. As owner-occupier you are exposed to all of it, and the liability limit on an ordinary homeowners policy was set for a household rather than a small landlord.
A conversion done without permits can be a problem at a claim, because rebuilding it may not be permitted and the carrier may limit what it pays. Whether the unit is legal is a question worth settling before it is rented rather than after a fire.
The questions that decide which form it needs.
It affects what a carrier will write and what they will rebuild.
A relative living there rent free is a different risk from a paying tenant.
Shared utilities and a shared yard raise questions that separate units do not.
Tell us whether there is a second unit, whether it is permitted and who lives in it.
