The STR Insurance Market Is Getting Harder in 2026. Here Is What Every Host Needs to Know.

A California host rented her guest house occasionally through Airbnb. A tree fell on the property. No guests were present. The damage had nothing to do with a rental booking. Her homeowner’s insurer denied the $120,000 claim anyway, citing a rental activity exclusion buried in the policy language. That was the entire payout. Gone.

This is not an edge case. It is the new normal.

The STR insurance market has hardened significantly heading into 2026. Premiums are climbing. Underwriters are tightening. Coverage that seemed adequate two years ago now has gaps wide enough to drive a claims adjuster through. And the hosts who assumed their standard homeowner policy or Airbnb’s AirCover program would protect them are discovering, often at the worst possible moment, that neither one does.

If you own or operate a short-term rental in the United States right now, this is the insurance landscape you are walking into. Here is what changed, who is getting squeezed hardest, and which carriers still offer viable coverage.

The Hard Market Is Real, and It Is Not Slowing Down

Insurance industry professionals use the term “hard market” to describe a cycle where premiums rise, coverage shrinks, and underwriters become more selective about which risks they will take on. The STR sector entered a hard market in late 2023. By early 2026, it has only intensified.

Data indicates that STR insurance premiums have risen 20 to 40 percent in most U.S. markets over the past two years. In the hardest-hit states (Florida, Louisiana, parts of California), premiums have doubled or tripled. A dedicated commercial STR policy that cost $1,800 per year in 2023 might now run $2,800 to $3,500, depending on location, property type, and claims history.

The average dedicated STR insurance premium now falls between $2,000 and $3,000 per year, according to industry data from the National Association of Short-Term Rental Management. That is two to three times what a comparable landlord policy costs for long-term rentals.

What is driving this? Three forces are converging at once.

Natural disaster losses are accelerating. Hurricanes, wildfires, hailstorms, and flooding have produced record insured losses in consecutive years. Reinsurers (the companies that insure insurance companies) have raised their own rates, and those costs roll downhill to policyholders. In Florida, several major carriers have reduced exposure or exited the state entirely, leaving hosts scrambling for coverage through surplus lines carriers or the state’s insurer of last resort.

Claims frequency in STRs is rising. Short-term rental properties experience higher turnover, more wear and tear, and more liability exposure than traditional rentals. Insurers are segmenting risk more aggressively. Commercial insurance providers now estimate that operators without automated guest screening or property monitoring face premiums roughly 25 percent higher year-over-year than those with risk mitigation systems in place.

Regulatory pressure is expanding the liability surface. New safety laws like Maryland’s statewide STR safety requirements are raising the floor on what hosts must provide (smoke alarms, CO detectors, fire extinguishers, evacuation plans). That is good for guest safety. It also means more potential liability triggers if a host falls short of compliance.

Your Homeowner Policy Does Not Cover This. Period.

This needs to be said plainly, because too many hosts still operate under a dangerous assumption.

Standard homeowner insurance policies contain a business activity exclusion. The moment you accept a paying guest, your property is classified as a commercial operation under virtually every standard policy in the country. That exclusion does not just apply to guest-caused damage. It can void your entire policy.

The Insurance Information Institute released a formal outlook report on March 12, 2026, stating in plain language that standard homeowner coverage does not apply to commercial activities, and that short-term rental hosting qualifies as a commercial activity. This is not ambiguous. It is not a gray area. It is settled.

Sources reveal that the exclusion goes further than most hosts realize. Even when a property is not currently rented and the damage has nothing to do with a guest (a tree falls, a pipe bursts, a storm blows through), the insurer can still deny the claim if they discover the property has been used as a short-term rental at any point. The California case at the top of this article is a textbook example. The $120,000 denial was upheld because the insurer enforced a rental exclusion found in the standard policy language.

Then there is the habitability exclusion, a trap that even insured hosts can fall into. If a guest is injured and an investigation reveals even a minor building code violation (an expired fire extinguisher, a missing handrail, a non-compliant smoke detector), coverage can be denied. The exclusion language in many policies says coverage is void for claims “resulting directly or indirectly” from a habitability violation. The violation does not need to cause the injury. It just needs to exist.

Properties that cash-flowed comfortably two years ago are now operating on razor-thin margins because insurance alone consumes hundreds of dollars per month that used to be profit.

AirCover Is Not Insurance. Stop Treating It Like Insurance.

Airbnb’s AirCover program offers up to $3 million in Host Damage Protection and $1 million in Host Liability Insurance. On paper, that sounds comprehensive. In practice, it has well-documented gaps that leave hosts exposed.

AirCover excludes theft by guests, vandalism during vacant periods, natural disaster damage, excessive utility use, assault and battery claims, invasion of privacy claims, and incidents caused by animals. A large number of AirCover claims are rejected due to documentation disputes, a consistent frustration across host forums on Reddit, the Airbnb Community Center, and BiggerPockets.

The bigger shift came in March 2025. For hosts and co-hosts managing six or more listings, Airbnb’s Host Liability Insurance now takes a secondary position. That means your own insurance must respond first. If you do not have dedicated STR coverage, you have a primary liability gap on every property past your fifth listing.

Airbnb itself recommends that hosts purchase personal insurance for property damage caused by guests that AirCover does not protect. That is on their help center page.

Vrbo’s coverage is even thinner. The platform does not offer an equivalent to AirCover at all. Vrbo hosts are entirely dependent on their own insurance policies.

Three Carriers, Three Tiers: Who Each One Is Built For

The STR insurance market is not one-size-fits-all. Three carriers have emerged as the most commonly referenced options in the space, and they serve distinctly different host profiles.

Proper Insurance: The Premium Option for Serious Operators

Proper Insurance has written over 200,000 STR policies across all 50 states and Washington, D.C. They hold the exclusive endorsement of Vrbo and are widely regarded as the most comprehensive dedicated STR insurer in the country.

What you get: A commercial general liability policy starting at $1 million in coverage, with no occupancy restrictions. The policy covers your property and contents at replacement cost at the time of loss, whether the damage happens during a guest stay, between bookings, or during vacancy. Liability coverage applies on and off premises.

What it costs: Comprehensive policies start around $1,200 annually, but most hosts with properties in desirable STR markets should expect to pay more depending on location, rebuild cost, and claims history. Coastal properties in Florida or California will be at the upper end of the range.

Who it is for: Hosts who treat their STR as a business. Multi-property operators. Anyone in a high-liability market. If you have a property worth $500,000 or more, or your annual rental revenue exceeds $40,000, Proper is the carrier most likely to provide adequate coverage without gaps.

What to watch: Proper is not the cheapest option, and that is by design. Their coverage is underwritten as a commercial policy, not a modified homeowner policy. For hosts on tight margins, the premium can feel steep. But the alternative (a denied claim on a standard homeowner policy) is steeper.

Steadily: The Accessible Middle Option

Steadily provides landlord insurance designed for rental properties across all 50 states, including explicit coverage for short-term rental activity through Airbnb and Vrbo. CNBC named Steadily among the best landlord insurance companies of 2026. They hold a 4.3-star rating on Trustpilot from over 1,000 reviews.

What you get: Dwelling protection, liability coverage starting at $1 million, loss of rental income protection, and coverage for vandalism and burglary. Optional endorsements include flood, earthquake, equipment breakdown, and umbrella policies. Quotes are available in seconds through their online platform.

What it costs: Steadily positions itself as competitively priced, and customer testimonials cite savings of several hundred dollars compared to previous policies. Specific premiums vary by location and property profile, but Steadily’s pricing generally lands below Proper Insurance for comparable properties.

Who it is for: Hosts looking for solid coverage without the premium pricing of a full commercial policy. Investors with multiple rental properties who need a streamlined quoting process. Hosts in high-risk states where standard carriers have exited. Steadily uses surplus lines carriers in states like California and Florida where admitted carriers are pulling out, which means they can write policies where others will not.

What to watch: Most Steadily policies include a 30-day or 60-day vacancy clause. If your property sits empty beyond that window (during renovations, between seasons), coverage for vandalism and glass breakage may automatically lapse unless you purchase a vacant home endorsement. That is a meaningful gap for seasonal STR operators who go dark during the off-season.

Safely: The Platform-Adjacent Per-Stay Option

Safely takes a different approach entirely. Instead of an annual policy, Safely offers per-stay coverage through its Protection Policy, underwritten by On Demand Insurance Agency. The model is built for hosts who want insurance that activates only when the property is occupied.

What you get: Up to $1 million in liability coverage for guest injury and property damage per stay. The policy integrates with major booking platforms (Airbnb, Vrbo, direct booking sites). Safely also bundles guest screening with its insurance product, creating a combined risk management layer.

What it costs: Safely does not publish a standard annual rate. Pricing is customized based on the number of insured stays, occupancy estimates, property count, and deductible selection. This per-stay model can be cost-effective for part-time hosts who rent occasionally but will be more expensive on a per-dollar basis for high-occupancy operators.

Who it is for: Part-time hosts. Vacation homeowners who rent their property a few weeks per year. Hosts who want integrated screening and insurance in one platform. Property managers looking for per-reservation coverage to supplement an annual policy.

What to watch: Per-stay coverage means you are not insured during vacancy or personal use periods. If you need year-round protection (most full-time STR operators do), Safely’s model leaves gaps that require a separate policy to fill. The 98 percent claims payout rate within four to five days is a strong selling point, but hosts should confirm that the per-stay structure covers their actual risk exposure across all booking channels.

The Markets Getting Squeezed Hardest

Not all hosts are feeling this equally. The hardening market is hitting some regions and property types harder than others.

Florida hosts are in the tightest spot. Multiple major insurers have reduced their Florida exposure or exited entirely since 2023. The state’s Citizens Property Insurance (the insurer of last resort) has seen its policy count swell. STR hosts in coastal Florida markets (Miami, Tampa, the Keys, the Gulf Coast) face the steepest premiums in the country, often 2x to 3x what hosts in landlocked markets pay for comparable coverage.

North Carolina is on the edge. The state’s Rate Bureau has requested a 68.3 percent average increase in dwelling insurance premiums over two years. Dwelling policies cover non-owner-occupied homes, including Airbnbs and vacation rentals. If approved, this would make markets like Asheville, the Outer Banks, and Wilmington significantly more expensive to insure.

California wildfire zones remain punishing. Properties in wildfire-prone areas face limited carrier options and sky-high premiums. Many STR hosts in the Lake Tahoe basin, Big Bear, and parts of Sonoma and Napa counties can only obtain coverage through surplus lines carriers, which are not subject to state rate regulation.

Louisiana and the Gulf Coast. Hurricane exposure continues to drive premium inflation. Hosts in Gulf Shores, the Mississippi coast, and coastal Louisiana are seeing year-over-year increases that make the national averages look modest.

What Smart Hosts Are Doing Right Now

The hosts navigating this market successfully are not waiting for premiums to stabilize. They are acting.

They are auditing their current coverage. Pull your policy. Read the exclusions section. If it contains a business activity exclusion and you are operating an STR, you are functionally uninsured for any claim related to the property. Do this today, not after a guest breaks a window.

They are shopping with STR-specific carriers. The three carriers above are starting points. CBIZ Vacation Rental Insurance is another option for commercial operators. The key is finding a policy that explicitly covers short-term rental activity, not a standard landlord or homeowner policy with an STR endorsement tacked on.

They are investing in risk mitigation. Guest screening tools are not just about avoiding bad guests. They directly affect your insurability. Carriers and underwriters increasingly factor automated screening, noise monitoring, and smart lock usage into their risk assessments. Hosts with these systems in place are getting better quotes.

They are budgeting insurance as a line item, not an afterthought. If you are evaluating a new STR investment, insurance should be one of the first numbers you run, not the last. Use the StaySTRA analyzer to model your true operating costs, including insurance at current market rates, before making a purchase decision.

They are stacking coverage intentionally. Some operators use Safely’s per-stay model for guest-caused damage and pair it with a Steadily or Proper annual policy for year-round property and liability protection. Layered coverage costs more than a single policy, but it closes the gaps that single-policy hosts fall into.

The Decision Framework

Choosing the right STR insurance is not about picking the cheapest option. It is about matching coverage to your actual risk profile.

If you are a full-time operator with one or more high-value properties: Proper Insurance. The commercial policy structure, replacement cost coverage, and no-occupancy-restriction language make it the most complete option. Pay the premium.

If you are building a portfolio and need affordable, scalable coverage: Steadily. Fast quoting, competitive pricing, and availability in all 50 states make it the practical choice for investors managing multiple properties. Watch the vacancy clause.

If you are a part-time host or vacation homeowner who rents occasionally: Safely. The per-stay pricing model means you are not paying for coverage during weeks you are using the property yourself. Pair it with a homeowner or landlord policy that covers the property during non-rental periods.

If you are in Florida, coastal North Carolina, or a California wildfire zone: Start with Proper or Steadily and get a quote before you assume you can find coverage. In these markets, the number of carriers willing to write STR policies is shrinking, and waiting until renewal time may leave you with fewer options.

We do our best to keep our reporting accurate and up to date, but situations evolve and we are only human. Always verify current details directly with local officials and sources before making decisions.

Run the Real Numbers Before You Buy

Insurance is now one of the largest variable costs in STR operations. If you are evaluating a new market or property, the StaySTRA analyzer can help you model revenue, occupancy, and operating costs so you know what your margins actually look like before you commit.