Real Estate

Built for real estate owners that need a risk partner who understands how their business operates.

Commercial real estate

Real estate insurance influences deals and asset performance, yet it’s often handled separately from the key decisions behind them. It doesn't have to be.

Real estate activities are closely interconnected.

Transactions move quickly, with financing and operations happening in parallel across deal teams and lenders. In that environment, work is tightly linked but often handled by different stakeholders with competing priorities.

Decisions made during acquisition or development carry through to financing, leasing, and operations, with limited flexibility once lender requirements are set.

Insurance for commercial real estate should support these activities. In practice, it is often addressed separately from how assets are financed and managed, leading to disconnects across transactions and portfolios.

As portfolios grow and evolve, this separation can delay or re-trade transactions, create friction with lender requirements, and increase pressure on asset-level performance. We are structured to work differently, minimizing friction and silos.

A risk management partner that truly understands real estate.

Real estate portfolios are under increasing pressure to deliver consistent returns. And these pressures often surface through commercial real estate insurance coverage. Premium increases, higher deductibles, and shifts in coverage can introduce unexpected costs, while evolving requirements may not align with lender covenants or financing terms. As a result, deals can be delayed or re-traded, limiting flexibility during negotiations. 

A more effective approach treats insurance as a portfolio-level decision. That's how we work.

Our real estate practice goes beyond traditional brokerage models. We start by understanding your drivers for portfolio performance and aligning protection to your financial and operational realities.

This consultative approach helps clients focus on what’s important: protecting the value of assets, stabilizing performance, and improving net operating income. 

The commercial real estate insurance products we offer

  • Brick and glass building

    Property insurance

    Coverage for owned and managed properties, addressing physical damage, loss of income, and lender requirements.

  • Looking up at buildings and chimney

    General liability insurance

    Addresses third-party injury and property damage, reflecting how liability is allocated through leases and vendor agreements.

  • Looking up at tree tops

    Umbrella insurance

    Provides additional liability limits above primary real estate insurance coverage, helping protect against large or unexpected losses.

  • Railroad construction

    Builder’s risk insurance

    Supports property developer insurance needs by covering physical damage and materials during construction, as well as delays that can disrupt timelines and financing.

  • Wind farm

    Environmental liability insurance

    Helps manage environmental risks, including contamination and remediation, reducing uncertainty in acquisitions and redevelopment.

  • Two people talking in an apartment

    Captive and alternative risk transfer solutions

    Structures that allow portfolios to take a more active role in managing risk, helping manage volatility and bringing more predictability to costs over time.

  • Flood water at a red door

    Flood insurance

    Covers flood damage, including access to the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) where required.

  • Modern apartment

    Property manager E&O

    Protects against errors in property management, including leasing, tenant interactions, and operations, supporting property management liability insurance needs.

  • People smiling in a meeting

    Real estate management liability

    Addresses liability from management and governance decisions, helping safeguard owners and executives.

Why choose us? The Howden Difference

The Howden team brings an integrated approach to real estate and commercial property insurance.

Dedicated real estate teams engage directly in transactions and financing, shaping how insurance supports deal execution.

We move beyond asset-by-asset placement, structuring insurance to improve consistency and cost efficiency across portfolios.

Our team works in real time to keep deals moving, helping avoid delays, re-trades, and insurance-related issues.

Senior brokers remain directly involved throughout, avoiding handoffs and ensuring that early decisions carry through to claims.

We are the only firm in the country with a transaction liability team dedicated specifically to real estate. We provide specialized expertise including representations and warranties insurance and other transaction liability solutions to support you with acquisitions, developments, and recapitalizations.

Other Howden capabilities that are important for your industry

  • Two people meeting in a office

    Deal due diligence

    Early involvement in acquisitions to identify risk and assess existing coverage, including real estate transaction insurance considerations.

  • London office buildings

    Lender alignment and negotiation

    Engages directly with lenders to negotiate insurance requirements, helping prevent delays and manage costs.

  • Backlit laptop

    Program design

    Structures commercial real estate insurance programs across portfolios, matching coverage with how assets are financed and managed.

  • People working in an office

    Claims advocacy

    Actively manages claims, working directly with insurers to resolve complex losses and improve outcomes.

  • People working in an office

    Exposure data and portfolio visibility

    Organizes and maintains exposure data across portfolios, improving visibility for insurers and supporting more accurate pricing and coverage decisions.

  • People working in a meeting room

    Contract review

    Reviews contracts to identify gaps in risk transfer, ensuring coverage reflects lease obligations and third-party agreements.

  • Transaction Liability

    Transaction liability

    A dedicated real estate transaction liability team provides specialized expertise in representations and warranties insurance.

  • Market cycles

    Alternative risk financing

    Advice on alternative strategies for greater cost predictability, reduced volatility across market cycles, and improved financial performance.

  • Advice

    Lender insurance requirement advisory

    Granular advice on evaluation, negotiation, and restructuring of lender insurance requirements prior to program placement.

Ready to talk?

Connect with a Howden real estate specialist to review your portfolio and upcoming deals. Meet our Real Estate leadership team:

  • Photo of Danielle Lombardo

    Danielle Lombardo

    Co-chair Real Estate Practice Leader
    Photo of Danielle Lombardo

    Danielle Lombardo

    Linked In
    Co-chair Real Estate Practice Leader

    Over more than 15 years working at the intersection of commercial real estate and risk management, Danielle has built a reputation for connecting insurance strategy directly to financial performance. Her philosophy is straightforward: insurance should be a strategic advantage, not a transactional afterthought. She works closely with owners, operators, lenders and investors to ensure insurance decisions protect and enhance net operating income, support capital markets activity and preserve long-term asset value.

    Danielle is an expert in alternative risk transfer strategies, liability restructuring, and emerging exposures driven by climate volatility and social inflation, and she’s a frequent commentator on CNBC and Bloomberg. Danielle is an active member of the Urban Land Institute and the CRE Finance Council.

  • Photo of Michael Brodie

    Michael Brodie

    Co-chair Real Estate Practice Leader
    Photo of Michael Brodie

    Michael Brodie

    Linked In
    Co-chair Real Estate Practice Leader

    Michael is a Managing Director at Howden US and Co-Leader of the firm’s Real Estate Practice, where he advises institutional real estate owners, operators, developers, and investors on complex risk management and insurance strategies. With 18 years of industry experience, Michael specializes in structuring comprehensive insurance programs for large and diverse real estate portfolios across the United States. Michael believes insurance should support a real estate strategy — not get in the way of it.

    Before joining Howden, Michael held senior roles at global brokerage firms Aon and Marsh, where he developed deep expertise in property and casualty insurance, risk financing, and portfolio-level risk advisory for real estate clients. Throughout his career, he has partnered with clients to design innovative solutions that protect assets, support growth, and improve capital efficiency.

    At Howden, Michael works closely with clients to navigate an increasingly complex insurance marketplace while delivering strategic insight and tailored coverage solutions. Michael is known for his relentless advocacy on behalf of clients. He’s the person in the room asking the detailed questions others miss — how insurance impacts financing, how lender requirements can be modernized, and how risk can be structured more intelligently across a portfolio.

    Michael approaches every assignment with the mindset of an owner: understand the deal, protect the downside, and remove obstacles that stand in the way of performance.

    Michael graduated from Tulane University with a degree in Finance. Michael enjoys spending his free time with his wife and two children on the courts and fields, staying active together as a family. He also values being involved in the community and contributing to people and organizations around him.

  • Photo of Laurie Berecz

    Laurie Berecz

    Client Service Leader, Real Estate
    Photo of Laurie Berecz

    Laurie Berecz

    Linked In
    Client Service Leader, Real Estate

Speak to our Real Estate team today

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