What every Southlake, TX homeowner needs to know about safety improvement

Your home holds everything you value, and that’s why it’s probably your most significant investment. Therefore, protecting it and ensuring everything is safe comes first. When it comes to safety, break-ins and burglaries are not the only challenges to worry about.  Slips and falls, dog bites, fires, and even water damage are common accidents requiring proper safety measures. At Kimble Brown Insurance Agency, we recommend buying adequate home insurance to protect your property and loved ones. If you are a homeowner in Southlake, TX, here is what you should know about improving safety.

Make sure your home is clean

Apart from potential slips, your trash can also attract thieves. What you throw in the trash, especially paperwork, may contain your personal information, and thieves can use this to commit crimes. Make sure that your papers are thoroughly shredded before they enter the trash. Keep your floors dry all the time, and ensure no fruit peels or vegetables are lying on your kitchen floor.

Inspect and notify your contractor about faults

Many people in Southlake, TX tend to forget or ignore this critical step. Take your time to go through your property and check for cracks on the walls, potential sinking in the basement, falling roof, and other interiors/ exterior faults that could put your life at risk. It also helps protect your visitors from accidental injuries while at your home.

Secure your home

Technology today offers various ways of keeping your home safe whether you’re around or not. You can install home security systems, smart bulbs and lights, motion detectors, and cameras to help you keep your home safe. Change your locks every once in a while and always close your window and doors before going to bed.

Looking for ways to make your home safer? Kimble Brown Insurance Agency can help you protect what matters to you most. Contact us for a comprehensive deal.

4 things to keep in mind when buying home insurance

Most homeowners spend a lot of time, energy, and money buying a home that they overlook or give little thought about protecting it with adequate home insurance. A home insurance policy is designed to protect your valuable investment and loved ones. That’s why Kimble Brown Insurance Agency recommends speaking to an insurance expert before making any purchase. If you are in the market for home insurance in Southlake, TX, here are four things to keep in mind when buying home insurance.

Understand Your Policy

If you are buying home insurance for the first time, it is essential to familiarize yourself with insurance jargon and regulations. Learn what is covered, coverage limits, and what is not covered in your policy. You can also discuss every detail with your insurance advisor.

Know the Risks Involved

Understanding the risks involved helps you to equip your home with the right coverages. Consider the perils, neighborhood, and the people living in that home to determine your insurance needs. For instance, if you have children, you may want to consider focusing on liability coverage to protect them from accidental injuries.

Know How Much Insurance You Need

Once you know the risks involved, the next step is determining how much coverage you need. Your insurer can guide you through based on those risks. For instance, if you are moving to a less secure area, your insurer may request you to buy enough coverage for personal belongings based on their value. 

Compare Insurance Rates

If you have been keeping an inventory of your valuables, you can estimate your home insurance rate by adding this to your home’s value. Armed with this information, you can compare home insurance rates from different companies before making a final decision. 

Don’t wait untill a disaster strikes your Southlake, TX  home to buy home insurance. Our insurance agents at Kimble Brown Insurance Agency are dedicated to ensuring that you find a policy that matches your needs. Contact us for more information.

Owning a home is something that most people look forward to. It comes with plenty of challenges and worries, but you buy home insurance so that you can feel protected against all the hazards life can throw at you. You may think your home insurance covers everything that could damage your home, but you would be mistaken. You may be quite shocked to find out what is not included. As a homeowner, you should always read your entire home insurance policy, but most people don’t, and that can be a costly mistake. At Kimble Brown Insurance Agency in Southlake, TX, we are a family-owned business, and we think of our clients as extended family. We have been offering stellar service for more than 15 years. 

Flooding causes more damage to homes than any other disaster except tornados. They cause billions of dollars of damage every year, and the damage is not covered on your home insurance. If you think flooding is a possibility, you can purchase a separate policy through the National Flood Insurance Program. 

Earthquakes and other forms of earth movement, such as sinkholes or mudslides, are all risks excluded from your home insurance. You can purchase an additional policy called an earth movement policy, which will protect you from many different kinds of earth movement. 

Mold is something that takes time to grow and be an issue. For that reason, most insurance companies consider it to be preventable, and therefore they will not cover the damage and remediation. Termites are also not covered. 

If you have luxury items such as antiques, expensive jewelry, or artwork, it will either not be covered or be undercover. You can, however, purchase a rider to give you the amount of coverage you need. 

These are just some of the things that aren’t covered by your home insurance. If you have questions, give Kimble Brown Insurance Agency in Southlake, TX a call and let us help you with a free no-obligation quote.

Most first-time homebuyers across America are millennials from the ages of 23 to 33. While it is a relatively young age for such a vast life choice, it helps individuals to focus on other financial matters like home insurance and family.  With that said, buying a home in Southlake, TX is one of the most exciting yet stressful and time-consuming processes.

However, it doesn’t have to be exhausting because Kimble Brown Insurance Agency is here to help you with a few pointers to help make your homeownership journey less bumpy. Here are three tips to get you on the right track.

Draw your budget and stick to it

Before you start drooling at the beautiful homes online, make sure you have a budget talk with your partner to ensure that both of you are on the same page. Come up with a reasonable budget that also includes your home insurance. You can always determine how much home insurance you need by adding the value of your possessions to the value of the home.

Hammer your priorities

Make your list of non-negotiables by considering your lifestyle, needs, values, and budget. For instance, if you have kids, you may want to live in a neighborhood with kids and various amenities like a school, park, and playground. You should also prioritize the size of the home.

Compare apartments and houses in the area you want to live

This is always an exciting part of home buying. Once you have your ideal area, the next step is to check and compare the prices of apartments and houses.  This will help guide you on where to start and whether your budget is on point or not.

A home is a huge investment; you want to make sure that you leave no stone unturned. Once you have everything figured out, think about home insurance. If you haven’t, Kimble Brown Insurance Agency serving Southlake, TX is here to help. Feel free to call or visit us anytime.

The holidays are a time of joy and spending time with loved ones. However, this can also be a time when the risk of house fires significantly increases. Electrical fires and neglect of Christmas trees are some of the most common causes of fires in Southlake, TX during the holidays. Kimble Brown Insurance Agency has gathered a few tips for electrical safety to prevent the risk of a fire during the holidays.

Avoid Overloading Electrical Outlets

The holidays often mean the inclusion of extra lights and decorations, many of which require electrical power. Faulty wires and overloaded electrical outlets are common causes of holiday fires, so it’s important to only plug one high-wattage item into each outlet at the same time. Only use extension cords that do not have frayed wires and that are safe for use indoors and stated for outdoor use when using for exterior lights.

Inspect Decorations

Before using any decorations, carefully inspect them. Check for fraying, loose bulbs, and loose wires. Decorations that have been stored since last year may have damages that weren’t there when they were last used. It’s common for age and pests to destroy decorations that were perfect when you put them in storage, so don’t risk a fire by not inspecting each decorative item.

Holiday trees require water to avoid drying out. A dry tree that is adorned with electrical decorations is a disaster waiting to happen. Check the water for the tree every day and refill as needed. Never leave lights and other decorations plugged in while you are away from home or while you are sleeping. To prevent the risk of the tree falling on children or pets, keep them away from the tree or place a smaller tree on a table out of their reach.

Residents of Trophy Club or Southlake, TX interested in learning more information about home insurance should contact Kimble Brown Insurance Agency.

If you share a home with other individuals, it may be good to know if their belongings are covered under your homeowners insurance. If you are not a relative or married, chances are that homeowners insurance may not cover any roommates belongings. Kimble Brown Insurance Agency of Southlake, TX specializes in homeowners insurance and can help.

Homeowners Insurance

In general, homeowners insurance covers:

• The structure of the actuals owners home

• Property and belongings of the homeowner or relatives inside the home

• Liability

What his means is if you are the owner, a relative of the owner or are married to the owner, you will have your possessions covered. Friends and non-relatives will not have property and belongings covered in this situation. Your spouse can be added to the homeowners policy if that is the wish of the homeowner. Separate insurance will need to be obtained by renters and friends who reside in the home though. Renters insurance is something that should be considered. 

Renters Insurance

Renters insurance does not cover the actual structure of the home that an individual is renting space in. If there is some type of disaster or theft, renters insurance can help protect and cover your possessions where homeowners will not. As a homeowner, it is good to remind roommates and non-relatives. They will need to know that in order to have their possessions protected, a separate individual policy will need to be obtained. Often this is overlooked as many will assume that the actual homeowners insurance covers everything in the house.

If you need a policy for homeowners or another type insurance, Kimble Brown Insurance Agency of Southlake, TX can help. Our experienced agents can work with you to get the type of coverage you need. Give us a call to schedule an appointment today.

Homeowners in Southlake, TX know that home insurance covers what’s inside the home as well as the home itself. Kimble Brown Insurance Agency wants you to have the information you need to make the claims process easier.
 
A home inventory list will keep important information about your belongings in one place. If you ever need to file an insurance claim, this list can help make the process easier and faster. It’s a good idea to make the list and update it when the information is fresh in your mind and you have the necessary receipts and other documentation. 
 
Detailed information will be in one place
 
A detailed inventory list keeps important information about your belongings in one place. Have a separate sheet for each room. Include item description, serial number, purchase date, brand name and price for each item. Use as many sheets as necessary to add items to a room. 
 
When you buy a new appliance or another expensive item, keep the receipt. Add serial numbers, price and brand name to your inventory list right away while the information is handy.

Take pictures of every item in each room. Remember items that are in drawers, boxes or closets. Check for belongings in the garage and other storage areas when you take pictures.
 
Helps you choose the right policy
 
A home inventory provides information you need to choose an insurance policy with adequate coverage. When you keep your list up-to-date, you can review your policy annually to make sure the claim limit is high enough to cover your belongings.
 
A home inventory list is worth the effort to save time in the future.
 
Contact Kimble Brown Insurance Agency in Southlake, TX for information on the benefits of a home inventory.

Now is the time in Southlake, TX to evaluate your home insurance and receive a yearly checkup of your insurance. A home insurance checkup helps to take a holistic look at a financial situation and the policy you have in place.

In order to do a yearly home insurance checkup, you need to check your coverage. The first part of this is to work with an agent at Kimble Brown Insurance Agency to look at your current policy. Make sure you aren’t underinsured. Many homeowners don’t realize that they are underinsured until after a disaster or incident has struck.

Here are a few things you want to discuss with an agent:

Does your policy have extended replacement coverage?

After a disaster, without this coverage, you may not have enough insurance to repair or rebuild your home. If you have made any improvements to the home, then you need to make sure there is enough coverage to replace the new features. If it has been years since you got your home appraised, then you can do this to help establish the amount of coverage you need. An appraiser can help calculate what it will cost to rebuild your home with similar features that are available in today’s market.

While doing a yearly home insurance checkup, make sure to keep a detailed record of the home’s content and unique features. Use video recordings and photos to show any designer features or other unique features. This can help if you do have to file a claim later on.

An insurance checkup can help you save you money to ensure that you are covered and aren’t overpaying for the coverage you need. A checkup can save you money immediately by lowering premiums if you are adjusting your coverage.

Contact Kimble Brown Insurance Agency, serving Southlake, TX, to get a quote on home insurance.