Home Repairs
Homeownership is like having a pet – a pet house. Much like you would need to feed, water, and care for an animal – you need to clean, update, and maintain your home. Failure to care for your home will result in a decline in the home’s appearance, structure, value, and which greatly reduces your quality of living within the property.
Caring for your property can mean a wide variety of things. There are subjective tasks that the homeowner may or may not prioritize such as vacuuming, dusting, and painting. Then there are bigger ticket items that can’t be pushed by the wayside should you wish to sustain the value of your home investment. Tasks like cleaning the gutters, regularly replacing your furnace filters, and maintaining a functioning smoke detector are just some of the maintenance items vital to the life of your property.
For a full list of recommended annual maintenance items, give me a call. I’m happy to send you a copy of my home maintenance checklist.
Most of the required tasks burden homeowners more by consuming their time rather than being large financial commitments. Furnace filters for example cost $15 to $30. Forget to regularly replace such inexpensive, yet critical filters, and you may find yourself pre-maturely needing to replace your furnace all together – costing you upwards of $4,500.
Another cost-saving strategy beyond doing regular upkeep is just having some basic knowledge about your particular property. For example, as a homeowner, you want to be sure to know where the main shutoff is for water. If you discover a leaking line from your refrigerator or washing machine, turning off that valve can prevent worse damage.
Even the best kept home, regardless of the home’s age, will occasionally have things break or fall into disrepair. According to a recent article published by CNBC, roughly two-thirds of homeowners who had to fix an unexpected issue in the first year of living in their new house said they spent more than $1,000.
As your real estate resource, I strongly encourage you to start a savings fund dedicated to your home’s general maintenance and upkeep. This will help the unexpected household fixes that arise be less burdensome in the short term and prepare you for addressing the forecasted replacement expenses of the bigger ticket items down the road.
Additionally, I strongly encourage new homeowners to have a home inspection done. This will enable the homeowner to begin their home investment with their eyes wide open and be fully aware of any potentially small issues that need may need addressing before they fester into larger issues. Be aware if something was omitted in a home inspection report — e.g., the cooling system wasn’t checked because the inspection was done in the middle of winter. Make note to have such missed items evaluated as soon as possible so it works when you need it most.
Here are some of the estimated costs for each home maintenance item that you may or may not face in your time as a homeowner:
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