This informative post was contributed to Leisure Freak by freelance writer Sierra Powell.
Regular maintenance comes with a home. Owners spend 1% of their annual budget on repairs, which hurts if you don’t prepare for unforeseen circumstances. To help avoid this, here are some financial tips to prepare for home maintenance emergencies.
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Perform a Home Repair Audit
A home repair audit isn’t much different from what a business does. It’s an examination of your property’s infrastructure. The results of the audit reveal your financial needs.
Focus your repair audit on frequently maintained items. These include the kitchen appliances, plumbing, roof, and HVAC (heat and air conditioner) system. Secondary items are electric wiring, doors, windows, and walls.
Examine these areas for noticeable issues. Consider asking professional agencies if you’re uncomfortable in certain areas. For instance, if you don’t want to go up to the roof, hire a contractor to check its quality.
Create an Emergency Fund
Vacations and spontaneous purchases are not the purposes of your emergency fund. Instead, the fund helps pay for unforeseen issues. Further, it also helps establish peace of mind around repair emergencies.
One thousand dollars is the average amount to have in your emergency fund. However, the value varies depending on your home’s size and the state of current repairs. Although it may not pay the total amount, the emergency fund should have enough money to make a sizable dent.
For instance, a severe storm could cause damage to your roof’s shingles. The emergency fund would help pay for a storm damage roofing company to come out and assess the problems. The emergency fund would probably take care of shingle replacement. In a worst-case scenario, it would take a chunk of the bill if the entire roof needed to be redone.
Create a To-Do List
The number of regular maintenance projects can overwhelm a homeowner. They may forget to do something over the years. As a result, an unexpected issue could appear that takes a chunk out of the emergency fund.
Minimize this risk with a maintenance to-do list. Enter items by their frequency. For example, replace the HVAC air filter every month, have the plumbing checked twice a year and examine the driveway for cracks two years after a resurfacing project. Put the information into an online document and set calendar reminders.
Handle DIY Repairs
You won’t need to hire a professional for every maintenance project. Take care of some of these issues through do-it-yourself (DIY) methods. Usually, they cost little to fix and take minutes to repair.
Air filter replacement is a case in point. These items cost a few dollars and take less than five minutes to swap in the HVAC unit. Regular repairs minimize the risk of frozen air conditioner components and other mechanical issues.
Take Care of Things Before They Get Worse
It’s never too early to address issues before they get worse. In the end, something that seems minor can become an emergency in a few hours or days. It could be severe enough to cause extensive damage.
Take care of things before they get worse. Don’t place a bucket under the sink to catch leaks from faucet pipes. Call a plumber to check the issue. The same goes for missing roof tiles, water stains on the walls and ceilings, or clogged gutters.
Hire Professionals for the Important Jobs
There’s a difference between fixing a leaky faucet and a pipe. The former is an easy repair if you follow the directions. Conversely, you cause damage if you don’t know how to fix a leaky pipe. It may result in necessary repairs to walls, ceilings, or the entire plumbing system.
In other words, hire professionals for home repairs that require more than an air filter or new washer. Hire subject matter experts to repair items related to electrical systems, plumbing, and your roof. Although they cost more, proper fixes are assured.
Purchase Maintenance Plans
Maintenance plans are one way to reduce the cost of emergency repairs. The return on investment translates to regular check-ups of your home’s mechanical and structural components. Additionally, maintenance agreements cover part costs. At most, you only pay for labor.
Plans and warranties are part of replacement packages for HVAC units and roofs. However, these may have a limited scope. Contact the vendor before warranties expire to learn how to extend coverage and reduce your monetary liability.
Overall, there’s a way to prepare for home maintenance emergencies. It could take some money away from funner activities. Nevertheless, the peace of mind received is worth the investment when you can’t make the repairs.
Thank you Sierra for contributing this article to Leisure Freak. Your tips to be prepared for the inevitable home maintenance emergencies is something all homeowners should consider.
Author Bio:
Sierra Powell graduated from the University of Oklahoma with a major in Mass Communications and a minor in Writing. When she’s not writing, she loves to cook, sew, and go hiking with her dogs.
Best researched post it is
Great tips, Sierra. Adding savings into your monthly budget for home repairs can stress when home emergencies come up. It can also make it more affordable to hire a professional like you recommend, which ensures repairing the problem correctly.
It’s hard to come by experienced people about this subject, but you seem like you know what you are talking about!
Very good write-up. I certainly love this website. Thanks!
Thanks for the comment Thermopore. The author Sierra Powell is diligent about what she writes about.
Tommy
The benefits of hiring local roofing contractor is that the Local roofing contractors have the local area experience that would be beneficial for your building and the right choice for you.
https://www.haralsonroofing.com/
Thanks for the comment Sophia. I agree, choosing a local roofer yourself instead of answering the door to storm chasing opportunist who may be gone when anything later goes wrong later is the smart way to go.
Tommy
You made a good point about hiring professionals. While some jobs can be done without professional help, some require experienced hands. Especially when it comes to plumbing, electric, and HVAC. Dealing with this, you can cause more harm than good if you don’t know what you’re doing.
Thanks for the comment Happy Hiller. I agree with leaving some of the technical and areas that could require a building permit and inspections to pros. I will also add, that sometimes even small simple jobs, specifically plumbing,from faucet replacement to outside irrigation valve repair that isn’t that technical would in my case fall under the- I absolutely hate doing that kind of stuff.
Tommy
Something super simple you can do to save from money and not have to worry about your light bulbs for years is to switch to LED. They use a fraction of the electricity and are brighter, plus they last forever… which is awesome considering I am short and it is a pain in the butt to change them out lol.
Thank you for the great tips that you have shared! It was a good read. I recently worked with Residential Specialties, which is a roofing company that specializes in Roof Replacement and Roof Repair in Willow Spring, NC. They provide professional roofing service!
https://rsroofingnc.com/3-benefits-of-hiring-a-professional-roofing-company/
I have to agree with you, one must keep an eagle eye on the home maintenance requirements before they get worse and the repairs become very expensive. Getting your home inspected by professionals is a very good idea and having a maintenance contract is very cost-effective and relieving.
Thanks for comment Seth. As our homes age it becomes even more important to stay on top of maintenance. For that reason I have a service contract for my HVAC systems that includes inspections and cleanings for a locked in yearly price and discounted repair when necessary.
Tommy
I appreciate the sincerity of this write-up of yours. Can’t wait to see more!
I followed all the tips you shared, and I must say that it’s a convenient and helpful essential tip to prepare myself to Add savings into my monthly finances for home repairs can cause stress when domestic emergencies arise. It may additionally make it more extraordinarily inexpensive to hire an expert such as you advise, which ensures repairing the trouble successfully.
Thanks for sharing these tips. A good makeover can boost the value of your home IF you do the right ones.
This is an informative article with practical tips to help homeowners prepare for unforeseen home maintenance emergencies. The suggestion to perform a home repair audit and focus on frequently maintained items is helpful in identifying potential issues before they become emergencies. Creating an emergency fund, along with a to-do list, can help reduce the financial impact of unexpected repairs. DIY repairs are also suggested for smaller maintenance projects, while hiring professionals is recommended for more complex repairs. Finally, the idea of purchasing maintenance plans to reduce the cost of emergency repairs is a smart way to prepare for unexpected home maintenance expenses. Overall, these tips will provide homeowners with the peace of mind they need when dealing with home maintenance emergencies. Thanks to Sierra for sharing these insightful financial tips with the readers of Leisure Freak.
This is such a helpful blog.
Never had a plumbing emergency yet, thank god! but once got a minor leak and got it fixed urgently by hueyandsonsroofing.
As a property investor, find an experienced mortgage broker who is focused on providing property investment finance.
Thank you for the tips! I plan on buying a house in a few months. First, change the locks and deep clean. I am not sure what is going to be next, but meeting my neighbors and a party for sure!! Thanks again!
I’ve seen so many houses were someone “renovated” and wants to charge a premium for their work and it’s obvious that everything just needs to be ripped out. Part of the value of not overthinking things and just doing the “bare minimum” is that if someone wants to buy the property and they have cash, they will thank you for making their job easier. If someone wants a fancy kitchen, they will put it in the way they want it. If you’re not a professional designer, it’s best to just not “help” Keep it simple. Fix the stupid things. Never put nice things in a rental property and let a home buyer put in the kitchen or whatever they want if they want something fancy.
I completely agree with the importance of purchasing maintenance plans for home. It’s a proactive approach that can help reduce the financial burden of unexpected repairs and provide me peace of mind. I wanted to thank you for this informative analysis of the subject.
Hiring local roofers has several advantages, not the least of which being that they are the best option for you and your building due to their local experience.