Owning a home for the first time is both exciting and overwhelming. It’s very different from renting. If you want to know how to best maintain and make the best of your newly purchased home, read on to see our top tips for new homeowners.
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Table of Contents
Start an emergency fund
Owning a home can come with many surprise expenses. Expensive problems that can occur suddenly include mold, pests, plumbing issues, structural problems or the AC giving up on you. To be prepared for these nasty surprises, make sure you don’t spend all your money on the down payment, and continue to put away some money into an emergency repairs fund that you can use when things go wrong. This is a great way to make sure a minor problem doesn’t turn into an economic disaster.
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Put a list of professionals together
If you’ve rented before, you’re probably used to calling the landlord when something goes wrong in your home. When you own the home, that’s not something you can do anymore. One of the first things you should do when you move in is to compile a list of local professionals that can help you with all future problems. Being prepared will help you know what to do in a stressful situation when something goes wrong, and will prevent you from choosing the first option you see and instead go for the most reliable. This list should include people like an electrician, a plumber, a handyman ad maybe others, depending on your needs. They should also be vetted to make sure they’re reliable, licensed and qualified.
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Organize all manuals and warranties
When you move in, you’re most likely going to receive manuals for all the appliances in your new home, as well as warranties for the ones that still have warranty. Don’t just put these in a cupboard somewhere with all your other documents and forget about them. They’re going to be extremely useful if you encounter any problems with your appliances or they stop functioning prematurely. You’ll also need to pass them on to the new owner if you ever sell. To make it easy for yourself, keep all manuals and warranties in one safe place where you’ll be able to find them easily.
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Get homeowners insurance
You might think you probably won’t need it, at least anytime soon, so you decide to deal with it at some later point. But sometimes this ends up with you forgetting all about it, and sometimes disaster strikes before you’ve gotten your insurance. Don’t delay, make sure to get homeowners insurance and compare your alternatives carefully to ensure you get insurance with good coverage. It is true that you will probably not end up needing it, but it’s always better to be safe than sorry, and the cost of the insurance will definitely be worth the money and heartache it might save you in the future.
The transition to homeownership can be stressful, but these four tips will make it as stress-free and enjoyable as possible.
