Maintaining your home
When you sign your mortgage at closing, you pledge your home as security for your loan. Therefore, your lender has an interest in making sure that your property keeps its value through ongoing maintenance. But more important than that, you will want to maintain your home so that it remains a good investment for you.
No matter how well-maintained a home you are buying, you will eventually be faced with expenses for unexpected repairs and routine maintenance. As a new homeowner, you will need to learn about your home’s mechanical systems and construction — and what it will cost to maintain them — so that you can budget for their upkeep. Repairs that occur after you sign the closing documents are generally not the previous homeowners’ responsibility.
In addition to the cost of future maintenance, there will be some initial expenses that you may not have thought about, such as:
- lawn and garden equipment,
- snow removal equipment,
- pest control,
- power tools,
- appliances, like a washer and dryer
- trash cans.
Depending on where you live, you may also have some new bills to pay, such as sewer and water charges, trash collection or special assessments for things like new sidewalks or curbs.
Finally, there are likely to be projects that you will want to take on to improve your new home. All of these expenses — in addition to a monthly payment that’s probably higher than what you’ve been paying in rent — require that you budget and save faithfully.
By continuing to fill out your Monthly Spending Planner (.pdf), you’ll be able to plan and save for your home repairs.
