Buying a new home is an exciting endeavor. It also comes with plenty of stress and big financial decisions. You are making a choice that will affect the quality of life of you and your family for years to come. Chances are you have prepared by seeing a number of properties, sitting with different valuations, and making calculated offers.
However, once you own your new home, it is worthwhile not to get complacent. Every new homeowner makes a number of mistakes that are avoidable.
If you have just moved into your new home, here are the mistakes you need to look out for.
Not budgeting for home maintenance
By far the biggest mistake new homeowners make is not budgeting for maintenance and repairs. Home maintenance may seem like a small matter that will come up once every few years, but you will actually find yourself needing to service and repair parts of your home every single year.
Some of these repairs will be small, but they will add up. Also, any big repairs will throw your financial situation for the month off course. Home maintenance should not be seen as an unlikely last resort. It is a ubiquitous part of owning a house that you should always be prepared for.
How much should you budget for home maintenance? The general rule of thumb provided by experts is 1% of the home’s value. Context does matter, of course, and older homes are always going to require more maintenance and repairs than brand new properties.
Not checking for warranties
However, you may not need to budget nearly as much for home maintenance and repairs. In most states, warranties on structural and engineering aspects of the home are mandated by law. Many new homeowners don’t know about these warranties or forget they exist, and end up paying out of pocket for repairs. Make sure to ask your realtor about the existence of any warranties.
Furthermore, you can purchase warranties for your home that may save you money in the long run. If you are interested in a warranty be sure to read Choice Home Warranty customer reviews.
Immediately renovating
Everyone has a vision for their new home. You have probably bought your property with certain renovations in mind. Understandably, you want to get down to the renovations as soon as possible.
However, immediately renovating your home may be a mistake. Without living in a house, you do not really know how the space feels experientially. Renovation ideas that may make sense to you on a visual level might feel entirely wrong in practice.
Also, certain aesthetic choices that seem badly thought out at first might begin to make sense. A nook that is unused might appear to be the perfect space for your home library. But it may also be right in the line of the afternoon sun, rendering it practically useless.
The previous owners of your home knew about practical realities you have no reason to have thought of. Give yourself a bit of time to settle before starting those renovations. You may well find yourself making entirely new plans that are far more suitable.
