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- Buying a home is an exciting time that can fill you with a sense of accomplishment.
- But you don’t want to get swept up in the excitement and jeopardize everything you worked for.
- Take practical steps that can save you time, money, and effort down the road.
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mortgage down payment, closing costs, and moving expenses. Money will definitely be tight — and might be that way for a while — because your savings are depleted, and monthly expenses may also be higher, thanks to the new costs that come with homeownership, such as water, higher electric bills, and extra homeowner’s insurance.
Of course, I was ready to personalize my new home and upgrade temporary apartment furniture to something nicer, but my dad advised that I shouldn’t go on a massive spending spree to improve everything all at once. Just as important as getting my first home was staying in it, and as much as I wanted to immediately renovate the kitchen — I had already reached out to a contractor — it wasn’t worth jeopardizing my financial stability.
Give yourself time to adjust to homeownership’s expenses and rebuild your savings account — the kitchen will still be waiting for you when you can do more.
2. Don’t put off necessary maintenance
One of the new expenses that accompany homeownership is making repairs — there’s no landlord to call if your roof is leaking or your toilet is clogged. When I moved into my home, the windows needed replacing to the point that downstairs was ice-cold during the winter and the electric bill was over $500 a month. But since that wouldn’t be as aesthetically pleasing as renovating the kitchen or getting a glossy new bathroom, I wasn’t in a rush to do it. My dad let me know that I was costing myself money.
By not taking care of a necessary window replacement, I was paying a higher electric bill and inconveniencing myself every time I went downstairs wrapped in a blanket.
While you should exercise restraint in purchasing the nonessentials, you shouldn’t neglect any problem that could worsen over time. Delays can turn relatively small problems into much larger and costlier ones, and in a home, everything works together for better or for worse. Have a water leak? Now you have a higher water bill — and maybe water damage. Need new energy-efficient windows? You will pay a higher electric bill until you get them replaced.
3. Invest now so you only pay once
I will admit that I was in love with the bones of my home: the high ceilings, the staircase, the fireplace, the yard, and the location. But there were several serious elements of the house that needed replacing, and that was going to be expensive. The water heater, the furnace, the washer, and the dryer all needed replacing, not to mention smaller items such as ceiling fans and window treatments.
So of course, when getting estimates, in the beginning, I would gravitate toward the cheapest option. My dad said, “There is no reason to buy the cheapest version and be right back here in two years. Invest now so you only have to pay once.” After that I always asked for three options and landed on the middle number.
You may not need the most expensive option with the name brand and all the extra bells and whistles, but the cheapest option is typically cheap for a reason and could cost you more money down the road.
Jennifer Streaks
Senior Personal Finance Reporter and Spokesperson
Jennifer is a Senior Personal Finance Reporter and Spokesperson for the Personal Finance vertical at Business Insider.
She started her career covering personal finance at Black Enterprise Magazine, went on to CNBC where she covered personal finance, women and money and tech and then Forbes, where she reported on personal finance, business, tech and money matters related to the economy, investing, credit and entrepreneurship.
Jennifer is also the author of Thrive!…Affordably: Your Month to Month Guide to living your Best Life without breaking the bank. The book offers advice, tips and financial management lessons geared towards helping the reader highlight strengths, identify missteps and take control of their finances.
In addition, she has extensive experience as an on-air financial commentator and has been a featured expert discussing credit and savings, investing and retirement, mortgages and all things money and personal finance. She has an ability to discuss and simplify complex financial issues and make them easier to understand.
Follow her on Twitter @jstreaks.
Source: businessinsider.com