If you’ve just bought your first house then congratulations! Of course, before you can truly celebrate and settle into your new home, you’re probably thinking about all the technical things you need to sort out. There are a lot of things about being a homeowner that you only figure out once you actually own a home. The slightly less fun parts of owning a property aren’t the things you see in enticing adverts for new properties or when you admire marvellous homes from the outside in. Still, it’s all worth it for the great parts of owning a home. Here’s what nobody tells you about being a homeowner.
You have to maintain everything.
Easy, right? Well, maybe when you lived with your parents or rented out a property it was fine. The letting agency might have sent over a maintenance expert if something broke, or your dad might have been the maintenance man. As soon as you own a home and realise you’re responsible for it all, you’ll realise that keeping a home in tip top shape isn’t quite as straightforward as it seems from the outside. Even if you’re very cautious with appliances and furnishings to keep them in good shape, you’ll have to regularly tend to your garden. Grass grows quickly, and flowerbeds die in time. It’ll become easier once you get into a pattern, but you might have to adjust at first. You can turn DIY into something fun, though. Putting up your first shelf is a fun feeling, even if that sounds dull on paper.
It’s at this point that you need to start thinking about budgeting. Maintaining a home costs money, and you might not have a lot of it at this point in your life. Luckily, owning a house is a very valuable thing in the modern age. Like having a good credit rating, it’s a good mark against your name. It’s a safe asset. You might want to look into getting a home owner loan to help you out with some of the costs involved with improving your property; repainting walls, fixing broken things, and keeping the lawn in shape. The point is that you need to think about how much money you’ll need to dedicate to these things each month; a written budget will help you juggle all the figures more easily in your mind.
Sort out your bedroom.
From the seller’s standpoint, the kitchen and bathroom are the two most important rooms in a property when pitching it to potential buyers. Of course, once you actually own a house, you think more about comfort than aesthetics. A pretty bathroom and a sleek, modern kitchen are great, but retreating to a comfortable bed at the end of the evening is even better. Whilst you’re sorting out all the finer details of your home to make it cosy, you should ensure that your bedroom is the first thing that’s completed. If you want to avoid many sleepless nights whilst you sort out everything then make sure you’ve got this room sorted; a soft mattress and sheets, thick curtains, and all your clothes properly organised in your wardrobe. Get the essentials sorted.
Think about your energy bill.
As mentioned earlier, money is probably one of the most pressing issues on your mind. If you want to start saving up so that you have a safety net for the future, you need to think about all the unnecessary ways in which you’re wasting your funds. Excessive energy bills are often the big money-killer. Think about turning lights off, of course, but also think about insulating your home and getting double-glazed windows. You’ll be trapping more heat and reducing your utility bills at the end of the month. Also, you’ll be doing your part for the planet. It’s a win-win situation.
