While it can be fun to joke about your “honey-do-list,” homes require a seemingly endless amount of work and maintenance. As a homeowner, you face a variety of projects that are designed to fix issues and maintain a good appearance, but how many of these tasks do you perform simply because someone told you that you should? You know what you are supposed to do, but have you ever wondered why?
Like your car or your body, your home needs regular care to keep it performing at its best. Some parts of your house may only require maintenance once or twice a lifetime, while others need seasonal care to get the best results.
You should regularly maintain any house, but it becomes especially important if your home is older or if you ever plan to sell. To see why you should invest your time and money into home care, read through the top benefits of regular home maintenance below.
Maintain/increase your home’s value
Like any major purchase, your home is an investment and you want the best return for your money, and effort. While homes in good shape can grab a fair price, a survey found that homes with renovations, upgrades, and proper upkeep can have returns that actually raise their value. Most buyers look for houses that won’t require major upkeep for a few years, so the more you do to maintain your home, the better return you’ll get for your investment. Without proper care, however, your home will deteriorate, quickly losing value. As cracks form in your foundation and paint peels, you’ll be left paying large sums in repairs to get the return you need. With regular maintenance, however, you can quickly fix small problems before they become big issues. Then, with the added curb appeal, your properly maintained house will have an increased chance to see above market value.
Save money
Dryers cause more than 15,000 fires every year, resulting in nearly $75 million in property damages. For many, regular cleaning could have easily prevented any danger. While this is an extreme example, it shows the importance of preventative maintenance. Rather than spending thousands of dollars on repairs and insurance costs, catch the small issues early. Spending a few thousand dollars to replace the roof is better than paying for the damages when it collapses into your home.
Reduce energy consumption
Your home works hard to keep you comfortable throughout the year and this consumes a large amount of energy. Even if you diligently turn off lights and keep your home at a moderate temperature, you can still have preventable energy loss. To avoid this waste, check your home’s windows and doors for gaps and cracks that may cause drafts. Test your appliances and cooling/heating systems to make sure they are operating at optimum efficiency. You’ll be doing the earth good by saving energy and also save money on power costs.
Improve home safety
Poor home maintenance can create danger in a variety of unexpected ways. Pool equipment failures can cause drownings. Garage door malfunctions can hurt small children and pets. Broken air systems can cause temperatures changes that may be deadly for infants and the elderly. From 2011-2014, fires caused by electrical failures resulted in an annual average of 420 deaths, 1,370 injuries, and $1.4 billion in property damage. A deteriorating home can also introduce more subtle threats, such as mold growth where there’s water leakage and pests that can harm both your family and home. By keeping up with your home’s maintenance and repairs you can rest assured that you are doing your best to keep your family safe within your home.
Reduce stress
This list of tasks may seem endless and overwhelming, but regular home maintenance can minimize the projects you have to address at once. Keep track of what you’ve done and make a plan for the work you have left. Then you can have peace of mind and confidence in your home’s safety, comfort, and value. Plus, when you need unexpected home repairs, they’ll likely be less damaging than they could have been.
At Dibico, we offer customized home maintenance services to keep your home safe, cost-effective, and valuable. If you are interested in our services or want to renovate, build, or add an addition to your home, reach out to us at info@dibicoinc.com.
