The Most Common Issues for First Time Homeowners and How to Avoid Them

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First Time Homeowners

When you are moving into your first home, you may be innocent to the many issues and responsibilities that come with homeownership. This includes challenges that you face in terms of your home renovations and any damage that you may discover after you have moved in. To make sure that you are able to easily maintain your first home and to check that you have everything that you need to ensure that your move is successful, here are some of the top issues that you may have to confront as a first time homeowner. 

Not Checking for Foundation Issues

Foundation issues are one of the top issues that occur in older homes, and it is important to consider whether your dream home is worth the cost of fixing foundation issues if they are found. To prevent buying a home with foundation problems, you should check for cracks in the house’s walls, and ensure that you conduct a thorough home inspection before you decide to buy the property in question. If you decide that your dream home is worth the foundation issues that come with it, you should make sure that you are prepared to deal with these. Helitech’s guide to foundation issues can help to advise you on your response and the solutions that you should use to fix these, with resistance piers and slab piers being two of the most popular options. 

Ignoring an Emergency Fund 

One of the most common issues for first-time homeowners is that they do not have an emergency fund which they can access when damage occurs to their home. For many, they have used the majority of their budget on home renovations and their mortgage repayments, and fail to save for the event that something goes wrong. By putting a small amount of money aside each month, you will be able to conduct repairs if and when they are needed.

A Lack of DIY Skills

Although it is always possible to call out a professional in order to perform most home renovation projects, DIY skills are important when you buy a home to ensure that you can install temporary fixes when something goes wrong. To make sure that your DIY skills are up to scratch, you should consider taking classes, or read online guides which can take you through the basic steps. 

Carrying Out Renovations in the Wrong Order

Although you might be desperate to finish the paintwork in your home, you need to make sure that you are able to carry out renovations in the right order. For instance, you should perform renovations to the parts of your home that you use the most first. Additionally, if you paint your walls last, you may damage furniture and other features that you have installed into your property. 

Forgetting to Change the Locks

Changing the locks is one of the first steps that homeowners should take. It is not only the previous homeowner that may be able to get access to your property, but also any services or employees that they had, from babysitters to cleaners. To make sure that you do not get an unwelcome surprise, or an accidental intruder, you should change the locks as soon as possible after you move in. 

Not Installing Safety Devices

Safety devices are one of the most important features that you should install into new homes as they can ensure that your property is protected against crime and damage from fire and other disasters. No matter how new your house is, or how careful you are, emergencies can still occur, and so it is paramount that you are able to install security systems and fire alarms within your home as soon as you move in. If they have been pre-installed, you should check that they operate well, and continue to do so on a regular basis. This will help your house to be ready when an incident does occur. 

Carrying Out Too Many Major Projects

Carrying out too many major renovation projects at once can cause big issues for first-time homeowners. Not only may they come unstuck in terms of the cost and their budget, but they may also find the experience extremely stressful, and be unable to complete the projects that they have started. Additionally, by making big changes too quickly, they may end up with buyer’s remorse over the appearance of their home. Instead, you should make a schedule and follow it, conducting one renovation, or a set of smaller renovations, at a time until your project is complete. 

Not Maintaining The Property

Some types of mortgages, such as reverse mortgages require you to maintain your home, otherwise your loan could become due and payable, so this is important. A lack of maintenance in your home can lead to a flood of issues, including bad aromas, leaks, and even fires. However, many homeowners do not make maintenance a priority, especially if their home is a new build or if it was in pristine condition when they decided to invest in it. Then, you should always make sure that you maintain your home on a regular basis. For instance, you should clean the guttering and drains, bleed the radiators, wash your flooring and decking, clip trees and other intrusive plants, and patch up loose tiles that may cause issues in the future.

Failing to Spot Damp

Damp can make living in your new home a miserable experience, especially if it is spreading from the ground up. Not only this, but damp can also lead to a number of health issues, such as chest infections and respiratory illnesses. To make sure that damp and mold do not negatively affect your life, you should check for evidence of recently painted strips of wall and bulges in the paintwork when you attend a visit. If you do buy a house with damp, you should consider the many damp-proofing options on the market, which can include wall treatments and temporary sprays that work to reduce damp. You should also install a dehumidifier in order to limit the spread of mold in your new home.