Saving as a parent can be tricky; especially when you don’t have a set goal in mind. Forming an emergency repair fund for your home can seem like a waste when you’d rather spend that money on a vacation or a new video game, but home repair costs can really add up.
As a homeowner, you’re in charge of the upkeep and maintenance of your home — no landlord is going to do it for you.
A new study claims that nearly 72% of homeowners have delayed making home repairs or improvement due to their financial situation. When disaster strikes, it’s unlikely you’ll have an extra thousand dollars sitting around to fix it immediately. But delaying home repairs can often make the situation much worse. Establishing a rainy day fund for home repairs is an essential task as a homeowner.
This is especially essential if you don’t perform routine maintenance on your home. In fact, it’s recommended that the average homeowner should save at least $5,000 to repair even basic repairs in your home. While this goal seems out of reach for many, even starting a fund puts you one step closer to saving your home and your family from financial disaster.
If you don’t have $5,000 laying around, it’s proposed that you tuck away around 10% of your annual wage into your emergency fund. If you can’t hit that mark, try aiming for one to three percent of your home’s cost on home repairs. Find an amount that suits your budget and try to stick to it.
Older houses and fixer-uppers might require even more money.
“As homes get older, more repair costs tend to consume a bigger portion of your overall maintenance costs. Newer homes, in contrast, required less annual maintenance because the materials are obviously newer, and many elements of the house may still be under warranty,” writes Forbes in an interview with John Bodrozic, a co-founder of HomeZada.
Keep in mind some of the life expectancies of important items. Routine maintenance on electronics, like HVAC units, can help prevent disaster, but unexpected problems can strike at any moment.
Realtor, Sara Hopkins highlights the importance of preparing for disaster.
“Plan for the unexpected. In Iowa, we often have to have tree roots removed from sewer lines — that’s $150-$300, plus the cost of cleaning your basement when it backs up,” she notes in an interview with Forbes.
So, what are the repairs you should worry about? Roofing, flooding, asbestos, flooring; you name it. Any part of your home may need emergency repair at some point. A standard roof will cost $2,000 minimal for a roofing company to install a new roof. This seems like a lot, but a good roof can boost your home’s value and last a long time. When a gutter can hold thousands of pounds of water what it’s clogged, squirreling away a few bucks here and there can help roof repairs and gutter issues to prevent thousands of dollars in water damage.
While it’s impossible to plan for everything, saving an emergency fund can help keep your family and home afloat.
