Life After Renting: Adjusting To Life As A Homeowner

0
92
Life After Renting: Adjusting To Life As A Homeowner

Photo source

Most of us will rent at one point or another, usually when you first leave home you rent. Why? Because home ownership seems unaffordable and unnecessary, renting seems like a much better option, at least when you’re young it does. However, as you get older, you begin to realize the limitations that renting places on you in terms of DIY and making your home a space that you love. Which is why so many people choose to buy a home of their own as soon as they are financially able to do so.

When you are finally able to afford to buy, it is an incredible feeling. Life as a homeowner comes with many perks, however, adjusting from being a renter to a homeowner can be a slightly stressful process. There’s no longer a landlord to call when things go wrong, it’s all down to you to take care of your home, and that is downright scary. To help make the process of adjusting to life as a homeowner a little easier, below are some tips and pieces of advice to take note of.

Take out insurance

As a renter, the chances are that you only needed renter’s insurance or contents insurance. However, as a homeowner, it’s your job to insure your entire property, from the fixtures and fittings to the building itself. The first thing that you should do once you’ve got the keys is take out an insurance policy, to ensure that whatever happens, your home (and investment) is protected.

Learn about your home

One of the best things that you can do as a homeowner is learn as much about your new home as possible. Find out where your electric board is located, so that should the electrics go out, you won’t need to stumble around in the dark trying to locate it. Determine where your gas/electric meter is located, so that should someone from your gas/electric company pop in to read it, you know where to direct them to. Find out where you can turn your water off from – you never know when a pipe could burst or something else could go wrong, and you will need to turn your water off. Spend some time learning where all of the most important areas of your home are so that you are prepared to deal with whatever comes your way.

Stock your phone with emergency contacts

When you rent your home, whenever anything goes wrong, it’s down to the landlord to deal with the issue. However, when you own a house (or a flat), it’s down to you to deal with every issue yourself. Say, for instance, you find yourself locked out of your house, you can’t call your landlord to come and let you in, you have to deal with the problem yourself. It’s at times like these when having the details of a locksmith in your phone can be so beneficial. What other emergency contacts should you have programmed into your phone? Ideally, you want to have the details for a plumber and an electrician as well, so that no matter what happens, you have an expert that you can call on to help.

Create a home maintenance schedule (and stick to it)

It’s your job to ensure that your home is properly looked after, so it is vital that you keep on top of home maintenance. The best thing that you can do is create a home maintenance schedule and ensure that it is stuck to. Whether you perform the maintenance yourself or call in an expert, it doesn’t matter, just as long as the work gets done.

There you have it, everything that you need to know about adjusting to life as a homeowner after renting for years.

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here