Seven Smart Steps Every New Homeowner Should Take

1. Don’t Overspend on Furniture and Remodeling: Money will be tight as you just made a large down payment for your new home and you will also have moving expenses. You will want to make your new home your own and     personalize it but you may want to adjust to your new home expenses first and rebuild your savings before going on a huge shopping spree.

2. Don’t Ignore Important Maintenance Items: You are no longer renting, therefore, there isn’t a landlord to fix all of your home repairs. You will want to handle the repairs as they come instead of waiting until they grow into a larger and more expensive repair.

3. Hire Qualified Contractors: If you don’t know how to make a repair, call a professional to do the job correctly. You don’t want to try to save money and end up doing more harm than good.

4. Get Help with Your Tax Return: Buying a home changes most people’s tax situations and the deductions that you are able to claim. Get your taxes done with your home at least once in order to have a template to use for future years.

5. Keep Receipts for Home Improvements: Saving your home improvements receipts will be a benefit when you try to sell your home in the future for the increased value.

6. Don’t Confuse a Repair with an Improvement: When it comes to increasing your home’s value, there is a difference between repairing an existing item in your home versus improving a feature in your home such as adding central air conditioning.

7. Get Properly Insured: Not only do you need homeowners insurance, but you also need to purchase enough to fully replace the property in the event of total loss or even life insurance to help pay your mortgage in the event of unexpected death.

*Courtesy of Investopedia.com

 

 

* Specific loan program availability and requirements may vary. Please get in touch with your mortgage advisor for more information.