4 Ways You Can Cut Your Home Spending
Becoming a homeowner can come with a hefty price, but there are plenty of ways you can help ease your budget and minimize the cost of owning your house. From doing projects on your own to insuring your own appliances, there are plenty of ways you can work on lowering your budget and living less costly. In fact, below are the top four ways you can protect your wallet and save on your home expenses.
Work on Doing Things Yourself
One of the easiest ways to save on home costs is to avoid calling in professional contractors and start working on projects yourself. If you work on your DIY skills, you can save hundreds of dollars a year on service calls that you could have easily done on your own time. Plus, with the help of a quick Google search, you can complete most tasks around your home for next to nothing.
Though it may seem daunting at first, with a little bit of research and preparation, you will be able to make basic repairs around the house. Some common DIY projects that any homeowner can undertake include unclogging a toilet, fixing squeaky door hinges, caulking cracks, and holes, and more. However, it is important that homeowners also know their limitations. If you try to undertake a large project that you are not sure how to complete, you could make the issue even worse. This would cost you more money than if you had simply called a professional in the first place.
Spend Energy More Wisely
No one enjoys spending money on their utility bills, but there are plenty of ways you can cut down on your costs, without sacrificing much. For example, installing a “smart” thermostat can help you spend less on energy while you’re away and turning off your lights while you’re asleep or out of the house can help save nearly 20 percent of your energy costs each month.
Purchasing Energy Star specific appliances can help severely cut down on your monthly utility costs while cutting down on your carbon footprint at the same time. However, that’s only a few examples of how you can reduce your average energy consumption, simply taking a look around your home can help you find new ways to spend energy more wisely.
Cut Down Your Insurance Costs
With homeowner’s insurance, health insurance, auto insurance, and more, it may feel like your paycheck simply drains away every month. However, there are a few ways you can cut down how much you are spending on all of your insurance costs.
First, you should shop around for better rates. You may be able to save money if you switch your policy to a different company. If you do not want to switch or cannot find a cheaper rate, call your insurance company and ask them if they offer any discounts. Many companies do, but you must ask them about it in order to receive the discount. You can also save money by bundling multiple insurance policies together. Consider bundling your home and auto insurance to get a deeper discount.
Insure Your Appliances and Electronics
Obtaining a complete home warranty can be the single most important thing you do as a homeowner. This type of warranty insures your possessions, home systems, and major appliances. It offers protection against ordinary wear and tear. When your refrigerator needs to be fixed or your furnace just won’t work, you will be glad that you have this warranty. This agreement will pay for itself in no time and help to limit your spending on household emergencies. This warranty works with your homeowner’s insurance to protect your home and everything in it.
Maintaining your home can be a costly business that causes most homeowners to struggle every year. However, with the help of our four ways to save on your home expenses above, you’ll be able to lower your monthly costs, while barely breaking a sweat.
