Owning a home is a significant financial undertaking. When planning to buy a home, you’ll have to save for a down payment and qualify for a mortgage, which may be more expensive in a larger city. Once you buy a home, there are monthly maintenance expenses and you’ll find your home will also need repairs. Here are three ways to help budget.
1. Your Budget for Buying a Home
Before you can buy a home, you’ll need to review your monthly budget. Make a list of the monthly expenses you have now in your current home. Don’t forget costs like insurance, fuel, and child care. Once you subtract those current expenses from your monthly income, you’ll know if you can afford a new home.
If the home you’re buying is still being built, you can save money on building costs by installing vinyl siding. According to Modernize, home experts estimate the installation of vinyl siding on an 1800-square-foot home will cost about $4560. As for the vinyl siding materials themselves, the cost will depend on the quality of the materials. The range of prices for vinyl siding is anywhere between $1 to $8 per square foot.
2. Your Budget for Home Maintenance
When you become a homeowner, you must budget for the expenses required to keep your home safe as well as comfortable. You’ll need to pay for utilities, insurance, and yard maintenance. The costs for utilities will be influenced by the age of your appliances, the age of the home’s electrical system, and the climate where the home is located. In addition, you’ll need to plan to pay for lawn maintenance and other gardening costs.
One of the significant utility expenses you’ll have is using your air conditioner. To reduce those costs, you should plant trees around your property. After all, according to House Logic, when trees are planted in your yard, your home will need 30% less air conditioning. The same trees can lower your heating bill by 20% to 50% in heating costs.
3. Your Budget for Home Repair
In addition to your monthly expenses for maintenance, the future is likely to require some home repairs. Other costs can be associated with the upgrade of home features. For example, according to Roofers Calculator, paying to install a new asphalt shingle roof can bring you an ROI of over 62%. Planning for those expenses will need to be part of your home budget as well.
It may be wise to open a separate bank account for household expenses. By keeping home upkeep and repair costs separate, you’ll see how much is in your home budget at a glance. If your home business account is running low, you can use other ways to save money. One popular way to keep up with repair costs is with home warranties, which can decrease repair costs.
4. Your Everyday Savings Guidelines
If your expenses are too close to monopolizing your budget, there are practical things you can do at home to save money. One of the most essential things to do is to make as many meals as possible at home. Dining out can become an extravagant expense you don’t need. Your morning cup of coffee is much cheaper if you brew it at home rather than stopping for your daily latte.
If you have a subscription to a magazine, cancel your subscription and read the magazine at your local library. You can save electricity by turning your computer off when you don’t use it. If you have a dishwasher, don’t run it until it’s full of dishes. If the weather allows, hang the laundry outdoors to dry and save the energy you would use for using the dryer.
Making a budget before buying a home, especially in a more expensive city, is an essential step in purchasing a home. Once you buy that home, prioritize your mortgage expenses and maintenance costs. To keep your house safe, you’ll also need to save for repairs. When you use these practical guidelines to keep up your household expenses, you can live within your income in a lovely, well-maintained home.
