Spooky Home Maintenance Problems

You’re likely here for fear of the many things that go bump in the night. No, not the ghosts and ghouls haunting your halls; those need a different article (and maybe some sage). If you’re reading this, you’re likely being kept up at night by the rattling, shaking, creaking, crawling sorts of issues that plague homeowners everywhere.  

So, buyer beware! Homes require maintenance, sometimes a lot of it, and sometimes for costs that might send a shiver down your spine. But if you stay on top of these issues, they may be less likely to jump scare you because you’ll be ready for them. In this article, we’ve gathered you around the virtual campfire to talk about some spooky home maintenance issues and how you might be able to finance their costs if needed.

Common Home Maintenance Frights

Your home maintenance task list may feel as though it stretches into eternity, one task ticked and another two rising in its place. But being the responsible, intrepid homeowner that you are, you may want to focus on the following tasks. If left unattended, these issues could develop into your worst home maintenance nightmares.  

Creepy Crawlers

If you’ve awoken to the sound of tiny feet scurrying around your home, you may have a pest problem. Mice, rats, termites, oh my! Perhaps they’ve infiltrated your home through gaps around windows and doors or cracks in your foundation. Maybe they opportunistically scampered through an open window on a warmer day. However, they got in, they must be dealt with.  

In some cases, you may need a professional pest control service to cleanse your home of its buggy burden. Termites in particular can chew through walls, floors, and even foundational supports, causing potentially thousands of dollars in damage.  

To improve your odds of maintaining a pest free home, be sure to seal cracks and gaps and keep your house free of scraps.  

Festering Fungus

Mold may be behind the musty smell that lingers in your basement, or the splotchy stains that appeared on your walls. It could be cracking and contorting your floor. Perhaps you’ve even felt it through unseasonably strong allergies.  

Mold emerges from the damp and dark, clinging to your walls and potentially hurting your health. It’s a tricky issue to solve. So, when there’s something strange on your walls and floors, who should you call? Mold professionals! While their services can be costly, it’s important to keep your home mold free.  

To avoid future fungus frights, consider how you can reduce indoor humidity levels. Perhaps you could invest in a good dehumidifier for some preventative care. 

Rotting Roof

Ideally, you would act fast enough upon noticing issues with your roof to avoid it ever falling into a state of rot. Serious issues with your roof can be costly to fix, and if you needed to completely replace the roof, the price tag could leave your heart racing.  

If you begin to see cracks, gaps, sags, water damage, or other signs of trouble on your roof, it’s in your best interest to act quickly. Damage to your roof can get out of control quickly if you are not staying on top of upkeep.  

Ghastly Gutters

A clogged cutter can be the root of a scary situation. Your gutters exist to keep rainfall away from vulnerable areas around your home. When ignored, they become packed with dirt, leaves, and other grimy slop. The gutters can no longer do their water warding duties.  

Don’t let anything gum up your gutters. Be sure to clean them at least twice a year, and check that they’re functioning properly.  

Porous Pipes

Leaky pipes may be haunting your walls or throughout your home, leaving behind a dreadful trail of water damage. This is a common problem for many homeowners. Water damage can be expensive to repair. You may need to replace flooring or portions of your wall or ceiling. You would also likely need to check for mold.  

Sometimes, you will need to replace an old pipe that’s bedeviled your home for far too long. These old pipes crawl beneath your home and in your walls, rusting and corroding. You may not need to replace them all at once, but eventually, their time may come.  

Horrifying HVAC

Your home’s heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems keep your home cozy through winter’s chill and cool in summer’s heat. The system is typically made up of at least a heater and an air conditioning unit. But even the HVAC can be corrupted by time and wear. Depending on the crumpling component in the system, the price to repair can be manageable. One day, you may have to replace that system, and that can be a hair-raising cost.

Financing Options to Help Fix Your Fears

Before we talk about financing, we should mention that homeowners are encouraged to maintain some savings for maintenance every year. Some of the following strategies might help structure your savings: 

• The 1% rule. This rule of thumb says buyers should save 1% of their total purchase price each year for regular maintenance. However, with home prices on the rise, that number may feel somewhat out of reach.  

• The 10% rule. Set aside 10% of your monthly expenses for home maintenance. So, if your total expenses each month are $2500, you would want to save $250 per month, according to this suggestion.  

• The Square Foot Rule. Put a dollar per square foot of your house into your yearly home maintenance savings.  

Those suggestions might be helpful for you, but they are by no means hard and fast rules. Further, you may eventually come across an issue that your savings aren’t equipped to solve. In those cases, you might want to consider seeking out some additional financing, like the Smart Loan.

Smart Loan

The Smart Loan is an unsecured personal loan that eligible borrowers can use to take out a loan ranging between $2,000 and $50,000. If you need some financing for your repairs, this might be an option to consider.  

Note that for home improvement purposes, borrowers need:  

• Debt-to-income ratio of 45% 

• Minimum credit score of 680 (except for veterans, disabled veterans, active duty, or retired military, in which case the minimum is 640)  

• No bankruptcies in last 2 years 

• No 30-day late payments in last 3 months 

• No 60-day late payments in last 6 months 

• No 90-day late payments in last 12 months 

• No charge offs in last 3 years 

• No more than 12 inquiries in last 12 months 

Of course, you would need to discuss the specifics of your loan situation with your loan officer. Remember, while the Smart Loan might be able to help you pay for your spooky maintenance problems, you should still make sure you can afford to take on the payments that will come with it.

Fear Not!

These home maintenance problems may send shivers down your spine, but they are nothing you can’t handle. Stay on top of your home maintenance checklist to give yourself a chance to avoid the scariest home nightmares. While you’re keeping the spookiest and scariest issues at bay, be sure to save money where you can to make costs more manageable.