When you buy a house you focus on the mortgage, property taxes and homeowner insurance. These costs won't tell you the true cost of home ownership. Imagine how you would handle a $500 water bill or an electric bill exceeding $700. It's time to track homeowner expenses starting now! The …
Homeowner budgets are challenging. The monthly recurring expenses aren't difficult. While there's some variation in water and electric bills, they're fairly predictable. It's the unpredictable homeowner expenses that are hard to predict so you've got to come up with estimates for:
- Preventive maintenance, both materials and labor.
- Repairs big and small that occur every year, like a new mailbox or window.
- Major renovations like a new roof or HVAC system. They're needed every few years and by saving in advance, they're easier to manage when the time comes.
You'll also want to plan, budget and save for home improvements like a bathroom remodel or new kitchen appliances.
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All Homeowner Budget Articles
- How to Track Homeowner Expenses
- Property Taxes: What You Need to Know
- What is Net Neutrality & Why It Matters!
- True Cost of Home Ownership
- Proposed Tax Changes & Home Ownership
- 100 Ways to Save the Environment & Enhance Your Home
- How to Calculate Your Home Office Deduction
- How to Pay a Lower Verizon Bill
- Fact or Fiction: Why Homeowner Fact Checking is Important
- Moving & Projecting Utility Costs
- Home Builder Warranty – What’s Included or Not
- Energy Savings & Home Envelopes?
- Why Utilities Give Poor Customer Service?
- Save Money with Preventive Maintenance
- Be Careful When Cancelling Your Utilities
- Recycling: Yard Sale Tips to Save $$
- Cleaning $aves Carpets & Furniture
Property Taxes: What You Need to Know
Buying a house used to be simple. Most realtors told you it's all about location, location, location and for many years this was true. That's because "... You can buy the right home in the wrong location. You can change the structure, remodel it or alter the home's layout but, ordinarily, you cannot …
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What is Net Neutrality & Why It Matters!
Wondering what net neutrality means and why you should care? The best analogy I've come up with is your cable TV bill. If you're old enough you remember when television was free, when families watched the Ed Sullivan show …
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True Cost of Home Ownership
Buyers focus on the mortgage but it doesn't tell you the true cost of home ownership. With your first home, you compare your mortgage payment to the rent you've been paying but wait, what expenses were hidden in your rent? Your landlord pays the mortgage, taxes and insurance. Most states require …
Proposed Tax Changes & Home Ownership
Income taxes can be filed using the standard deduction or itemized deductions. Most homeowners prefer itemized deductions to reduce their taxable income by what they've spent on mortgage interest, property taxes and more. It does take more time to gather all the paperwork needed to support itemized …
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100 Ways to Save the Environment & Enhance Your Home
Saving the environment doesn't require spending lots of money. It's more about making small changes to how we live our lives on a day to day basis. It means learning how our actions affect the rest of the world. By understanding how things impact the environment, we hope you'll want to make some of …
Continue Reading about 100 Ways to Save the Environment & Enhance Your Home