Home Maintenance Projects

Home maintenance projects are often one of those things that is painful to pay for since it rarely results in a better appearance for your home. It is, however, extremely important and done to retain maximum property value. A well-maintained home sells faster for more money and it is far easier to pay as you go with proper home maintenance. You will be financially impacted either way. If you do not maintain your home, you are simply delaying the cost and putting the home at risk of additional associated damage that can occur. As home inspectors, we find it very sad to see systems installed and then ignored for years or even decades. The cost is always higher if you install and ignore. So be sure to remain diligent in performing proper home maintenance. If you have questions, be sure to call your favorite home inspector (us)!

There are a number of home maintenance lists available on the internet that serve as a reasonably good guide for areas to focus on for keeping your property in top shape. We have a list specific to the Phoenix metro area.

Some of the lists that exist out there are categorized by the seasons. You may find this format helpful, but other lists organize their home maintenance projects based on when the climate is best for the project. A third way to decide on project timing is based on when family cash flow allows it.

For my own household, we like to time non-emergency home maintenance projects for the spring and the fall. There are exceptions to this general rule as follows:

• Roof inspection and repairs, as well as any replacement, should be done sometime other than the rainy season. Pricing and quality is always better when it has not been raining for a while and you want the work done during the warmest and driest period possible.
• Heating system service should be done in late fall just as the temperatures are starting to get cold. Cooling system service should be done in the late spring just as the temperatures are starting to get warm. You want the cold/hot conversion in temperatures because system pressure testing will reveal more relevant data during these times than when it’s close to the perfect 75 degrees outside.