4 financial tips for Utah homeowners

When you are a proud homeowner or first-time home buyer in Utah, you know that the purchase of a house is a big financial step. Besides the closing costs, down payment and mortgage payments, there are many other hidden nooks and crannies in your Utah home that could require your wallet’s attention. 

Nevertheless, even though owning a home can seem expensive, it simply does not compare to giving up your money to a landlord every month. Every penny you spend on your house now goes to an asset you own and is an investment for your family’s future. 

In order to maximize this investment, you’re going to need to decrease expenses for your home. whether you live in Salt Lake County, Utah County or anywhere else along the Wasatch front; we want to help you save on your housing costs and anticipate your future expenses, so here are 5 financial tips for you as a Utah homeowner.

1. Create a Home Maintenance Budget and Savings Account 

Anticipating and saving for future costs will not only ensure you have the resources for necessary repairs or improvements, it also helps to lower any anxiety in regards to housing costs. A leaking toilet or broken air conditioning unit always seems to come at the worst possible time, so having money budgeted for these surprises means that it won’t catch you off guard. This peace of mind is worth the 5-7% of your income to set aside every month, and worth the 1-2 hours it takes to create or update your home maintenance budget every year. 

According to a Bankrate survey, the average homeowner spends $2,000 per year on maintenance, including landscaping, housekeeping and minor repairs. That does not include any major repairs, like a HVAC system replacement or significant roof repair.

Tad Hill, founder and president of Freedom Financial Group in Birmingham, Alabama, told Investopedia that first-time buyers should set up a separate homeownership savings fund to cover bigger repairs. "The price range for these services is not small, so I'd suggest planning to keep at least $5,000 to $10,000 in cash so you have it available when something breaks."

Depending on the state and age of your home, it’s advised to set aside at least $200 every month for the upkeep of your Utah home. If possible, save another $500-800 annually to create an extra buffer for any major expenses that may occur in the next few years.

Having a separate savings account will help differentiate this money as your Home Maintenance and Improvement Fund. You want to keep your family’s emergency fund in a separate account. It’s important to differentiate the two since you don’t want to dig into your home’s fund in case of a personal or family emergency.

Set up automatic monthly payments for this Home Fund, so you’ll never forget or talk yourself out of saving for future maintenance costs! 

2. Don’t ignore maintenance issues and don’t wait on repairs 

Now that you’ve created a budget and have set up a Home Fund, it’s time to be proactive about taking care of your house. We get it, doing home repairs is probably not how you planned to spend your free Saturday morning. However, ignoring simple home maintenance tasks can create much bigger issues down the road. More often than not, these delayed maintenance chores become costly and time-consuming repairs. What once was a leaking pipe that needed a simple replacement is now a breeding ground for mold, mildew and rotting wood. It started with a broken sprinkler, and now the front yard has faded from its former green glory into yellows and browns. A shockingly high utility bill becomes a reminder that the air filters haven’t been replaced in months. The list goes on and on. 

With every new season, we post another checklist on our blog to keep you on track for your annual home maintenance tasks. You can go back to our post that outlined the Summer Home Maintenance Tasks as well as stay tuned for the one that’s coming this Fall. 

Taking care of your Utah home will ensure that your house can take care of you for decades to come. Instead of procrastinating, commit to doing one important house maintenance chore a week.

3. Hire professionals 

It may be tempting to YouTube your way through the electrical wiring or dive into your plumbing issues. However, this isn’t always as cheap or effective as it may seem. There are many maintenance tasks that you can take care of yourself, but there are also many repairs and improvements that are best to leave to a professional.

If you don’t fully know what you’re getting yourself into, you may create a bigger problem than the one you started with. Even when you have a basic understanding of DIY home repairs, the need for expertise increases if anything goes wrong or if the needed repair is more significant than anticipated. Acting quickly and effectively can be the difference between a sigh of relief and a small disaster. By hiring a professional right from the start, you avoid the risk of having to pay a rush fee when your own DIY handiwork doesn’t work out. 

As with most things, hiring a professional means that you get what you pay for. If a price seems too good to be true, it’s likely that they’ll be cutting corners somewhere. It’s better to pay a little bit more to get it done right than to have to deal with the same issue in the not-to-distant future. Do some research online, ask around and see who your fellow home-owner friends recommend.

If you haven’t had your air ducts cleaned in a while, it’s likely that this home maintenance task needs to be prioritized for your home. As one of the only air vent cleaning companies in Utah with a high-powered truck, we will do a more thorough cleaning job than our competitors, leaving your house with the cleanest indoor air possible! Fill out this contact form for a free estimate or do this self-check to find out if your Utah home is in need of an air duct cleaning. 

4. Get help with your tax return.

How familiar are you with your county’s property tax? Knowing the ins and outs and the upcoming changes will help you budget, and it may also show you ways to find significant tax-deductions. Here’s a good starting point to learn about property taxes in Weber County and for Salt Lake County. 

Even if you’ve been doing your own taxes for years, it may pay off to hire a great accountant for at least one year, specifically to look at your house’s taxes and tax-deductions. Getting expert eyes on your books for one year will provide a template to do your own taxes for the years following. 

One bonus tip: save all receipts of your home improvements. If you end up selling your house, you can take the money you spent on improvements to reduce the taxable income of your home sale. This is only applicable for improvements, and it does not include repairs or maintenance. Ask your accountant about the details tailored to your specific situation, especially if you’re considering a significant home improvement project or if you are planning to resell your home within the next few years. 

According to Your Utah Future, the typical household in Utah spends about 31-57% of their income on housing costs. This is a big chunk of your expenses, so it’s important to be smart and prepared for your home maintenance costs. With these 4 financial tips, you will be better prepared to tackle any unexpected expenses.