What would you do if you had a home emergency? Emergency repairs can happen at any time and can be costly to cover, especially when you cannot afford to leave them, and they’re putting your family and your property at risk.
When you are a homeowner, the last thing you want is for your home to fall into disrepair because you cannot afford repairs. But on the flip side, some repairs can be expensive, and not everyone has savings or backups they can access to assist them in covering the ongoing repairs and maintenance required or getting emergency repairs rectified.
Imagine the relief of having an emergency repair fund when you experience a home repair emergency. This fund can help cover some of the costs and prevent you from relying on excessive credit that you might struggle to repay.
Experts suggest saving around 1%—4% of your home’s value per year to accommodate repairs in a dedicated emergency fund that you can dip into should this scenario become a reality.
If your home is worth $300,000 on the market right now, then a good figure to work towards is $3,000 to $12,000 in savings per year. Now, if you don’t use it after the first year, you can keep topping it up with the same amount or less so you’re building a nice pot of money, or you can leave it at the amount you have set and then only top up once you use it.
While the percentage may vary, the key is to consistently set aside a portion of your income for future needs. Consider creating a separate savings account specifically for home emergencies and automating a monthly transfer from your main account. This simple act can provide a sense of control and peace of mind, knowing that you’re building a safety net without even having to think about it.
Now that we know more about home repair emergency savings let’s look at some emergencies that will require you to use the funds you’ve put away or what you should be saving towards.
Damaged or Leaky Roof
Roof repairs can happen for multiple reasons. It might be that it’s usually succumbed to neglect, or it’s at the end of life, and it goes from being functional to not providing the protection you need. It can also be due to vandalism or the weather and the environment.
But regardless of the cause of the damage, you need to get an emergency roofing repair as soon as possible before the damage causes more problems internally in your home. From wildlife being able to enter water seeping through or the damaged roof falling into your room and causing damage this way, whatever you are experiencing will be a result of the damage and is an emergency and should be addressed without delay.
Experts suggest you need to have around $900 for emergency roofing repairs, although this is just a ballpark figure and should be used as a guide for your savings only.
Plumbing Emergency
Water damage can be extensive throughout your property, and finding yourself at the mercy of a burst pipe or blockage isn’t fun, and the result can be catastrophic. While some plumbing issues, such as leaking faucets, aren’t really emergencies, and blocked toilets can usually be rectified yourself in minor cases, burst pipes most definitely fall under the home emergency category. For instance, a leaking faucet can often be fixed with a simple washer replacement, while a blocked toilet can usually be cleared with a plunger.
Regardless of the reason for a burst pipe, be it freezing or corrosion, you need to call a plumber right away. That is after you turn off the water supply to help prevent more water from flooding your home.
Sadly, burst pipes are extremely damaging to properties and bank balances. Depending on the damage caused and the issue you are dealing with, you could be looking at a bill of $4,000 or more. This sum isn’t always easy to find, and an emergency fund that can accommodate some or all of this cost can help you get things fixed quickly using an emergency plumber so you can reduce the impact on your life.
Pest Damage
Finding your home overrun with unwanted pests and critters isn’t nice. And while the issue might seem extreme, the damage used by pests can be. From mice chewing through electrical wires to wasp nests blocking the entrance to your property to termites eating through the wood in your home, you absolutely should not be letting a pest infestation take hold or leaving them to run amok on the property.
In some cases, a few mouse or rat traps and cockroach tools can help you eliminate the problem, but for anything more serious than the odd pest in your home, you need to call in emergency pest control services. They can assist you in eradicating the pests entirely and helping you prevent re-infestation.
Pest control services don’t come cheap, and you might be looking at bills upwards of $200 for more minor insect issues right through to $1,000 and more for larger, more tricky infestations, especially if you need multiple visits. Fumigation can set you back $8,000, but it’s essential to evict your unwanted guests and reclaim your home. But that isn’t all. You might need other services, such as carpenters or electric trains, to fix any other damage caused, or you might need to replace furniture and fittings that were damaged, too.
Heating and Cooling Emergencies
Experiencing a breakdown of your heating and cooling appliances when you need them most is most definitely an emergency you should avoid. No one wants to take cold showers or swelter inside a hot house when the temperatures are rising. It can make for an extremely uncomfortable life.
From old age to poor maintenance, rusting pipes, or damage from incorrect use or even accidents, your homes heating and cooling systems can fail for multiple reasons and at any time. But you can guarantee it will be when you need them the most. Hence them being an emergency. And emergency callouts for repairs of this nature can be seriously costly. Of course, the problem you are dealing with will dictate the cost you need to pay to restore your services; however, a new water heater, for example, can run upwards of $800, while a new HVAC, if you need one, can set you back anywhere from $5,000 to $12,000. That sinking fund is looking more and more appealing now, isn’t it?
Broken Windows and External Doors
Your windows and doors are your home’s leading source of security. If they are damaged in any way, you are leaving yourself at risk of potential crimes, not to mention increased discomfort from not being able to block the elements out, i.e., if your window or windows are smashed.
These are emergencies you want to address immediately. Get emergency window and door fitters out to find out what is happening and fix things quickly. Failure to do so can leave you at risk of injury, exposure to the elements, and significant security issues.
The cost of filing a broken window can be hundreds of dollars. The national average is around $300, while a new front door can set you back anywhere from $400 to $1,500, depending on its size, the damage required to rectify and make it safe, and its construction.
Electrical and Gas Repairs
Electricity and natural gas supplies in your home can become emergencies for any reason, and these emergencies can be catastrophic. A gas leak in your home can result in an explosion and the loss of everything you own, as well as people’s lives. Electrical emergencies can result in a fire, electrocutions, and again, risk to property and life is not addressed.
In the first instance, if it’s safe to do so, you need to shut off the supply from your electric or gas and vacate the property as it’s not safe to remain inside. Then, you need to call 911 for a gas leak and an emergency electrification for electrical faults. If your electricity has the risk of causing a fire, calling 911 can help you manage this risk and keep everyone safe.
From here, calling emergency electricians and gas engineers can contact you to identify the cause of the problem and get things fixed. These emergencies are some of the most serious you can have in relation to the damage that can be caused, as wrong moves or delays in solving the problem can be deadly.
Your emergency fund can soften the blow of these callouts, especially since electricians charge from $100 to $200 per hour and gas leak incidents cost an average of $2,600 per callout.
Home emergencies, as you can see, can be varied, and you can experience a significant number of issues, especially if you are not keeping on top of home maintenance tasks. Sinking funds can be an ideal way to cover the costs of potential emergencies without plunging yourself into financial hardship should the owners happen. They are your safety net, and if you don’t use them, excellent, but the relief of knowing they are there, if you can, helps make a bad situation just a little bit easier
Last Updated on by Icy Tales Team