00:00 Speaker A
It’s Housing Week on Wealth and we have the Homebuyers Playbook with everything that you need to know about every step of the home buying process. And today, we’re taking a closer look at what happens once you actually purchase a property and take on responsibilities as a new homeowner. Joining me now, we’ve got Aaron Sykes, Sykes Properties founder. Good to see you, Aaron. Thanks so much for hopping on the program with us. What are some of the things that new homeowners need to do after they get the keys?
00:33 Aaron Sykes
Of course. So congratulations on your new home. And you know, most likely you had an inspection report during the contingency process of your contract. Gone are the days where we’re foregoing inspection reports, and in most markets you can still get a house under contract with a fair 5 to 15 day inspection contingency. So sometimes you’re able to negotiate the repairs during this period or the seller would be paying for them, but not always, and frankly in fact not likely. Most of the time, homes are sold as is. So the inspection process is just to get to know the home and the repairs that you will need to make once you own it. So first off, don’t, you know, let grass grow under your feet. Get those repairs done ASAP, because you have so many other things to, you know, handle in terms of decorating, new schools, and all of that type of stuff. Just get those repairs done and have a nice piece of mind. Second, if you are one of the lucky people who were able to buy a new home, make sure you take the opportunity to register your appliances. This also goes if maybe you had the seller of a existing home repair or replace an appliance, you need the manufacturers warranty. You need to make sure that that is in place within just a few days of transferring ownership, otherwise it will be negated. Third, make sure you schedule your HVAC and your furnace um regular service. And this really differs depending on the area that you’re in. Um in Florida, we have to do quarterly service for HVAC because it’s so humid here, but maybe you’re in the Northeast and you can get away with once a year. But make sure you get that plan in place, so you don’t get to a situation where you need a repair and you don’t have a contractor ready and willing to do it. And then fourth, perhaps the easiest but often forgotten tip, is to make sure you introduce yourself to your neighbors. Especially if you’re going to be doing renovation work or construction work, and it might be disruptive to their lifestyle. So bring over a nice housewarming gift, kind of the reverse of what you would expect, ingratiate yourself to your neighborhood.
04:19 Speaker A
So what do new homeowners need to know about insurance as well?
04:26 Aaron Sykes
Yeah, so insurance is a hot topic, particularly in the Southeast and along the Western coast in California. We had terrible fires, we’ve had a lot of hurricanes in recent years, so expense has definitely gone up. So you need to really think about insurance before you make the purchase. This is part of your inspection, your contingency, your diligence, uh that 5 to 15 day window where you’re in contract, the house is yours if you want it, but make sure you’re getting insurance broker quotes during that time period because oftentimes it’s going to be a lot more expensive than you might have anticipated, and you might need to reset your price point. It might not be the house for you. New homes tend to have lower insurance costs than those that are existing, and that’s because they have high wind ratings um and fireproof build policies.
05:45 Speaker A
There’s also warranties as well on new homes versus some of those existing homes. So what do homeowners need to know about where they need to get a warranty and what they need to get a warranty on?
06:01 Aaron Sykes
Yeah, so if you had a new construction home, typically the developer, the builder, will give you a one year warranty, hands down flat across the board, and that includes labor or any of the appliances etc. that need to be repaired. Um if cracks in the foundation, windows that are leaking, any of that will be covered in your one year warranty. Make sure it’s in your contract. Don’t go asking for it, you know, after something has already broken and you didn’t confirm it before you actually purchased. Um and then sometimes you can also have those manufacture warranties with existing homes. If you had new appliances um put in by the seller prior to um the purchase or after you purchased, uh make sure you register those warranties because the labor will not be covered, but at least the appliance will be.
07:24 Speaker A
Aaron, thanks so much for the tips. We appreciate it.
07:28 Aaron Sykes
Of course.