12-14-2018, 04:28 PM
Congrats on the new house. From your picture it looks nice. It's a great feeling having a place you can call your own that you can do whatever you want with it, within applicable laws of course :) . My advice if you need something done you can't do yourself do a lot of research first and if you are friendly with your neighbors ask them if they can recommend someone. In fact I'd suggest researching local plumbers, electricians, HVAC repair, handymen etc. in advance and keep a list handy for when you need it. It gets a lot more anxiety provoking if you have an urgent problem you can't fix and have to find someone quick as opposed to knowing who to call already.
The last thing you want for example, say your heat goes out in the middle of winter, is to call one of those emergency 24/7 HVAC services first because they know you are screwed and charge you a premium. I've had some bad luck over the last year with my house and not being very handy I'm glad I had made a list of home repair services before I needed them.
One thing I looked for when I made my list were the local family owned businesses that are licensed and insured. They won't always show up as an early Google search because the bigger companies buy the higher Google listings. However, for that local family business person, their work is their bread and butter and they often offer lower prices since they don't usually spend their income, if any, on advertising, office expenses, etc. Plus they depend more on word of mouth to get more business. Personally if I need something done I'd rather hire someone like that to do the work because less material costs the rest of the money goes to that person.
For example I recently replaced my gas furnace and AC unit and hired a local guy that has been doing it for over 25 years with no office, receptionist, etc. He is just a hard working guy that knows what he is doing, licensed and insured. He only billed me for the actual cost of the the equipment and materials plus his time in labor. I know this because he gave me the invoice for the equipment and materials he purchased to do the job. As opposed to a bigger business that often add a mark up on the equipment and materials plus time in labor where most the money doesn't go to the person doing the actual work. The work I had done had to be permitted and the inspector told me he was very impressed by the quality of the job done.
Anyway, I'm wandering off here. Congrats on the house. Enjoy your house and the added bonus of home equity. Hopefully you do not need the advice I provided. As someone that rented almost half of my adult life before buying my first home I can appreciate the excitement and joy. I hope you make it your own, a place you find comfort in for you and your family and most importantly a place you are glad to call home. It is always nice after a long day at work or even after returning from a vacation to step through that front door and think, "I'm glad I'm home, my home."
The last thing you want for example, say your heat goes out in the middle of winter, is to call one of those emergency 24/7 HVAC services first because they know you are screwed and charge you a premium. I've had some bad luck over the last year with my house and not being very handy I'm glad I had made a list of home repair services before I needed them.
One thing I looked for when I made my list were the local family owned businesses that are licensed and insured. They won't always show up as an early Google search because the bigger companies buy the higher Google listings. However, for that local family business person, their work is their bread and butter and they often offer lower prices since they don't usually spend their income, if any, on advertising, office expenses, etc. Plus they depend more on word of mouth to get more business. Personally if I need something done I'd rather hire someone like that to do the work because less material costs the rest of the money goes to that person.
For example I recently replaced my gas furnace and AC unit and hired a local guy that has been doing it for over 25 years with no office, receptionist, etc. He is just a hard working guy that knows what he is doing, licensed and insured. He only billed me for the actual cost of the the equipment and materials plus his time in labor. I know this because he gave me the invoice for the equipment and materials he purchased to do the job. As opposed to a bigger business that often add a mark up on the equipment and materials plus time in labor where most the money doesn't go to the person doing the actual work. The work I had done had to be permitted and the inspector told me he was very impressed by the quality of the job done.
Anyway, I'm wandering off here. Congrats on the house. Enjoy your house and the added bonus of home equity. Hopefully you do not need the advice I provided. As someone that rented almost half of my adult life before buying my first home I can appreciate the excitement and joy. I hope you make it your own, a place you find comfort in for you and your family and most importantly a place you are glad to call home. It is always nice after a long day at work or even after returning from a vacation to step through that front door and think, "I'm glad I'm home, my home."
![[Image: 4CV0TeR.png]](https://i.imgur.com/4CV0TeR.png)
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