Get smart with your money
If you’re a homeowner and haven’t faced a big repair bill yet, just wait. Even in the best-maintained homes, stuff will wear out or break.
Budgeting for these inevitable bills isn’t always easy. One commonly cited rule of thumb — to save 1% to 4% of your home’s value each year for maintenance and repairs — can give homeowners sticker shock as real estate prices soar.
In my latest for the Associated Press, hot to decide on how much you should put aside for home repairs.
If it ain’t broke, maybe you should fix it anyway.
That’s the message consumer advocates and insurance experts want you to hear about your home’s hidden dangers. Too often, they say, people put off relatively inexpensive repairs or improvements that could prevent significant damage, injuries or even death. While you can’t eliminate every potential hazard, some small moves can have a huge impact on home safety.
In my latest for the Associated Press, fixes that typically cost $200 or less.
Today’s top story: Is your wealth dripping away? Also in the news: How to navigate the Equifax data breach settlement, getting real about checking your finances, and looking for “relationship pricing” when you need a loan.
Is Your Wealth Dripping Away?
Draining your wallet, one drop at a time.
How to Navigate the Equifax Data Breach Settlement Offer
Find out what you’re entitled to.
Can’t Bear to Check Your Finances? Here’s Help
Biting the bullet.
Look for ‘Relationship Pricing’ When You Need a Loan
The benefits of monogamous banking.
As a spokesperson for the insurance industry, Loretta Worters often gives tips to homeowners on preventing water damage. Some of her knowledge comes from personal experience.
Worters says she had owned a home in Bellmore, New York, for only a month when she noticed the clothes washer in the basement was taking an awfully long time to fill.
“I went downstairs and I was up to my ankles in water,” says Worters, vice president of communications for the Insurance Information Institute.
Appliance and plumbing failures are a leading cause of household water damage, which is far more common than you may think. Homeowners are six times more likely to suffer property losses from water than from theft and seven times more likely than from fire, says Kelly Greene, a risk consulting manager from Chubb Personal Insurance who led a session on property damage at the Financial Planning Association NorCal conference in May. (“Water damage” is different from flooding, which is rising water that affects two or more properties.)
In my latest for the Associated Press, steps you can take to ensure your wealth doesn’t evaporate drip by drip.
Today’s top story: Should you move abroad for health care? Also in the news: What to do if you still haven’t received your tax documents, things to consider before opening another credit card, and why you should save 4% of your new home’s cost for repairs.
Should You Move Abroad for Health Care?
The cost difference can be dramatic.
Haven’t Got Your Tax Documents Yet? Here’s What to Do
The clock’s ticking.
4 things to consider before opening another credit card
The pros and cons.
You Should Save 4% of Your New Home’s Cost for Repairs
Protect yourself from unexpected costs.
Today’s top story: Need a gift for a college graduate? Consider a Roth IRA. Also in the news: An Olympian’s victory versus debt, how to tackle common home worries with a plan, and the best jobs to have when the economy tanks.
Need a Gift for a College Graduate? Consider a Roth IRA
A gift that will keep on giving.
How I Ditched Debt: An Olympian’s Medal-Worthy Juggling Act
Winning the gold in paying off debt.
Tackle This Common Home Worry With a Plan
Don’t let repairs catch you off-guard.
The best jobs to have when the economy tanks
Is your job economy-proof?