Fall has finally arrived. With cooler temps and beautiful foliage, it’s the perfect time to do a bit of much-needed maintenance on your home. After all, an ounce of prevention can be worth a pound of cure.
Owning a home can be one of the best ways to build wealth, but it also comes with a lot of maintenance responsibilities. In a recent article from NAR’s Houselogic, Kelley Walters explores four different ways to make sure your home is prepared for the cooler weather:
Stain the deck
Help your deck field what winter throws at it by re-staining it this month. Fall’s cooler temps and lower humidity make it the ideal time for this project.
Check fire extinguishers
According to the Red Cross, fires increase in the fall and winter. Keep your home fire safe by getting a certified professional to check your fire extinguishers.
Fire extinguishers do break down and malfunction. In fact, after six years, they need to be emptied and reloaded. If you haven’t already, buy one for each floor and the garage.
Also, take this opportunity to change out those smoke alarm batteries.
Spruce up the yard
Aerate your lawn, reseed or fertilize it if needed, and plant perennials and shrubs, which are often on sale this time of year. Your grass will green up faster after winter, and the shrubs and perennials will have a chance to establish roots before the first freeze.
Inspect your home’s exterior
Spending money on roof repairs is no party, but neither is handing out buckets to the family to catch leaks in a winter storm. Instead, inspect your roof and other big-ticket items, like siding, grading and gutters, before you’ve got problems.
You’ll cut costs by fixing them now and stay dry and warm all winter long.
Thanks for those tips, Kelley. The greater Chattanooga area is gorgeous in the fall, and with these tips you’ll be sure to have a home that looks just as great as its scenic surroundings.
Realtors help homeowners get the most out of their most valuable investment in every season. That’s Who We R.
Founded in 1912, Greater Chattanooga Realtors is a regional organization with more than 2,500 members servicing Hamilton and Sequatchie counties in southeast Tennessee and Catoosa, Dade and Walker counties in Northwest Georgia. The association is one of approximately 1,100 local associations and boards of Realtors nationwide that comprise the National Association of Realtors. Greater Chattanooga Realtors owns and operates a Multiple Listing Service, which is one of approximately 600 MLSs in the country, and services more than 2,700 MLS users.