What I Learned When I Became a Homeowner. Post sponsored by SheSpeaks/TruGreen. All opinions are my own
What I Learned When I Became a Homeowner
I laugh when I think back to the time that I first became a homeowner. When my fiance and I were looking for our first “forever home,” we had absolutely no clue what we were doing. We bought during the Sellers frenzy in 2005. By the time we put in a bid on our home, we hadn’t even stepped inside to check it out. A lot has been processed since we were handed the keys in 2005, as I reflect on what I learned when I became a homeowner.
It’s A Continued Work in Progress
And then we stepped inside the house. Shock is the word that comes to mind. If you had seen what my house looked like back in 2005, you would have laughed. Rotting food. Missing sink. Multicolored carpets. High gloss black tile. Ridiculously high kitchen counters. No dishwasher. I cried. But now 10 years later, we are still in the same home plus 2 kids. That’s not to say that we haven’t had a few updates along the way. A brand new kitchen, bathroom and DEFINITELY replacement of all of the flooring in the house come to mind. But there’s still things in the home that need repair; there always will be. Something will always need replacing or fixing or updating…a cycle that we now have a budget for.
Lawn Maintenance Is Hard Work
Before I owned a home, I lived in an apartment (aka no yard work). Before that, my parents had lawn maintenance people to tend to our yard. I never once had to rev a lawn mower. I never once had to lift a weed whacker. Fast forward to today, lawn maintenance is much more complicated than I ever thought. Those that live in Florida understand my pain. The lawn is always GROWING, always needing maintenance, and always needing water! And when the hot Florida sun wreaks havoc on our lawn, a sprinkler system definitely comes into play. But oh wait, that adds to our lawn maintenance list. Sprinkler systems need maintenance and repair, just like the rest of our home. Enter in TruGreen. TruGreen, the nation’s largest lawn care company is loving on your lawn even MORE with their expanded Sprinkler Repair and Maintenance Services. What kind of sprinkler service can you expect from TruGreen?
TruGreen Sprinkler Repair and Maintenance service offerings include:
- Sprinkler head repair and adjustment
- Sprinkler leak repair
- Timer box adjustment
- Rain sensor testing and repair
- Zone adjustments
- System renovations and updates
- Backflow testing
And, I’m excited to announce that TruGreen now has Sprinkler Repair and Maintenance Services available in ORLANDO! YAY for my home town! Services are also currently available in select cities in Florida, Missouri, Nebraska, Arkansas and Tennessee. And TruGreen Sprinkler Repair and Maintenance will be launching in more than a dozen markets in 2016. You can check to see if TruGreen is available where you live HERE.
Home Ownership Pride Is Unlike Any Other Feeling
I love saying that I am a homeowner. It’s where my heart – my family – lives. It’s the place we come back to relax, put up our feet and just be ourselves after a long day. It’s our safe place. It’s the place where memories are made and children grow up. 10 years so far, and still going!
What have you learned from becoming a homeowner?
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Me and my husband also bought our first home ten years ago. You are right,there is always something that needs to be fixed or replaced.
A lesson we all learn along the way. First home had been fixed and flipped. Little did we know that although it “looked” good, all the screens were missing. Windows painted shut. Shower leaked. I will never buy a flipped home again. I’d rather fix it with quality than pay for someone’s fast slap job!
Taking care of the lawn is one of the most time consuming chores! But it really does create great curb appeal.
It’s definitely a challenge keeping up on the lawn. It’s nice to have help for all of the technical stuff I don’t understand.
I am not a homeowner yet but hope to be in the next 5 years, I too want to have my own home and step away from the renting fenzy. When my parents bought our family home there was so much to do, the lawn was one of them to care for and my mum always says homes require constant fixing.
Lawn maintenance is my nemesis. We live in Colorado and it doesn’t rain much here so it’s tricky. We have a sprinkler system but it’s not always enough.
That first one is totally true. Every day I decide there’s something else I want to do. Lol. It’ll never end, I’m sure.
Your post will comes in really handy when my fiance and I get our first home together. Really important and great tips you are sharing here.
Lawn maintenance is always one of the biggest challenges. Everyday there is something else i want to change or something else to get down.
I too have learned a lot about being a home owner. Thankfully we bought during the right time so we have equity in our home. We’ve painted every room and we actually have to go back and repaint a few, and yes like you said, always something to fix.
It is amazing what you learn as a homeowner! There is so much that people don’t warn you about before buying your first house.
Owning a home has its own advantages and disadvantages. So it is important to really research before making a decision. Some people I know prefer renting, while others like to have a house they can call their own.
We use a local service for our lawn. Tru Green sounds like a good service though. I’ll keep this information handy in case we change services.
You are right, it is a never ending labor of love. Our lawn is so difficult to keep pretty. I will have to call them
I HOPE TO OWN MY OWN HOME SOON EVEN THOUGH EVERYTHING THAT GOES WRONG WITH A HOME AND YOU CALL THE LANDLORD TO FIX GUESS WHAT NO MORE LANDLORD YOU OWN IT YOU FIX IT FROM THE LITTLE THINGS TO THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE ITS IN YOUR HANDS SO WHEN LOOKING AT A HOME TAKE THE STATE WITH YOU OF COURSE ITS GOING TO COST BUT THEY WILL TELL YOU IF ITS A MONEY PIT OR SOMETHING WORTH BUYING
BLESSED BE ONE AND ALL
I’m not a homeowner yet, but I’m in the process of renting my first house. It’s almost like owning my own home since I will have to do all of the lawn maintenance, pay for trash pick-up, or pay for anything that goes awry (i.e. plumbing). I do know that I even more to look forward to when I do own my first home within a few years!
It’s crazy just how much goes into buying a home! I watch a TON of shows on HGTV so I totally get this! Great post!
I cannot wait to know the amazing feeling of buying my first home. We are saving up and will get there someday. I miss having a place of my own.
Owning a home is work but it’s definitely worth out. There’s nothing like having a closed off lawn that’s well manicured for the kids to play.
I would LOVE to have a lawn care service take care of my yard someday…! I think we might have TruGreen here in the Kansas City area, I will have to check for sure.