If you and your partner are eagerly awaiting the keys to your very first home, we think congrats are in order; it is no small feat to get the deposit together and get your foot on the first rung of the property ladder. King George, a professional property management company, notes that there are many expenses involved with homeownership, upkeep, building maintenance and let’s not forget home improvement, which is something that boosts the value of the property.
Regarding building maintenance and upkeep, we thought you would like to know some of the essential trades that you might need at some point in the future.
- Drain unblocker– A drain blockage can be a nightmare to fix and while finding local blocked drain services can be done online, we recommend pre-sourcing such a service and storing the number in your smartphone. Should the worst happen, all you need to do is bring up the number and an expert will be with you before you know it. Some contractors charge a call-out fee and some do not, choose someone local with affordable rates.
- Domestic plumber– Every house has a complex network of water and waste pipes, while mains water is obviously pressurised and any leak needs attending to asap. Some plumbers can also handle blocked drains and offer pipe relining services, as they have a fully equipped mobile workshop and there isn’t much they can’t deal with.
- Emergency electrician– We should never mess with electricity unless we know what we are doing. Spend half an hour searching online to find a local electrician that has reasonable rates and store their emergency number in your digital device.
- Local handyman– Unless you happen to be a DIY wizard, we recommend sourcing a local handyman; he can fix things like leaking faucets, squeaky doors and cupboards that won’t close and he won’t charge a fortune for his services if he lives around the corner.
- Garden maintenance – If you love a well-manicured garden but you simply don’t have the time, your local landscape gardener is the person to contact. They can add your property to their long list and visit every week, every fortnight or even once a month, plus if you ever need a special feature for your outdoor living space, he is the man to contact.
- Roofing contractor– Aside from the obvious roof repairs, a roofer can inspect the roof yearly, which is recommended. The roof is the one part of your home that you cannot see from the ground, which is why you need a roofer to climb up and check things out on an annual basis.
- Locksmith – Let’s hope you never lock yourself out of your home or car, but if you do, rather than break a window, call your local locksmith. He can do a whole lot more than that though; fitting security alarms, replacing old locks and setting up sensor alarms in the garden.
If you pre-source all of the above tradesmen, any time that you have a need, simply call their number.
