Owning your own home: these maintenance costs to think about

A home needs regular maintenance. Not only small maintenance, such as cleaning the gutters or a fresh lick of paint on the walls, but also larger maintenance such as maintenance of the facade, a new central heating boiler or replacing the glazing. As the owner of the home, you pay the maintenance costs yourself. Therefore, it is wise to plan the chores as well as build a separate savings fund for maintenance. But which maintenance costs should you consider?

Maintenance costs average €300 per month

Maintenance costs depend on the type of home you have, the age of the home and its state of repair. Nibud assumes 1% of the house value for annual maintenance costs. If you assume an average house price of €400,000, you can therefore count on about €4,000 maintenance costs per year. That's about €334 per month. According to Eigen Huis Association, the average maintenance costs are about €3,600 per year, so €300 per month.

Of course, these figures are just averages. Do you have an older home? Then more maintenance often needs to be done annually than for a new home. Therefore, the average maintenance costs for a 1930s home will be higher than for a new home that has only been there for ten years.

Plan your jobs well

You don't have to do all the maintenance at once. Some jobs are better done in the summer, while others are better done in the winter. For example, spring or summer is the most appropriate time for painting outside, because if the temperature is too cold the paint will not dry properly. And if it is high summer there will be few leaves left in the gutters. So cleaning the gutters is better done in late fall or early spring. This way you can spread the maintenance over the year.

Don't put off maintenance

Sometimes you don't have the time or inclination to tackle a job. Yet procrastinating is not wise either. The longer you wait, the more expensive and time-consuming the maintenance often becomes. Moreover, by maintaining your house properly you prevent the 'problem' from getting worse (think of a clogged gutter, causing leakage inside) and you have to invest a lot of money and time to solve it. In addition, your house will also quickly lose value if it is not maintained properly.

Remodel or preserve

Are you going to remodel or preserve your home? If so, this does not fall under regular maintenance. The costs for these types of large projects are often much higher than the maintenance costs. Are you going to renovate? Then you can pay for it with your own savings, but also by increasing your mortgage or taking out a second mortgage. There are also various ways to finance the preservation of your home. Would you like to know more about this? Our mortgage advisors know everything about financing a home and everything related to it. So be sure to contact us!