Frustrations of a somewhat experienced homeowner

So I was just talking to a colleague and my own brother the other day about the 'unexpected costs' of owning your own home. How you need to set aside money for these costs so they don't eat you alive and force you into difficult decisions.

So I sit here today having fallen into the trap myself, well sort of.

Last month I knew that I needed my gutters cleaned out and for the cost of that it wasn't much more to have good gutter guards installed. So I was moving forward with that project. At the same time I knew I had some drainage issues with my back yard. I'm a slightly lower elevation then one neighbor and a much lower then the other, so when it rains all water pools in my back yard. I had really good grass growing back there before this season's rains came and my kids love to play back there. Now it is a swamp. So I knew I needed to take care of that. I had wanted to add a drainage system in myself with the help of my friends however finding the time is always so difficult, especially when we all have young kids or other responsibilities, so I just decided to bite the bullet and pay someone for it. As the gutter cost was not too bad I felt alright with spending the money. I received several bids and was generally happy with what I got.

Well the day after the gutter guards went up and the drainage system went in my Heating/Cooling guys showed up for a checkup on my systems. What they found was not fun. My second floor Air Conditioning system had a few leaks and the outside unit was 13+ years old. My first floor air handler was rusted all over, had it's own leaks, and was 16+ years old. With the brutal NC Summer coming and having had my air conditioning fail 3 summers ago I did not wish to repeat the experience, so I haggled with the guy and came to a final price for replacement. Well it was obviously higher then I had wanted to pay and definitely outside the budget for the month (after just paid for gutters and drainage).

Yes, I knew this could happen, and this is what does happen when you own a home. But why did it have to happen right as I just shelled out a few grand for other things. It just hurts.

So last week I ended up spending more money then I ever have any other time, except purchasing a car or buying a home, and even then most of that was credit based. Writing that last check really hurt.

So if you want to own a home, make sure you keep that money aside for the 'unexpected costs' because they come when you least expect it and when it is most likely to hurt. -- Murphy's law redefined for homeowners