A home warranty is the best way to protect your home and your investment. Home warranties can help keep your home looking its best and ensure everything in it, like appliances, is in working order. Whether your home is new or old, discover these six home warranty benefits for homeowners.
Home Warranty vs. Home Insurance
First and foremost, note that a home warranty is not the same as home insurance. A home warranty is a contract between a homeowner and a home warranty company that provides discounted repair and replacement services on a home’s major appliances, including your HVAC system, furnace, plumbing, electrical and other appliances.
Home insurance, on the other hand, protects your home against unforeseen damage caused by natural disasters. This can be damage caused by hail, high winds, rain and more. However, it will not help cover normal wear and tear on your home.
Reasons To Have a Home Warranty for a New Home
Your home warranty coverage does not change based on the age of your home. But your reasons for a warranty may vary depending on the age of your home. For new homeowners, check out these three reasons to consider a home warranty.
Protect expensive appliances.
Many new homes come with new appliances. A home warranty can help protect those appliances if something stops functioning or needs fixing. With this coverage, many household appliances can be repaired or replaced with a comparable item.
Home system repairs.
Although new homes may have fewer issues than older homes, they still have maintenance concerns. For example, if your garage door isn’t working, your toilet won’t stop running, or your garbage disposal is clogged, your home warranty can help cover the cost of a service visit or repairs.
Handyman services.
Not sure who to call to repair an appliance? Your home warranty company has agreements with approved service providers. If one of your appliances breaks and is covered by your home warranty, contact the home warranty company. They will send a technician to assess the situation. Once your coverage is confirmed, they will arrange for the repair or replacement of the appliance for a small service fee.
Reasons To Have a Home Warranty for an Older Home
Older homes may have more pop-up and planned maintenance projects than newer ones. To account for this and other cosmetic details that may arise due to age, here are three home warranty benefits for homeowners of older homes.
Repair of aging home systems.
Certain components of your home systems can deteriorate, even with routine maintenance. If a home system dies due to age, a home warranty can often help with the repair or replacement expenses.
Replace older appliances.
Are your aging appliances suddenly not keeping up with household demands? It may be time to replace them. Fortunately, a home warranty can help pay for new appliances without disrupting your household budget.
Home exterior maintenance.
If the older home you fell in love with needs some exterior work, a home warranty means using their handyman services to assist with the upkeep of your home’s exterior, from pressure washing to landscaping.
Summary
Even though a home warranty isn’t the perfect solution for every risk or hidden cost of owning a home, there are many home warranty benefits for homeowners. Ultimately, things can go wrong, and a home warranty can be the difference between draining your savings or paying a small fee and avoiding unexpected expenses.
Need guidance? Connect with a Lee County Association of REALTORS member, and continue reading our blogs for more.