You had to accomplish a lot in the first year after you bought your home—fixing up everything that was broken, doing some cleaning here and there, and updating the old and worn. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the end of your home maintenance journey. To stay in tip-top shape, your home requires a certain amount of maintenance each year. You can’t neglect the roof, ignore chipping exterior paint, or let the shrubbery become overgrown and pray the home maintenance fairies come and sort everything out for you. The tasks you need to check off each year aren’t complicated and don’t require much more than a call to a professional and a sizeable bucket of cleaning supplies. It’s easier—and cheaper—to get them knocked out immediately instead of waiting another year and allowing them to worsen. If you’re wondering about things that every homeowner should do once a year, read on.
Have the Roof Inspected
It might seem like overkill, but it can prevent major problems and even a full roof replacement down the line. It’s best to have your roof inspected every spring. People tend to neglect maintaining their roof in the winter, and for good reason. Nobody wants to spend their time outside in the freezing cold. Unfortunately, winter can do a lot of damage to your roof. The needles and leaves that fall from trees can land on your roof, and then wash into your gutters when the snow melts. The snow itself will weigh down your roof, which can lead to cracks and other forms of damage. Once the snow melts, the excess moisture can even facilitate the growth of mold. Have your roof inspected by a professional each year to minimize damage.
Schedule the Exterminator
Another thing that every homeowner should do once a year is call the exterminator. You might not have any reason to suspect a pest invasion, but these critters are smarter and sneakier than you’d think. Having your home inspected each year will allow you to catch infestations before they get out of hand. It’s one thing to have a single mouse or insect in the house. It’s another thing to have mice skittering across your feet or a family of cockroaches munching on the sandwich you made for lunch.
Get Some Spring Cleaning Done
Performing a thorough cleaning of your home each year has two benefits. Your home will look amazing and you might unearth things that need fixing. You may find a leak behind the fridge or a hole in the window that’s been letting in water. There are a lot of things around the home that could use some cleaning: the gutters, the carpets, the windows, the cabinets, the drawers, and more. It might sound like a lot of work, but you don’t have to do all the cleaning in one day. Spread it out across a week or even an entire month.
