How to cope with unexpected home repairs

Whether your own your own home or you rent you are always going to be hit with unexpected home repairs. Luckily for a lot of renters, any big repairs might be the responsibility of your landlord and you won’t have to think about them too much but there will still be other bits and pieces that you will need to take care of. With home owners, you are responsible for anything that might crop up and that can be really stressful. Here are a few ways to cope when something does happen:

Don’t panic

Firstly, if something happens at home it’s important to keep calm and try not to panic. This can make a break or problem seem bigger than it might be and it might make you worry about it more than you need to. If you’re not sure what to do or where to start then call a trusted friend or family member and they can help talk you through what you might need to do, or at least help you to come up with a plan.

DIY

Nowadays a lot of things can be learned by watching video tutorials on somewhere like YouTube and this could be anything from how to tile a bathroom to how to put up a shelf on your own. If something breaks at home unexpectedly it might be something that can be fixed both cheaply and easily. If this is the case, why not give DIY a go and try to fix it yourself.

Contact a tradesperson

Of course, not all jobs are easy to fix and some things you might not be able to do yourself. If this is the case then be sure to contact the right tradesperson for the job and get some quotes. Be sure to get a few quotes before you agree any work with anyone and make sure you’re happy with who you have chosen. You can always ask in local Facebook groups for recommendations too.

Emergency fund

One of the best, and most sensible ways to cope with any unexpected home repairs is to have an emergency fund set up. Although it can be hard sometimes, especially when income is low, to put money aside each month this one is really important. This is the kind of savings account that you can top up as much as you can afford each month but it will all add up, even if that’s £5 at a time. After a couple of months you’ll have enough for a new toaster or kettle if yours suddenly breaks and the longer you save, the bigger the problem you’ll have money for.