Photo Credit: Todd Kent (Unsplash)
Many people spend years working towards having the money to be a homeowner. However, simply buying a property is only the first step in home ownership. To make a house a home, you’ll need to invest time and money into ensuring that everything is in working order.
Financing home improvement and repair expenses crop up unexpectedly, and often at the worst of times. For instance, your heating system might break down in the dead of winter. A home requires a great deal of investment to maintain and grow its value. Whether it is a problem with the roof, a broken air conditioner, or a kitchen redesign, being a homeowner can feel like a never-ending DIY project. Financing these repairs or improvement projects isn’t always easy, but there are a number of ways to do so. It is up to you to decide which option works best for you:
Budget
If you are particularly good with money, then the good idea is to create an emergency fund. Put a little away each month into a high-interest account that you can access without too much notice. This way, you’ll have a financial cushion to fall back on in case the unexpected happens.
Credit Cards
If you don’t have an emergency fund or haven’t accumulated enough to cover the cost of your home improvement project, an easy way to solve the problem would be using a credit card. If you’ve got a high limit on your existing credit card, you can just borrow money from it. If you don’t, you can always apply for a new credit card to cover the costs. Despite the fact that this is an easy line of finance, credit cards aren’t always the best option. They may be convenient, but you are likely to have to pay high-interest rates and have high monthly repayments too.
Bank Loan
A more viable option when it comes to accessing a large sum of money might be to take out a personal loan from the bank. Interest rates do tend to be high and repayment plans are short, but you’ll probably have more freedom when it comes to what you spend the money on.
Short Term Loans
Unfortunately, not everyone will be able to access credit facilities or a bank loan. This is often because a person has a bad credit rating or has no borrowing history. In such cases, you may need to look for alternative sources when it comes to finding funding for your home improvement project. You’ll find that there are a number of private companies that offer competitive loans without making people jump through hoops to qualify. For example, it is possible for a borrower to get loans from iCash in a matter of minutes. What’s more, all the bureaucracy can be handled online, making this a highly convenient solution for all parties.
Don’t despair if you find yourself in a bit of a pickle when it comes to dealing with home repairs. These things have a habit of happening at the worst possible moment, but thankfully there are options available when it comes to obtaining finances. Explore your options and weigh which alternative works best for you.
