Thank you GEICO for sponsoring this post.
It’s been about 5 months since Michael and I have closed on our first home and it’s been quite the journey so far! Let me clarify, it’s been awesome but it’s also been really stretching for the both of us. Even before purchasing our home we had to make lifestyle changes. For example, we stopped going out to eat every week and we didn’t spend money on unnecessary things or even enjoyment, like going to the movies. We made lifestyle changes that would help us save our money for what we were really wanting most: a home.
Since owning our home, our lifestyle changes haven’t gone away. In fact, we’ve made even smarter changes in our lifestyle. Today, I’m partnering with GEICO to share about how Michael and I are adjusting to homeownership, as well as sharing tips for those who are considering buying a home in the near future.
HOW WE’VE BEEN ADJUSTING TO HOMEOWNERSHIP:
1. Staying On Top Of Our Finances // From making sure that our homeowners insurance was secure to making lifestyle changes that have helped us save money, staying on top of our finances has been the best thing for us in owning a home.
- We use the GEICO Insurance Agency for homeowners insurance.
- Despite this being a paid endorsement, we genuinely cannot rave about their services enough. We’ve been using them for years before we owned a home for our auto insurance. The GEICO Insurance Agency doesn’t just help us save money on homeowners insurance, but they also help us save an incredible amount of time with how convenient their service is.
- About 1 in 15 insured homes have a claim each year and in case that’s ever us, we need to be prepared.
- We haven’t overspent on furniture or home improvements.
- We’ve been taking our time furnishing our home. We already had some furniture that was our taste before owning our home, but the vast majority of what we still need and want for furniture is costly. For example, our sitting room is completely unfurnished still but that’s okay!
- It doesn’t have to be done all at once. It’s actually more fun that we’re taking our time furnishing our home and making improvements, instead of rushing and doing it all at once.
- We’ve been paying attention to important maintenance repairs.
- Thankfully, we haven’t had to make any pressing maintenance repairs yet but it’s something that we’re keeping an eye on. If an important maintenance repair ever comes up (and they will), it’s important to take care of them right away. If end up waiting to address a repair it will most likely cost us more money in the long run.
Check out more on specific home maintenance repairs that you should never ignore here: 5 Spooky House Noises You Should Never Ignore
2. Using Our Time Wisely // Michael and I both work full-time and even though we spend our downtime relaxing, we’ve also been spending it working on our home.
- We haven’t been going on dates (outside of the home).
- Before you freak out and inform me how important regular date nights are, let me let you that we are still having date nights! Instead of going out and spending money and time, we’ve been having dinner in and have been doing work around the house.
- We have been doing simple tasks around the house each day.
- From simple everyday clean-up to working little by little on smaller home improvements, we’ve been making time for the little things here and there every day.
3. We’re Enjoying The Entire Experience // Something that Michael and I have always wanted to keep at the forefront of our entire homeownership experience is to always enjoy it. There will be tough times ahead where we’ll have maintenance issues and so on, but we never want to let those bumps get in the way of us loving our home. The fact that we get to own a home in the first place is such a blessing to us and we never want to take that for granted. Whether a window is leaking or we’re in love with a new project we finished, we’re going to enjoy it all.
- We’ve been dreaming up future DIY projects to work on this year. We also are making plans for our yard. It needs a ton of love come springtime. If you know of any plants or flowers that deer won’t eat, let me know in the comments, haha!
- We are loving hosting in our home! We have had a ton of our friends come visit for dinner and even stay the night already. It’s been great to share our home with some of our favorite people. Speaking of hosting, check out these House-Cleaning Hacks: Get Your Home Guest-Ready in 15 Minutes!
Overall, this whole adjusting to homeownership thing has been a HUGE lifestyle change for us. There are stressful days but there are many other days filled with joy.
If you’re in the beginning stages of purchasing a home, you have to check out GEICO‘s homeowners insurance service. They are simply the best!
If you use the GEICO Insurance Agency for homeowners insurance, what’s your favorite thing about their service? Do you own a home? What were some ways that you adjusted to homeownership? Let’s chat!
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Some discounts, coverages, payment plans and features are not available in all states, in all GEICO companies, or in all situations. Homeowners, renters and condo coverages are written through non-affiliated insurance companies and are secured through the GEICO Insurance Agency, Inc. GEICO is a registered service mark of Government Employees Insurance Company, Washington, D.C. 20076; a Berkshire Hathaway Inc. subsidiary.
I was selected for this opportunity as a member of CLEVER and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.
