9 Common Home Repairs Tampa Bay Homeowners Should Prepare For

Buying a home in Tampa Bay for the first time can be very exciting. There’s nothing quite like walking into a house that you just purchased and starting to make it your own.

But when you own a home, you need to be prepared to do more than just decorate it. You also need to be ready to tackle home repairs on a pretty regular basis.

In fact, experts will tell you that you should save about 1 to 3% of the purchase price of your home to make Tampa home repairs. That means that if you buy a $200,000 home, you’ll need to have at least $2,000 on hand each year for fixing it up.

You should also be aware of the different types of home repairs that Tampa homeowners are routinely forced to make. This way, you’ll know what you can expect when it comes to making repairs to Tampa homes.

Check out nine common home repairs that Tampa Bay homeowners should prepare for in advance.

1. Roof Repairs

The good news for those who own homes in Tampa is that hurricanes don’t hit the city directly very often. But the bad news is that hurricanes do come awfully close to the city almost every year, and many of them tend to do their fair share of damage to Tampa homes.

With this in mind, it shouldn’t come as a shock if a nearby hurricane causes enough wind to do damage to the roof of your Tampa home. It could cause shingles to rip right off of your roof, and it could also result in your roof leaking in a worst-case scenario.

You should make sure that you have a good roofing contractor on speed dial so that you know who to call if a hurricane ever damages your roof. You should also get into the habit of having roofers inspect your roof every now and then to ensure it’s in great condition.

2. Window Repairs

The whipping winds that are caused by hurricanes can damage more than just the roofs on Tampa homes. They can also do quite a bit of damage to the windows on them if they aren’t boarded up.

If you ever have any of the windows in your Tampa home damaged due to high winds or other weather conditions, you shouldn’t hesitate to reach out to a window company for assistance. They can either make repairs to your damaged windows or replace the windows altogether with new ones.

Whatever the case, you won’t want to allow damaged windows to linger around for any longer than you have to. They’ll let moisture and air leak into your home, and they’ll also serve as a security risk if you aren’t careful.

3. Siding Repairs

OK, so at this point, you know that hurricanes and other forms of inclement weather can do damage to your roof and your windows. But did you know that there is also another aspect of your home that they can damage?

That’s right! They can also do damage to your siding, especially if you have vinyl siding on your home. Wind can tear pieces of siding right off your home and send them flying.

This will hurt the curb appeal of your home. But maybe more importantly, it’ll also leave your home exposed to the elements for long periods of time. You might have moisture creeping into your home before you know it and causing all kinds of complications on the interior of your home.

You shouldn’t hesitate to have siding repaired or replaced as necessary. Otherwise, you could be forced to face even more expensive home repairs down the line.

4. HVAC Repairs

The temperatures in Tampa tend to stay on the milder side during the winter months. But for most of the rest of the year, you’re going to be looking at temps up in the 80s and even 90s on many days.

You might not mind throwing open the windows in your home on some of these days. But more often than not, you’re going to want to turn your home’s HVAC system on and let it cool your house down.

This will, however, be a problem if your HVAC system ever conks out on you. You’ll need to get it back up and running again ASAP so that your house doesn’t get too hot.

You can get more info on repairing your HVAC system fast so that you don’t have to suffer for too long.

5. Plumbing Repairs

If you live in a Tampa home for a long enough period of time, you’re eventually going to have at least a few plumbing problems pop up and rear their ugly heads. In some instances, they’ll be relatively minor in nature, but in others, you could put entire sections of your house at risk if you don’t fix them.

A clogged drain would be a good example of a minor issue that you might be able to knock out on your own with a plunger and some patience. But a backed-up sewer line could literally make it unsafe for you to live in your home if you don’t get around to fixing it right away.

It’s great to get on good terms with a local plumber almost as soon as you buy your first home in Tampa. You never know when you’ll need to call on one out of the blue to come out to your house to fix a plumbing problem.

6. Electrical Repairs

In addition to getting in good with a local plumber, you should also make it your mission to befriend a local electrician while you’re at it. Because while plumbing problems are sure to present issues for you at some time, so are electrical problems!

An electrical outlet might start sparking out of nowhere one day and suggest that it’s ready to start a fire at any point. Or your entire electrical panel might give out on you and need to be replaced.

You’ll be so glad to have an electrician on standby who can handle these kinds of home repairs. It’ll make your home as a whole safer and stop you from having to worry about your electrical system.

7. Flooring Repairs

Floods are, unfortunately, not all that uncommon these days in Tampa. Many Tampa homeowners have had floods impact them in a big way.

If your Tampa home ever floods, you’ll likely have to get rid of a lot of the things that you keep on the lower levels. You’ll also need to have the flooring in your home repaired or maybe even replaced if the flood damage is bad enough.

You should make sure that your home has the right type of flooring in it to withstand floodwaters. You should also be ready to spring into action to get floodwaters out of your home before they can do too much damage to it.

8. Deck Repairs

When the temperatures are too high in Tampa, it’s nice to be able to sit outside on a deck and soak up some rays. If you’re lucky enough to have a deck attached to your home, you’ll want to spend as much time as you can out on it.

But you won’t want to spend too much time on it if you suspect that it might fall apart at any second. You’ll also be concerned about allowing anyone else to sit on it because of its current condition.

Rather than trying to keep people away from your deck, why not have it repaired so that you can begin using it again? You can breathe some much-needed life back into an old deck by making a few simple home repairs to it.

9. Foundation Repairs

Ideally, you won’t ever have to spend a single second thinking about the condition of your Tampa home’s foundation. But if you have even the slightest concern about your home’s foundation, you should have it addressed immediately.

The foundation of your Tampa home is obviously one of the most important parts of it. If it fails on you, you’re going to find yourself with a huge headache on your hands.

As a result, you should inspect your foundation every so often and look for any signs of trouble. If you see any cracks or anything else that might indicate issues with your foundation, you should then touch base with a foundation company and have them take a closer look at it.

Be Ready to Make These Common Tampa Home Repairs

We hope that we didn’t just put a damper on the excitement that you’re feeling about buying your first home in Tampa. But it’s always better to be safe than sorry as far as learning about the home repairs that you might need to make.

Now that you’re aware of the Tampa home repairs that you might have to do at some point, you should keep them on your radar at all times. It’ll prevent them from popping up and scaring you when you least expect it.

Find more useful tips on caring for Tampa homes by browsing through the other home improvement articles posted on our blog.