How intense is your fear of home maintenance?

Home maintenance scares a lot of people. A pipe leaking somewhere in the house. Kitchen appliances not working properly. The roof leaking or needing to be replaced. Mold or termites doing damage to the property. Mice or bugs entering the home.

Few people would say that they “enjoy” dealing with these kinds of issues.

Many people actually decide not to pursue home ownership because of a fear of these types of issues.

If you are in this category, you probably feel safer to know that there's a landlord who is legally responsible to deal with this stuff at the building where you are a renter.

But this fear can prevent you from accessing one of the best financial resources available in our economy - home equity, which only comes from home ownership.

Fundamentally, renting does guarantee that your landlord must make sure your apartment or rental home is “habitable.” However, habitable does not mean “profitable.” Even if your apartment is maintained in excellent condition, there's no way for you to sell that apartment for a profit when you move out. And while you are living there, your landlord may have the opportunity to raise your rent over time, making it less favorable for you financially.

As with most fears, we usually begin to overcome them by talking about them. What are some of the “home maintenance” challenges that scare you the most? Ask someone in your circle if they have the same fear or a different one. Get the conversation going, and keep going forward toward your goal of home ownership.