5 unexpected costs associated with owning a home

Whether you’re a first home buyer, or a seasoned property owner, buying a home is one of the biggest purchases you’ll make. Owning a home can come with unexpected costs – here's five to consider.

General maintenance

Regular maintenance tasks are necessary to keep your home in good condition and to avoid wear and tear. Maintenance can happen at any time and should be budgeted for. Some of these include:

• Cleaning gutters
• Servicing heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems
• Routine upkeep
• Pest control  

Breakages, repairs or upgrades

Owning a home comes with occasional breakages and repairs – these can happen over time, or quite suddenly. Some minor repairs can be done yourself, but for larger issues, you may need to hire professionals, which can be costly. Some examples include:

• Roofing & tiling
• Heating, ventiliation and air conditioning systems
• Plumbing

As your home ages, the costs associated with these repairs may build up.

Renovations

If you’re buying an existing home, or have lived in your home for a number of years, you may be considering renovating. Renovations require planning and a budget, as they can be significant expenses. Renovations include:

• Updating the kitchen
• Remodelling the bathroom
• Repainting the home
• Reflooring your home with different materials

Remodelling

While renovations focus on the aesthetics of your home, remodelling involves changing the purpose or structure of a space. Homeowners may consider remodelling if you’ve outgrown the space, want to change the layout of a room or want to alter the floor plan. This can be a labour-intensive and expensive process, often requiring professional assistance and significant budgeting.

Property taxes

In some regions, homeowners may be subject to additional property taxes, such as land transfer taxes or capital gains taxes when selling their property.

Over time, these costs can add up, especially when you haven’t budgeted for them. Learn more about costs associated with buying a home, and tackling the process here.

This article is intended to provide general information only. It does not have regard to the financial situation or needs of any reader and must not be relied upon as financial product advice. Please consider seeking financial advice before making any decision based on this information.‍

Unloan is a division of Commonwealth Bank of Australia.

Applications are subject to credit approval, satisfactory security and you must have a minimum 20% equity in the property. Minimum loan amount $10,000, maximum loan amount $10,000,000, and total borrowings per customer across all Unloan loans is $10,000,000. (For purchase loans a minimum 10% equity is required - however a Lenders Mortgage Insurance (LMI) premium and higher interest rate apply. In some cases, depending on the property’s location or type, an LMI premium may also be required for LVR between 70.01% to 80%). For loans with Lenders Mortgage Insurance (LMI) the minimum loan amount is $10,000, maximum loan amount is $3,000,000 and total borrowings per customer across all Unloan loans is limited to $3,000,000).

Unloan offers a 0.01% per annum discount on the Unloan Live-In rate or Unloan Invest rate upon settlement. On each anniversary of your loan’s settlement date (or the day prior to the anniversary of your loan’s settlement date if your loan settled on 29th February and it is a leap year) the margin discount will increase by a further 0.01% per annum up to a maximum discount of 0.30% per annum. Unloan may withdraw this discount at any time. The discount is applied for each loan you have with Unloan.

*At Unloan, we do not charge any annual, application, banking, account, transaction, late or exit fees. In certain circumstances you may be required to pay a Lenders Mortgage Insurance (LMI) premium. Learn more about why this is applied and how it works. Government fees may also apply. Learn more about government fees here. Your current lender may charge an exit fee when refinancing.