Paying your housing expenses should be one of your top priorities, even when times are tough.
After groceries and food expenses, it can be tempting to spend your money elsewhere, but paying your housing expenses first is the key to healthy financial habits and a successful homeownership.
To help you organize your payments, we made a list of which housing expenses is best to pay first.
Mortgage Payment
This is, without a doubt, the first payment you should be making every month.
Things like buying a new car may feel like a good idea before making your mortgage payment, but they’re not.
When you start down a path of paying your mortgage late, you jeopardize your homeownership status and credit.
Paying your mortgage payments first and on time will build your credit history, and shows future lenders that you are a consistent and responsible homeowner.
While rent payments don’t affect you credit, establishing healthy financial habits is important and help keep a roof over your head.
Utilities
Part of keeping a roof over your head and making sure your homeownership payments are paid first is paying utilities.
Gas, electricity, and water are the prime utilities that need to be paid in order to maintain a running household.
With all the streaming options available these days, many have opted to get rid of their cable bill for a more cost effective option.
Home Insurance
Paying your home insurance is vital to protecting your home and belongings from any unexpected incidents.
Theft, loss and or damage in or outside your home might not be a common occurrence, but having up-to-date home insurance will help you cover the unexpected costs.
Home insurance will help with covering the cost of repairs as well as accommodations. For example, if a fire occurred in your home and you became displaced, home insurance would cover the cost of living in a hotel.
Monthly home insurance payments are vital to being prepared for emergency situations pertaining to your home.
Maintenance Costs
Another very important housing cost you should always pay first is home maintenance.
Even if you don’t have an emergency savings fund, make sure that you spend your money on repairs before buying other items you may not need.
If home maintenance items aren’t addressed right away, they could end up costing you even more money in the long run.
For example, a damaged piece of siding could cause allow moisture to form in your home and cause mold. A small crack in the foundation could lead to water seeping into your home and causing damage to the basement and walls.
Avoiding your home maintenance could have a domino effect taking a bad issue and making it worse.
To prevent major damage and stay on top of your home maintenance, check out this blog or download our home maintenance checklist to help you.
Property Taxes
Your property taxes are another housing cost you should always pay first. Even though this payment comes once a year, it’s important to pay by the due date.
If you make a late payment, many municipalities and counties have a late payment penalty. The longer the payment is outstanding, the more interest you will end up paying.
A great way to prevent this from happening and to avoid a lump sum payment is getting your property taxes incorporated into your monthly mortgage payment. This will ensure your property taxes are paid on-time avoiding additional interest charges.