Not really much advice other than being proactive about issues, but it is funny how concerned you quickly become with all types of water once you own a home. Rain intrusion, drainage in the yard, leaky pipes, dripping noises, frozen pipes, gutters, humidity, water heater, storms, etc, etc. It’s a real menace and so are squirrels (as I also found out after purchasing a home).

So many people who are mentally and cognitively bankrupt own houses. They never do any maintenance on them, or if they do, they never do it right. And yet, their houses aren’t (always) falling apart.

Houses are more sturdy than our anxieties convince us. Fix things little by little as they come, prioritize what comes first. Your house won’t fall apart or blow up. This is what I tell my wife when she gets nervous about something creaking.

I remember going from being super excited that I owned the walls and fixtures around me to then realising I owned the walls and fixtures and no-one else was going to fix them. Not everything needs doing now though, so separate the issues into things you can live with, mid-term renovations and now things.

Oh, and always remember you’re not paying off someone else’s mortgage anymore!

Remember this is a marathon and not a sprint. So think in long terms for fixing things. Even if you sell the house having something done correctly will increase the value. Fix something and maintain as best as possible to keep it working or as high value. This feels best if you do it room by room so you can enjoy the things you fixed.

NEVER start a plumbing project when the hardware or big box stores are closed.

Paying more for good quality tools to fix things properly can seem like a luxury initially, but they’re worth it when you’re 10 years down the line and still able to use the same set as if they were brand new.

Don’t tell me… I’m 36 years old. Five years ago, I bought my house—an old one in a small town here in Spain that needed a complete renovation, including the roof. After four years of very, very hard work, mostly done by myself, I managed to restructure the house. I redid everything except the exterior walls. I moved in six months ago. So, here’s what happened: last month, some workers were installing new fiber optic cables for the whole street. They climbed onto my roof without asking and drilled a hole in it to run the cables—without my consent. For the past two weeks, I’ve been battling the fiber company and insurance to get this fixed. Meanwhile, I’ve had a bucket in one of my rooms for two weeks, and the room is now full of humidity and mold. The entire ceiling, which is made of drywall, needs to be completely redone. My hair is falling out nonstop—I’ll be bald like a light bulb in a couple of months if this keeps up.

It beats having a landlord.

Know when to bodge a fix, and when to nut up and spend some time and money on something. Damp mouldy patch on the ceiling? Have a look in the ceiling space, see if you can spot the issue, fix it if it’s easy. Slap some mould killer on it, done, don’t worry about it. If it comes back? Get it fixed.

Writing shit down helps. I’ve got a whole todo list of things that need to be fixed. It’s shitty how long it is, but because it’s written down it’s already half taken care of and I don’t have that random stress of ‘oh good that’s right there’s a leaky shower’ and having to remember to do that thing.

List the issues, google one by one how to bodge it, decide if it’s worth it.

Bought cheap and underestimated the effort needed to make it your ideal. At least that’s my experience. It can get overwhelming at times but I find a certain peace I’m taking it as the demon you know. I get a lot of bugs in the spring when the weather starts to warm and it’s damn annoying, but know that when the weather gets more stable they’ll leave and I can get back to normal. It’s sort of a zen thing to recognize that it’s almost 100 years old, so yeah, there are going to be some annoyances, can’t call it unexpected.

Basically just make it your own, and do what you can when you can. Unless you’re rich and have all the resources/time in the world there’s no point in getting in a panic that it can’t all be done at once.

When you hear a loud noise just think to yourself “Please be haunted and not something expensive…” it’s what I do.

The biggest advice I can give is put systems in place to reduce as much as possible the list of things you have to manage freeing up your mind and time to solve more complex issues.

Stick a hose on the dehumidifier route into the drain never empty it again as an example where as before you emptied it daily or every 2 days.

Maybe take a moment to appreciate the incredible privilege you have to own your home. Nearly everyone reading this will never get to own a home.

Learn to fix these things.

I get ants turn up maybe once a year during summer. putting some ant killer powder down when they show up usually sorts them out.

DIY isn’t too hard, plenty of vids on youtube about how to do more or less everything.

I did all the laminate flooring in the top floor of my sisters house using nothing but youtube, a dremmel and a mitre saw.

I probably should have invested in a laminate cutter in hindsight but i got it done

I can only say, learn how to fix things. Like, everything. Because everything is going to fail at some point, and that $4000 quote to fix it doesn’t look so good.

Rodents or possums in the ceiling, call the local pest expert for advice. They’ll usually give you that because they don’t want to come out and get in your roof stage themselves.

Snakes? Don’t go under the house in hot weather. Keep trimming the grass/weeds close the house especially if your kids play there.

Invasive root systems like white poplar near the house? Either have a professional kill and relive the tree, or did up the roots every time you see a shoot come up.

Generally look around the house. Think about how each thing could fail (gutters, roofing, stairs, electrical, plumbing, paint, windows). Think of worst case scenarios for those things and what you would do if that happened. Prepare for it whether that means having the number of someone who can do it, or how you can do some DIY repairs, even if it’s temporary.

Finally. Bush fire. Are you prepared? Do you have a plan? Do you have timeframes for doing your bush fire preparations every year? Talk to neighbours and find out their plan and see if something similar works for you. You can stay at home and fight fires, but the mental toll of doing that can be crippling and possibly never recover. My plan is for the family to leave immediately, and I gather all our important stuff and follow as soon as possible.