Why Wait for the Punch List?

by Audrey Ryan | Nov 1, 2019

Many of our customers are people that are either buying or selling a home in the Lake Travis area. Lakeway, Spicewood, Bee Cave and Steiner Ranch are all booming places for real estate exchange. Before a sales, and in a lot of cases after a third party inspection, we’re called out to address a punch list of service items.

Home sellers are looking to fix common electrical issues like non-functioning outlets, weathered outdoor lighting, or “hot dimmers” which are dimming light switches that feel hot to the touch when in use. Home sellers are also making upgrades to increase the salability of the home. These often include updating light fixtures, installing fans, and wiring home technology. While all of these projects are designed to maximize the home’s form and function for the next owner, the question we want to ask is –

Why wait until you sell your home to enjoy the form and function it can provide you now?

Homeowners don’t have to wait until they’re putting a home on the market to start enjoying the convenience of fully operational electrical appliances and technology. But they often learn about simple ways to scale up their home environment when they’re looking to maximize their home’s appeal for someone else. This means they end up finally replacing that tiny old ceiling fan or updating their front entry chandelier only months before they have to leave it all behind.

Why do people wait?

Awareness

Sometimes the reason for the delay in making fixes and upgrades is simply awareness. Homeowners don’t always know of all the electrical issues that need to be addressed until an inspector identifies them. They may only become aware as they come across one issue at a time while living in the home. And one small issue doesn’t seem as urgent as a handful of them, so an electrical appointment isn’t top of mind. But these small issues keep adding up over time, and the homeowner ends up dealing with little electrical malfunctions all through the property for no good reason.

Cost Perceptions

Often homeowners overestimate the costs to address common electrical issues or electrically supported upgrades. The truth is, there are many ways to increase the form and function of your home that don’t cost an arm and a leg. We do free estimates for home improvement projects to help homeowners understand the many budget-friendly options that could help them achieve their improvement goals with money left over.

Complexity

Homeowners sometimes expect the process to be very involved. They expect a lengthy service appointment that could last the entire day. If the project required changing out fixtures or old technology, the homeowner may struggle with making purchase choices for these items. If the homeowner isn’t as familiar with home improvement in general, they may not even think it’s possible to fix or upgrade some of the problem areas in the home, until a realtor or home inspector brings it up.

Simple solutions exist to solve many common electrical problems, and in many cases, experienced electricians can perform the work in an hour or two. A free in-home project estimate or even a phone consultation with our experts can help homeowners understand the service call process and the possibilities for improving the home. We can also make recommendations when it comes to narrowing your material selections. Our electricians see hundreds of homes each year and complete hundreds of projects for homeowners in the area. Our perspective comes in handy!

So don’t wait to enjoy your home the way it was intended! Let us help you make it enjoyable and appealing to your family now, and to any future buyers whenever or if ever that time comes.