The COVID-19 pandemic continues to affect every aspect of our lives. However, as we continue to make our way through this health crisis, we also need to acknowledge another crisis that puts all humankind at stake: climate change. Because of our actions, we’ve altered the global carbon cycle, causing temperatures to rise, weather patterns to change, and so much more.
Not only does this affect us, but this also affects our homes and the rest of the real estate industry. Weather conditions are a significant factor that affects the value of a property, and if we leave any damage caused by weather unchecked, it could spell disaster for both your home and its value. Here are a few scenarios that can cause physical and financial damage to your property and how you can deal with them.
Rain
Rain on its own doesn’t cause property and structural damage. However, if your home isn’t properly weather-proofed or has any gaps or holes that could allow rainwater to enter your home, it can cause problems that cost a lot to repair. Water that leaks into your home can chip off paint and damage wood. In most cases, areas affected by leaks are ceilings, walls, and floors- these are usually affected by stains, bubbling, deterioration, and warping. If left unchecked for a significant amount of time, it can become the perfect breeding ground for mildew and mold to form.
Ensuring clean gutters regularly and inspecting your plumbing lines, sump pump, and roof can help you prevent any water leakage that leads to water damage.
Hail
Hail isn’t very dangerous to us, but it can pose a threat to our home and our belongings around it. Even moderately sized hailstones can cause significant damage to your home by creating holes on your roof and denting gutters. If you don’t have any protection over your car, it can cause a lot of damage, such as dents, shattered glass, and in some cases, water damage. While you can easily have hail damage repaired at the shop, fixing the damage done to your property can be more difficult.
One problem can lead to another when it comes to damage caused by hail, so it’s important to know how to protect yourself and reduce a hailstorm’s damage to your home to prevent costly repairs.
Fires
Fires can be caused by many factors, with faulty wiring, cooking equipment, and unsupervised candles being among the most common causes. It’s safe to say that even a small fire can not only cause harm to you, the people in the household, and even your neighbors, but it can also cause significant external and structural damage to your property. This is why it’s important to take the right preventative measures to avoid any fire happening in the first place.
Remember to test your smoke alarms regularly, keep all your cooking appliances clean, keep an eye on your heat sources, check for any damaged wiring, and keeping a fire extinguisher in your home, among other things.
Extreme Temperatures
Extreme cold and extreme heat can damage a property’s fixtures. In colder months, temperatures below 20 degrees Celsius can cause pipes to freeze and, in some cases, burst. Once they burst, they can cause a room to flood, which can lead to even more problems than you started with. Pipes that are prone to freezing include those in attics or run-through walls that aren’t properly insulated.
On the hotter months of the year, on the other hand, your property could suffer from chipping and bubbling paint. This type of damage can lead to excess moisture, which can eventually lead to mold growth. If any part of your home is made of wood, extreme heat can cause them to dry out and become discolored.
Snow
A regular amount of snow generally doesn’t cause any problems. However, heavy amounts of snow can weigh down on roofs and gutters, causing damage to the framing that supports a roof. This can lead to leaks which can damage the inside of your home.
Melted snow that refreezes inside of concrete can also become a problem. When the snow melts, materials like concrete absorb the water, and once that water freezes, it expands. This expansion can cause cracks in concrete. If this happens, it’s important to repair these by filling in the crack immediately. If you don’t, it can cause even greater damage.
Knowing how damages brought about by different weather conditions can affect a property’s value is especially important for those who own investment properties or are interested in selling their own home. Not only can these damages cause a decrease in value, but they can also cause property downtime, deal disruptions, and increased insurance costs, among others.
As long as you maintain your property by taking preventative measures and avoiding unnecessary damages, your property’s value will be the last thing on your mind, giving you more time to be concerned with ways to improve the value of your home instead of trying not to reduce it.
