Young House Love

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Replacing An Old Furnace & Getting A New Roof

When we bought our house, there were two big issues we knew that we needed to deal with right away:

  • the ancient furnace for the first floor was so poorly maintained we weren’t sure it would run
  • the 32 year old roof was at the end of it’s life and there was a hole in it (it was actively leaking into the attic every time it rained)

Roof 2

Thankfully we knew about both of these issues when we bid on the house, and we were able to negotiate thousands of dollars back at closing to go towards those updates (since a new roof and a new furnace are hardly cheap fixes). Then it was just a matter of getting them repaired as soon as possible. So while we were on our book tour, picture us playing phone tag with furnace folks and roofers in order to get those things straight while bouncing around the country. And by some miracle, we were able to get the furnace cleaned and running along with a completely new 50 year dimensional shingle roof within a few weeks of owning the house.

Roof3

It was crazy to see how much rot there was (in some cases, the entire roof, including the plywood underneath, had to be removed and replaced).

Roof4

It definitely got a little worse looking before it got better…

Roof5

… but Clara didn’t seem fazed by the 2′ piles of old roofing stuff around the house. Atta girl.

Roof6

Ahh, much better.

Roof8

Oh and as for how we chose the roofer, we used them on our first house and loved them (they’re a a fully insured family owned local business who’ve been in the roofing game for nearly 60 years). We still got three roofing estimates again, just to be sure, but they came in at the best price plus they were folks we had used already – so it was a nice easy choice.

When it came to choosing the type of roof, we looked around at homes in our neighborhood and noticed that the brick colonials that we loved the most had this type of roof (it’s a 50 year dimensional shingle roof that has nice big slate-like shapes going on, which seemed more to scale with the house) so we pulled the trigger. You can see them best on the lower roof on the left of the house (that’s over the garage) in this picture:

Roof7

You get more of the slate-like look when you get closer. Here’s a photo of a smaller awning on the back of the house that shows how beefy and square-ish the tiles are. The brand is GAF Camelot 2, and the color is Antique Slate. It actually has a lifetime warranty, so although it’s occasionally known as a 50 year roof, it could hold up longer (knock on wood). Plus it has the Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval, which is nice, but I always wish there was an actual seal (you know, with a ball on his nose) in the logo. Missed opportunity.

Roof Detail2

But while the new roof felt like a nice long-term fix (which was especially comforting after we confirmed that there was no long-term damage or mold from that leak) we continued to have issues with the furnace. So that initial fix felt like a band-aid while the new roof was a nice solid improvement. Apparently the furnace was original to the house (32 years old) and had never been cleaned. Never! They didn’t even think the filter had been changed once. So yeah. It was, in the words of Rob Lowe on Parks & Rec, LITERALLY a hot mess.

Old Furnace

And since it was so old and has never really been serviced or maintained, it was incredibly hard to find parts. So finally after our 5th service call or so (we were smelling gas in the garage, which was SCARY and we worried there was some sort of leak or carbon monoxide issue) we got a pretty amazing call from our home warranty folks. We were getting a brand new Goodman furnace (which comes with an awesome warranty). On the house! As in, it was going to be free thanks to the 1 year home warranty that we got when we bought our house (we paid about $500 for it at closing because we knew if anything major broke in that time, it would be covered, and that peace of mind seemed worth it to us). Let me tell you, when they pulled into our driveway with a new 5K furnace (which included free installation and some new duct work)… that $500 was the best money we ever spent!

New Furnace

So those are two updates that we did way back when we got the house, just because they couldn’t wait. Sorry it took so long for us to share them, we had to clear out some moving chaos that we had amassed in the garage to get that breathtakingly gorgeous after shot of the furnace that you see above.

On one hand it felt really nice to check two major things off the list so early (especially since one was free from the home warranty company and one was paid for with money that we got back at closing), but it was also a nice early lesson that juggling two houses was a lot more overwhelming than one. In fact John’s parents had to meet the service folks at our new house for an emergency furnace appointment once because we were on a plane coming back from a tour stop in Palo Alto.

So we got these two big important things taken care of as quickly as we could and immediately clicked back into “current house mode” in the hopes of avoiding immediate brain combustion (that’s a thing, right?). Then once we wrapped up the tour, the holidays, and the rest of the projects we wanted to complete at our last house, we finally allowed ourselves to switch gears back into “new house mode.” Which was so exciting it made me want to write one word 3,000 letter posts like this:

Squuuuuuuuueeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

While doing this dance.

So there’s gotta be a lesson in here somewhere, right? Maybe it’s “seriously consider the $500 home warranty, just for the peace of mind!” And I think there’s something to our roof-picking method (we literally just drove all over our neighborhood staring at the ones we liked best and tried to analyze why we liked them). Did you do a “neighborhood crawl” like we did? Have you ever gotten anything for free within the first year of home ownership thanks to a home warranty?

Update: It has been really interesting to read everyone’s experiences in the comment section. While a bunch of folks have scored new items thanks to a home warranty (and some people renew them every year since they find them to be so worth it) others haven’t been as happy with theirs and have terrible stories of frustration and disappointment. It seems to really depend on the region, warranty company, and each individual situation.

Comments

  1. erin says

    We love our home warranty too. It came in handy when our furnace motor died on the coldest night of the winter. They sent someone out to fit it/replace the motor on a Sunday morning and aside from the warranty price we only paid the $60 service call. I can’t imagine what it would have cost if we didn’t have the warranty.

    We also used the warranty in out last home to replace teh garbage disposal and for party of the heat pump. Our warranty only covered part of the heat pump, but that was still $1000 off the cost of a new one.

    Reply

  2. Elizabeth says

    I love home warranties. I never used one on my first house, but the sellers provided one on my second house. I had to pay the $25 service fee to get someone out to look at the hot water heater when it broke. They pushed the reset button and left. But when it stopped working two more times that same week they came out and replaced it with a new one. And I only had to pay the service fee once!

    Reply

  3. Coley G says

    Can you tell us which home warranty company you use? Mine doesn’t cover very much. They always have a “reason” for not replacing the broken item and it’s usually because the item wasn’t maintained properly.

    Reply

  4. Diane Taylor says

    That is wonderful!! A warranty that is actually worth paying for!! I have to say – we got a new gas furnace last year (the old one was ancient, ran on oil and was HUGE and took up way too much room!!!) and I must say….I spent the first few days just going to the basement to look at it and pet it. Niiiicccce new furnace…..lol.

    Reply

  5. Lorraine Gray says

    I enjoy seeing you go through “normal” stuff like this. I recently had to replace our furnace and water heater. Big dollars, lots of quotes but in the end – not a diy job. Only the professionals could do it, and I’m so happy for the peace of mind knowing that it’s done for a long time to come.

    Reply

  6. Erica says

    I had a home warranty when I purchased my house almost 4 years ago, but I never used it. :-( I was kind of hoping my furnace would die so they would replace it. My furnace is a lot like your old one- about 30+ years old, and while I think they did maintain it a bit, I still worry about it. It’s not very efficient either. I guess I will just have to save my pennies for a new one! My roof was replaced by my insurance company because of a hailstorm we had last year.

    Reply

  7. Amber says

    Yep, we got a new AC and heater out of our home warranty. We also had other leaks and appliance issues. Needless to say, the home warranty company did not offer us a renewal after 1 year :) The best part? The sellers paid for the warranty, not us! We just had the $60 service call fees to pay, and we’ve only had a couple of things go wrong since that warranty expired. Whoop!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      That’s awesome! When we sold our first and second house, we paid the $500 for the warranty for the seller since it seemed like such a small amount to hopefully help them out and inspire confidence in the house. Haha!

      xo
      s

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Oh yeah, we were shocked they gave us a new furnace since we hear they’ll do anything just to replace a small part so your system limps along until it’s out of warranty. Totally wasn’t our experience though!

      xo
      s

  9. Kate says

    We must have the worst home warranty ever!! It came with our house, and when our hot water heater died all over the basement the first time, we were charged $60 to have them replace a valve. When, a week later, it died for the second time, it only covered a small portion of the water heater replacement cost and we were out over $700! When the guys were at our house for an unrelated issue (our furnace is so old, we still have to manually feed water into the boiler), they said the warranty company would only cover the first $1,000 of the furnace replacement and we’d have to cough up the next $6k! I’d love to know who your warranty company is. $500 for a fully comprehensive home warranty is a bargain, especially considering what it’s already gotten you!

    Reply

  10. Jerri says

    I have been a long-time fan because I fell in love with your wedding portion of the blog. Now, I love you even more because you featured my #1 favorite artist, Céline Dion! My son and his fiancée are in the market to buy a home and I have guided them toward your blog to learn everything they need to know about home buying and DIY stuff. I may even let them borrow your book from me. You guys rock! xoxo

    Reply

  11. Heidi S says

    The timing of this post could not be more ironic- my house just turned a year old and I went downstairs last night to find a puddle in the basement next to the furnace :( Oh and it’s a 113 year old house with a dirt floor…. super fun night last night :) Luckily I love diy and have my own pvc pipe cutters, so I rerouted the leak myself. But I have been looking up furnace maintenance and care since last night- I know the previous owners did not even replace/install an air filter correctly.

    Reply

  12. mp says

    I’m still shaking my head that the previous owners didn’t even change the filters on the furnace. Although I shouldn’t be surprised: our house had a blown oil furnace in the basement, which had clearly exploded: one guy who looked at it said it appeared the owners hadn’t done a thing to maintain it. That seems to be a habit with some folks.

    Reply

  13. Betty Johnson says

    After living in our house for 6 years and saving the pennies, we replaced the old furnace with a Goodman. It has only had one service call in the last 17 years!
    Of course we regularly change the filters — I thought that was a no-brainer!

    Reply

  14. Em says

    In my first home, the first week I lived there lightning actually hit and took down a tree in my (very small) backyard…and landed it on my neighbors roof. Earliest homeowner’s insurance claim ever…and EVERYONE’s response was “Welcome to homeownership”.

    Reply

    • Courtney says

      That’s a super early claim. and I am so sad I actually had one sooner. I’d rather have not had on at all, but we bought our house the day before a blizzard and at 7 am the next morning a neighbor was knocking on our door because a tree branch knocked over a 4 foot section of her fence and was blocking the driveway.

      I was in tears, she was yelling and hollering about how we were going to pay for it. My insurance agent thankfully said it was ‘an act of God’ and her own responsibility…but I thought we were so screwed.

  15. Megan Ann says

    We also recently replaced a 30 year old furnace…it wasnt original to our house, but looked about the same as yours (model was a Lennox). We had a similar issue with parts breaking which were difficult to find for that model. When we made the decision to replace, it was a world of difference. Our new unit is more energy efficient and quieter, and cools so much better. Enjoy!

    Reply

  16. Karen says

    Can you tell us a little more about how to maintain/clean a furnace? I know to replace the filter, but I didn’t realize there was more to do than that. I’ve always been a renter so maybe I’m just shielded from that by my landlord. You guys are great at educating me about my future home ownership responsibilities!

    Reply

  17. Nora Rose says

    That seems so surprising (but awesome!!) about the furnace. I wish that would have happened with our furnace. It was maintained and works but it’s an old beast and showers have to be very short so we’re getting it replaced this month to take advantage of rebates and lower costs during the summer (non-peak months). Luckily my BF’s father works for an oil company and can install it for us. Good news for all of us, huh!

    Reply

  18. Liz says

    We had a one year new construction warranty and thank God we did! New construction “settles” a lot in the first year, so the warranty covered everything from nail pops in the ceiling and walls to the fact that part of our roof flew off in a freak wind storm! (We built in the winter — lesson learned, roofs need HEAT to fully cure and adhere permanently to the house!) Worth every penny!!

    Reply

  19. JennyA says

    Those one-year home warranties are a godsend. Way back in the day (2003) we went ahead and did that when purchasing our own 30 year old house and it more than paid for itself in that first year. We had a fridge and a microwave go kerblooey, the under sink disposer, a hot water heater AND one of the HVAC units (which, like your furnace, had been original to the house and was in pretty sad shape — it was mysteriously banged-up like the previous owners had just gone out and whacked on it with a sledgehammer or a 2X4 when it wasn’t working properly). So I’ll always be in favor of the extra $500 bucks or so!

    Reply

  21. Anja says

    We got a new roof 3 months after buying our house when a hurricane hit our town. Not quite the same, but a relief none the less! (The roof was old, and we knew we would be replacing it withing a couple years)

    Reply

  22. Vicki Reynolds says

    Hi, I know this is conpletely off the subject but since you all are so darn helpful!! My niece moved to Richmond after finishing college and needs a mechanic for her car. Single girl in a big city. Do you have a couple you might recommend for future needs?

    Reply

  23. Ashley S says

    The new roof looks great. I’m just blown away that you got both of these huge improvements done while balancing the book tour and getting your “old” house ready to sell. And without spilling the beans on moving yet! Impressive.

    Reply

  24. Dawn says

    When we lived in Pennsylvania, we had an Old Republic warranty on our house. They paid for a new A/C unit when the 30-year-old one that came with the house died. Well worth the $450 (I think) we paid for the warranty back then.

    Reply

  25. Christine says

    I admit I’ve never investigated getting a home warranty— just really substantial insurance. Are they that different? Apologies if that is a really basic/silly question. And on a related but off-topic matter, if there is such a thing!, how are your former neighbors doing? The ones who had the tree go through their roof? Did they get their place put together again?

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Oh they’re so sweet! We miss them a lot, and their house is back and better than ever! They got a whole new bathroom and bedroom makeover from that, and they had the best can-do attitudes while going through the whole thing. As for the warranty, I think it varies a ton by region, so I’d just ask your closing attorney what options you have and read the little fliers to see what you like.

      xo
      s

  26. Lindsey S says

    Omg, our home warranty was a NIGHTMARE! We had to call them for our oven (that died right after we moved in, even though it was newer), which they fixed with no problem. Then our shower upstairs was leaking into the basement, and they told us if we wanted it fixed, we had to tear out our shower and give them access to our plumbing… meaning we had to gut our shower, and basically re do our bathroom, to fix the leak. So we did. THEN our A/C died. No matter how we turned it on, the house was flaming hot! It was 85 inside our house in mid summer! Scorching! So we called them, and the guy showed up and literally put his hand over our vent and said “Its blowing cold air, its fine” So we called again and said “that guy was crazy!” ( we have a friend that does HVAC, so we asked his advice on what was actually wrong so we know if the home warranty was jacking us around! Unfortunately, they wouldnt let us choose our own HVAC guy or this could have been much easier!) We scheduled another visit from an HVAC guy, and he never showed up… tried 3 more times…. no one ever showed up! I had to call off work for this! All and all we were supposed to end up with a new AC unit, but they jerked us around until our warranty expired. It was a nightmare!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Oh that’s the worst! Our warranty let us pick the companies/service providers that we preferred (ex: a heating/cooling company that we trusted and had used before) so that was so helpful! I hate that it varies so much by region/warranty company though.

      xo
      s

    • Elizabeth says

      I had a good experience at first with the home warranty and they eventually needed to replace the AC unit. I was told how much of the replacement they would cover and after it was replaced they wouldn’t cut me a check for that amount. I finally got a check in the mail when I reported them to BBB with all the backup I had of when I had called, what had been said, etc. At that point I was just happy for my check (and new AC) and didn’t bother with them after that. I’m sure they just sent the check to get me (and the BBB) off their back!

  27. Bonnie says

    We had our outside air unit replaced after being in our house about 6 months. We had to pay $75 or $100 but it took about a month to get it replaced. Thankfully it went out in April but there were a few hairy days of heat. I live in Louisiana and we were already using our air on some days when the unit went out!

    Reply

  28. Kay says

    My short history as a homeowner also entails roofer, home warranty lessons. On the happy end: After I lost the back half of my roof in Hurricane Gustav, my roofer neighbors replaced my entire roof (when insurance would just pay for damaged part) with 50-year architectural tile for the cost of their laborers’ pay because I used to let them park their trailers and stuff on my corner-lot parking pad.
    So, be nice to your neighbors.
    On the horrible side, also hurricane related: I also went for the home warranty when I purchased my house because it was a mid-century house with original a/c. The home warranty company went out of business (New Orleans-based, just after Katrina) just after I paid for my second year of warranty and just before my a/c needed replacing. It really wasn’t worth it, financially, to fight in small-claims court, but I’m still pretty livid that they cashed my $400+ check a few weeks before disappearing. Not sure what the lesson is from that experience. And, my financial loss is nothing compared to the lives lost and ruined by Katrina. I’m glad your home warranty worked out as they’re supposed to. That, at least, renews a little faith in the concept.

    Reply

  29. Emily says

    Before we put in a retaining wall at our first house, I spent months driving around looking at other people’s retaining walls. I had never really given retaining walls a thought before… but canvassing our neighborhood for ideas was great; it gave me an idea of what I liked as well as what would work for our house/neighborhood.

    Reply

    • Lisa in Seattle says

      Emily, we’re doing that right now – trying to find examples of a retaining wall with a fence a foot or so behind it and a planting area between. We’ve also been looking for attractive porch options for our style of house, and the short answer seems to be that no such thing exists.

  30. Bonnie says

    Our home warranty companies have always sucked big time, and never want to foot the bill for stuff. Even when they did replace my HVAC, they would only pay for $1500 of it. Beware of these scammy, awful companies!!!

    Our new home warranty company on our new house is better about paying for stuff, but it always takes more than a week to finally get a guy out.

    Reply

  31. Rachel says

    We got a home warranty (paid for by the seller, woot!) when we bought our house 3 months ago, and it’s already come in handy to give us a free A/C tuneup, including 6 lbs of freon, and to snake out the main when the plumbing backed up into the tub one day (yuck). No big expenses for us like your furnace, but definitely gives us a lot of peace of mind. And, the A/C tuneup alone saved us a good chunk of change that we were happy to keep since we were busily renovating. We’re so thankful our realtor suggested having the seller pay for the warranty!

    That’s amazing about your furnace! What a great use of $500! We were watching HGTV’s “Love It or List It” last night and I was laughing once again at the people who are so upset that they are “throwing money away” when the renovators insist on replacing walls with asbestos, fixing a crumbling wall, or replacing a bad furnace. Yeah…it’s not as visually appealing as shiny paint or fixtures, but….it’s pretty awesome to know you have new/safe/updated/working things in your house – even if they are things like a roof, or furnace or electrical panel. Glad you guys can get excited about those things too. Silly people on HGTV shows…. :)

    Reply

    • Lisa E says

      I know, right? Their ignorance drives me crazy. To me it’s just common sense and you don’t need to be well versed to know that stuff is paramount over pretty!

  33. Jamie says

    We have been looking into getting a home warranty and have been comparing multiple companies but just can’t decide who to go with. We don’t know many people with a home warranty so haven’t been able to get any references and the reviews on line are so skewed it’s hard to get honest feedback on any of the companies.

    I’m not sure if you can share the info but I’d be really interested in knowing what company you used for your warranty?

    Thanks!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Oh yes, here the common one seems to be Old Republic. It’s the one we’ve paid for (for the buyer) when we sold our first and second house, and the one we bought at closing for all of our homes (wait, I think the seller paid for it for our first house actually).

      xo
      s

  34. Ashley says

    I am wishing someone would have told us about getting a warranty… We just bought our first house in November and then with the wet spring in Colorado, had ground water issues in one of our basement bedrooms :( Now we have to tear it apart and install a sump-pump. The joy of owning a house!

    Reply

  35. erin says

    Could you tell me more about your home warranty? I’m going to be a first-time home buyer soon (waiting on our short sale approval to go through soon) and I’ve never heard anyone tell us about a home warranty to purchase at the time of closing.
    Is it a regional thing? or should it be something I look into (I live in the Chicagoland area). I think it might be worth looking into for us since we are also paying for a wedding for next year.

    Thanks for any help or advice!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      I would just ask your loan agent if there’s a home warranty you can buy and how much it would be (they usually have a flier with info and you can just read it and opt in or say no thanks). Our company is called Old Republic, but I think that might just be in VA.

      xo
      s

  36. Megan says

    Love the roof, we just did ours this year and it looks sooo purty now!! BUT… my darling amazing husband left some of the lids off my Christmas décor boxes when he put them back in the rafters…. SO, when it came time to decorate for Christmas there were old shingles and tons of dust and basically just crap in my boxes… NOT a happy camper let me tell you!!! He got a nice lesson on the importance of lids!! haha

    Reply

  37. Meredith says

    We LITERALLY are in the process if buying anew house sooooo similar to your new one! It’s our first home! It’s like a mini version of yours. (Wish I knew how to post a picture here). The roof is slate and the colonial is all brick. Wejust did our home inspection. I am adoring being a few steps behind you in this process because I have already learned so much. $500 first warranty will be our next move! Thank you so much!

    Reply

  38. Marcy says

    My sister just purchased a home warranty on my mom’s house, which she’s been living in for years. Home warranties aren’t just for newly purchased homes. It would seem that the keeping that policy enforce is a good idea, IF the coverage is good. Lots of examples here of not-so-great coverage:(

    Reply

  39. kim says

    We bought our house and added an inlaw suite to our detached garage. Our roof was pretty new and matched the style of our house/garage well so we told the contractor just to match what we had. He said “which roof? the front or back?” and we had no idea what he was talking about. Turns out that the previous owner re-shingled the roof, but only the side toward the street!! We never noticed because the its not a side of the house/garage that you can really look at…our contractor only noticed because he was walking around on the roof!

    Reply

    • Rebecca says

      I hear ya – we found out that our house is four different colors of yellow! (The back addition isn’t even really yellow – it’s more of a peachy color.) I didn’t even realize the three different yellows on the front and two sides until we had insulation blown in and I went to match the paint and it only matched one wall!

  40. shereen says

    When I purchased my first place, it was a new build condo and everything was in tip top shape when I moved in. BUT after a few weeks I noticed my laminate hardwood floors did this crazy dip when I walked over it in a few spots. My condo “warranty” covered the cost of a whole new floor! The bummer was that I had to move all my furniture out while they replaced it (a month after moving in! Grrr!).

    Reply

  41. Katrina says

    I love reading all of your new house updates! It’s been a cool coincidence for us, I came across your blog while we were in the house hunting/short sale process, and then a week or so after we signed, you announced your new house. Then after we refinished our hardwoods, you put in hardwoods. Literally yesterday we signed a contract for anew 50 year roof. Your blog is so the meant-to-be inspiration for our house! Thanks for being so cool!

    Reply

  42. Amie says

    We call it stalking. We’ve been porch stalking, lawn stalking, shutter stalking, front door colour stalking, everything-stalking, since we bought our first house, and we aren’t even in it yet! We are seeking out ideas that work well with similar homes in our neighbourhood. It’s a great way to see what works and doesn’t work, without having to do it on your own house!

    Reply

  43. JudyMae says

    Warm & dry, that’s wonderful. Our 125 year old house did not qualify for a warranty. We basically just knew it needed a lot of work. Loved it so much that did not matter. Been here 23 years now. Still not done. Funniest thing was one window did not even have glass in the lower section. When we looked at the house, one curtain open; that window, curtain closed. Was guest room so just put in bed & dresser and shut the door. Worked on our other house for 6 months before it sold so not home much. First Spring, opened window, did not notice no glass in it. Not sure how I missed that?? Put my fingers on windowsill to close it that night and my hands went right through the “glass” or where the glass should have been! Get a home inspection. The inspector on house we sold even found one outlet that was polarized wrong. They would have found glass that was missing so at least we would have known better what we were dealing with.

    Reply

  44. Torey says

    We actually renew our home warranty every year. So far we have gotten a new faucet in the kitchen, new garbage disposal, a new bathroom faucet, the heating element replaced on our hot water heater 3 times, countless drains (including the main line drain) cleaned out, a new furnace (we had to pay some towards that but still cheaper than having to foot the whole bill), new seals on our fridge/freezer, and a few other small things. Our house has old appliances and it is actually more economical for us to buy the home warranty and have the company fix them as needed (they will replace if unrepairable). Plus they fix plumbing issues, heat, air conditioning, hot water heater, etc. I find too that things are more likely to be fixed rather than having a repair man just tell you have to buy a new one (I’m 100% sure the hot water heater would have been replaced on our dime if we didn’t have the home warranty). I think it’s a great thing, especially if you aren’t handy and anticipate repairs on various things in your house.

    Reply

  45. Carrie Lea says

    I got a home warranty as well so when the bathtub cracked after a few months of living there because the idiot who flipped my house didn’t level the floor I thought, “No worries, warranty will cover it.”. NOPE. Their reasoning? It wasn’t an APPLIANCE! I had no money to fix the bathroom (cause ya know, life savings went to down payment, ect.)so I crimped and saved and a year and many shallow baths later (NO showers could be taken either! Water would gush EVERYWHERE.) I was able to gut the bathroom, (thankfully there was no mold damage except on the very disgusting wet moldy subfloor that was 3 layers of plywood with slugs living in it and I still want to puke thinking about it omg.) and now I have a level tub. And can shower like a normal person. And learned to tile from John Petersik. YAY!
    So, I hate the home warranty people with the passion of a thousand burning nova’s.

    On a less intense note, I keep hoping you will share photos of the rooms with all your stuffs in them now… anxiously waiting…. PLEASE!!!!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Oh man, I can’t believe that! They totally should have fixed that for you! And as for the rooms, we’re hoping to share them as we go (ex: living room last week, bathroom yesterday, etc). It would be fun to do a “one month in” post like our “one day in” one, so we might do that too!

      xo
      s

    • Carrie Lea says

      They were total buttheads about it too. I will never use that company again if I ever move.

      I’m so impatient it isn’t even funny. :) Can’t wait to see more! And see the Listy McListerson for this house!

  46. Courtney says

    We bought a home warranty for a house we were selling. This particular one included coverage for the seller while the house was on the market. It cost us around 350 dollars. When we found out that our water heater was leaking we got a brand new one. Since the heat in that house ran off the hot water heater, it was a pretty pricy item–over 3k. The new owners were delighted and so were we! I would certainly do that again.

    Reply

  48. Kristin says

    I got a new washing machine within the first few months, thanks to the seller-provided home warranty.

    That freakishly hot day Richmond had back in early Spring revealed that my A/C was kaput, but my warranty company said replacement would cost me $1200 in “uncovered costs.” (WHAT!?!?!) They ultimately decided to replace only the compressor, which cost me $290 out-of-pocket. Since I had purchased additional years of home warranty specifically because of the A/C, that $1200 was quite a disappointment.

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  49. Kristy @ Kristy's Health Revolution says

    We just bought our first home (SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!, also doing that dance above), and it came with a one-year home warranty paid for by the sellers. The only thing that the home inspector showed serious concern for was the hot water heater, which is 19(!!) years old, but apparently still functions. I plan on just kicking it a lot while we have that warranty and hoping it breaks :)

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