Fall Maintenance That Protects Your Home’s Value

Most of what actually lowers a home’s appraised value isn’t cosmetic — it’s deferred maintenance that turned into water damage, and fall is when the conditions for it set up. A few hours of work before the first freeze prevents the repairs that later show up as adjustments on an appraisal or as an insurance non-renewal.

Water management, which matters most:

• Clear gutters and downspouts so water discharges away from the foundation instead of pooling against it
• Check the grading around the house — soil should slope away from the foundation, not toward it
• Seal exterior gaps around trim, siding penetrations, and hose bibs before freeze-thaw cycles widen them
• Shut off and drain exterior spigots to prevent a burst supply line inside a wall

Systems and structure:

• Service the furnace and replace filters before the first hard use of the season
• Inspect the roof and flashing for lifted or missing shingles, and the attic for daylight or staining
• Test smoke and CO detectors, replacing batteries and any unit more than ten years old
• Trim limbs overhanging the roof, a common source of both impact damage and gutter clogs
• Reverse ceiling fans and check weatherstripping to reduce heating load

Insurers and appraisers tend to notice the same three things — roof condition, evidence of past water intrusion, and the age of major systems. Fall maintenance is inexpensive. The foundation repair, mold remediation, or coverage non-renewal that follows skipping it is not.