Someone recently asked a question locally that I think a lot of homeowners can relate to.

They'd owned their home for about six years and basically said:

"I feel like I should know more than I do about being a homeowner."

I get it.

You buy the house. You make it through inspections, financing, closing, moving, unpacking, and figuring out which light switch controls absolutely nothing.

Then life happens.

You go to work. You raise kids. You take vacations. You mow the lawn. You replace things when they break.

And suddenly you've owned the house for five or six years.

Now you're wondering:

What am I supposed to be paying attention to?

I'm Kim Feliciano, a Tri-Cities, WA REALTOR®, helping buyers and sellers in Richland, Kennewick, Pasco, West Richland, and Benton City.

If you've owned your home for several years and feel like nobody ever gave you the owner's manual, don't try to learn everything about your house overnight.

I'd start with the things that can become expensive problems when they're ignored.

Start With the Major-Ticket Items

When I'm thinking about a home someone has owned for five or six years, I want them paying attention to major systems and components such as:

• HVAC

• Roof

• Water heater

• Plumbing

Why those?

Because deferred maintenance on major items can eventually turn into a much bigger problem.

A small issue you catch and address today may be very different from the same issue after it's been ignored for years.

You don't need to become an HVAC technician, plumber, roofer, or home inspector.

You do need to know your house well enough to notice when something changes.

Your HVAC System Deserves Attention Before It Stops Working

Here in the Tri-Cities, we know what summer feels like.

Your HVAC system isn't something you want to start thinking about for the first time when it's struggling during hot weather.

If you've been in the house for six years, ask yourself:

When was the HVAC system last serviced?

How old is it?

Do you know?

Have you noticed changes in how well it's heating or cooling?

Are there unusual sounds?

Have certain rooms become noticeably harder to keep comfortable?

When was the last time you changed the filter?

You don't need to diagnose the equipment yourself.

The point is to pay attention.

If something seems different, don't automatically ignore it until the system completely stops working.

And if you have no idea how old the HVAC equipment is, that's a good piece of information to find and put into your house records.

Know What's Going On With Your Roof

Your roof is another major-ticket item I wouldn't ignore.

You don't need to climb onto it.

Actually, I'd much rather you not put yourself in an unsafe situation trying to become your own roofer.

But you can pay attention.

Have you noticed missing or damaged roofing materials from the ground?

Any staining appearing on ceilings?

Signs of moisture where it shouldn't be?

Anything around the exterior that suddenly looks different?

Do you know approximately how old your roof is?

If you bought the home six years ago and the roof was already older at that time, that's information worth revisiting.

Six years can go by incredibly fast.

Something that felt like a "future homeowner problem" when you bought the house may now officially belong to your current self.

Don't Forget About the Water Heater

The water heater tends to be one of those things homeowners don't think much about.

Turn on the shower.

Hot water comes out.

Great.

Moving on.

Until it doesn't.

Or until there's water somewhere water shouldn't be.

If you've been in the home for years, know where your water heater is and have a general idea of its age and condition.

Pay attention to anything unusual around it.

If you're unsure about its condition or something doesn't look right, bring in an appropriate professional rather than trying to diagnose a problem you don't understand.

The bigger point is awareness.

You don't want the first time you really look at a major component of your home to be after it has already created another problem.

Plumbing Problems Can Start Small

Plumbing is another area where paying attention matters.

Water has a wonderful ability to turn a relatively small problem into a much larger one if given enough time.

Look under sinks occasionally.

Pay attention around toilets.

Notice changes in water pressure.

Don't ignore unexplained moisture.

If you see staining, discoloration, dampness, or water somewhere it shouldn't be, investigate why.

That doesn't mean every drip is a catastrophe.

It means don't make ignoring it your maintenance strategy.

Deferred Maintenance Has a Way of Catching Up

This is really what I want homeowners to understand.

There are things we all put off.

That's normal.

Something isn't urgent.

You're busy.

It's expensive.

You tell yourself you'll deal with it next month.

Then six months go by.

Then a year.

The problem with deferred maintenance is that some issues don't stay the same while we're ignoring them.

That's why I'd rather you know what's happening with the house and make a plan.

You may not need to fix everything today.

But knowing that something is coming gives you a chance to prepare for it.

That's much better than being completely surprised.

Pull Out the Inspection Report From When You Bought the House

If you've owned your house for five or six years, here's something practical you can do:

Find your original home inspection report.

Remember that giant report you carefully read when you were buying the house?

The one that may have been very important for about a week and then disappeared into an email folder somewhere?

Go find it.

Read through it again.

You're looking at it differently now because you've actually lived in the house.

Were there deferred-maintenance items identified when you bought it?

Were there things you said:

"We'll take care of that later"?

Did later ever happen?

Maybe there was something that wasn't a major concern at the time but was worth monitoring.

Maybe something was already aging when you purchased the property.

Maybe the inspector pointed out a maintenance item that simply fell off your radar after you moved in.

Your original inspection report can be a useful starting point for remembering what you knew about the property when you bought it.

Remember, That Inspection Report Is a Snapshot From Years Ago

There's an important distinction here.

Your original inspection tells you what the inspector observed at that time.

It doesn't tell you the current condition of the house five or six years later.

Things change.

Systems age.

Repairs happen.

New issues can develop.

Old issues may have been corrected.

So I'm not suggesting you treat a six-year-old inspection report like a current evaluation of the property.

Use it as a reminder.

What was already on the radar back then?

What did you address?

What didn't you address?

What might deserve another look today?

You Can Do Simple Home Checks Yourself

You don't need a professional standing next to you every time you walk around your house.

There are simple things homeowners can pay attention to themselves.

Walk around.

Look under sinks.

Notice the ceilings.

Pay attention to changes.

Listen when something starts making a sound it didn't used to make.

Look for water where water doesn't belong.

Pay attention to exterior wear.

Know approximately how old your major systems are.

If something looks different, ask why.

You don't have to know the answer.

You just need to notice the question.

You Don't Need to Know How to Fix Everything

I think this is where homeowners can put unnecessary pressure on themselves.

Owning a house doesn't mean you need to know how to repair every part of it.

I sell real estate.

That doesn't make me a roofer.

It doesn't make me a plumber.

It doesn't make me an HVAC technician.

It doesn't make me a home inspector.

And you don't have to become all of those things either.

Being a more informed homeowner isn't about knowing how to perform every repair yourself.

It's about knowing enough to recognize when something deserves attention and knowing when it's time to bring in someone qualified to evaluate or repair it.

Want to Go Above and Beyond? Consider a New Home Inspection

If you've been in your house for five or six years and you're thinking:

"I honestly don't know what I don't know,"

you could go a step further.

Consider having a professional home inspector come through the house again.

Is that something I'm saying every homeowner absolutely needs to do every five years?

No.

This is more of an above-and-beyond option.

But there can be value in having a fresh set of trained eyes look at a house you've been living in every day.

We become accustomed to our own homes.

We stop noticing certain things.

A professional home inspector may point out items that deserve attention or recommend additional evaluation by an appropriate professional.

Then you have more information to work with.

A New Inspection Doesn't Mean Something Is Wrong

I wouldn't look at a maintenance-style inspection as:

"Let's find everything that's wrong with my house."

I'd look at it as information.

What's happening with the property today?

Is there maintenance I've overlooked?

Is there something I should monitor?

Is there something that deserves additional evaluation?

Is there something I should start budgeting for?

You aren't waiting until you're selling the house to care about its condition.

You're trying to take care of the house while you still own it.

That's a good thing.

Create a House Binder

This is one of the simplest things I recommend, and your future self may seriously thank you for it.

Create a dedicated folder or binder specifically for your house.

It doesn't need to be fancy.

You can keep information such as:

• Major repair receipts

• Service records

• Warranties

• Contractor invoices

• Installation dates

• Appliance information

• Improvement records

• Notes about major systems

If you replace the water heater, put the information in there.

If you have the HVAC serviced, keep the record.

New roof?

Save the paperwork.

Plumbing repair?

Keep the invoice.

Major appliance replacement?

Put the information in the folder.

Five years from now, you don't want to be searching through thousands of emails trying to remember who did the work and when.

Your Future Self Will Thank You

Think about how useful that binder becomes over time.

Instead of saying:

"I think we replaced that four years ago?"

You know.

Instead of wondering:

"Who serviced the HVAC last time?"

You have the invoice.

Instead of trying to remember:

"Was that water heater here when we bought the house?"

You have the installation information.

And if you eventually decide to sell, you've also built a history of improvements and maintenance records that may be useful when we're preparing the property for the market.

You're creating a paper trail for your house.

Start Learning the Ages of Your Major Systems

If you don't know how old things are, don't panic.

Start figuring it out.

You don't need to spend an entire Saturday creating a forensic history of your property.

Pick one thing.

How old is the water heater?

Then maybe look into the HVAC.

What do you know about the roof?

Do you have records from any plumbing work?

Write down what you learn.

Put it in the binder.

Now you're already a more informed homeowner than you were yesterday.

Start Thinking About Replacement Before Something Fails

One benefit of knowing the approximate age and condition of your major systems is financial planning.

If you know something is getting older, you can start preparing.

That doesn't mean replacing a perfectly functioning system solely because it had a birthday.

It means you're aware.

There's a huge difference between:

"We know this is aging, so we've started setting money aside."

and:

"Wait, how much is this going to cost us right now?"

Homeownership comes with expenses.

Planning for them doesn't eliminate the expense, but it can make it a lot less shocking.

Don't Wait Until You're Selling to Think About Maintenance

I see another version of this conversation when homeowners decide to sell.

Suddenly we're walking through the property and talking about things that have been ignored for years.

Now the seller is asking:

"Do we have to fix that?"

"Will buyers notice this?"

"Is this going to come up during an inspection?"

"Should we replace that before listing?"

Sometimes the answer is yes.

Sometimes no.

But taking care of your home along the way is generally a much easier conversation than trying to deal with years of deferred maintenance right before putting a For Sale sign in the yard.

How We Live in a House Is Different From How We Look at It

When you first bought your house, you probably noticed everything.

Every sound.

Every mark.

Every little thing the inspector mentioned.

Then it became home.

That's good.

But familiarity can make us stop seeing things.

You walk past the same area every day.

You hear the same little sound.

You know that faucet drips sometimes.

You know there's a stain in the corner.

Eventually, it just becomes part of the background.

That's why periodically looking at your house with fresh eyes can be useful.

What would you notice if you were walking through it for the first time today?

You Don't Have to Do Everything at Once

If you've made it this far and you're now mentally creating a $40,000 home-maintenance list, stop.

That's not the point.

The person who originally asked this question had been in their home for about six years and felt like they should know more.

I don't think the solution is giving someone an enormous checklist that makes them feel even further behind.

Start with awareness.

Know your major-ticket items.

Look at your old inspection report.

Identify deferred maintenance.

Pay attention to changes.

Create your house binder.

Start keeping records.

Ask questions when you don't understand something.

Bring in qualified professionals when something needs expertise beyond yours.

And if you really want a fresh set of eyes on the entire property, consider whether a new professional home inspection makes sense for you.

One thing at a time.

A Simple 5+ Year Homeowner Reset

If you've owned your Tri-Cities home for five years or longer and want a simple place to begin, here's what I'd do.

First, find the original inspection report from when you purchased the home.

Look for deferred-maintenance items and things that were supposed to be monitored or addressed.

Second, figure out what you know about the major-ticket items, especially your HVAC, roof, water heater, and plumbing.

Third, walk through the house with fresh eyes and pay attention to anything that's changed.

Fourth, start your house binder or dedicated folder.

And fifth, if you feel like you need more help understanding the home's current condition, consider bringing in the appropriate professional. If you want a broader look at the property, a new home inspection can be an above-and-beyond option.

That's enough to get started.

Common Mistakes Long-Term Homeowners Make

One mistake is assuming that if something is still working, it doesn't need any attention.

Another is repeatedly putting off a small maintenance issue without considering whether it could become a bigger one.

Another is having absolutely no idea how old any of the home's major systems are.

Another is throwing away every service record and receipt.

Another is forgetting about items identified during the original home inspection.

And a big one is thinking you need to personally know how to fix everything.

You don't.

You need to pay attention, keep good information, and know when to ask someone who knows more than you do.

FAQ: Owning a Home After 5+ Years in Tri-Cities, WA

What should I know after owning a home for five years?

Start paying particular attention to major-ticket items where deferred maintenance can potentially become a bigger problem.

I would start with the HVAC system, roof, water heater, and plumbing.

Know what you can about their age, condition, maintenance history, and repairs.

Should I look at my old home inspection report?

Yes.

Your original inspection report can remind you about deferred-maintenance items or things that were identified when you bought the house.

Just remember that an old inspection report reflects what was observed at that time. It isn't a current evaluation of the property.

Should I get another home inspection after living in my house for several years?

You can.

I consider this more of an above-and-beyond option rather than something I'm telling every homeowner they have to do.

If you feel like you don't know what you should be looking for, a professional home inspector may provide a fresh set of eyes and identify areas that deserve attention or further evaluation.

What records should I keep for my house?

I recommend a dedicated house folder or binder.

Keep things such as major repair receipts, service records, warranties, contractor invoices, installation dates, appliance information, and records of improvements.

Your future self will thank you.

What major home systems should I pay attention to?

HVAC, roofing, water heater, and plumbing are some of the first major-ticket areas I'd want a homeowner thinking about.

That doesn't mean those are the only parts of a house that matter. They're simply a practical place to start.

Do I need to know how to do home repairs myself?

No.

Being an informed homeowner doesn't mean becoming your own contractor.

You can perform simple visual checks and pay attention to changes, then call the appropriate qualified professional when something needs expertise you don't have.

What if I've ignored home maintenance for years?

Start now.

You don't need to fix your entire house this weekend.

Figure out what you know about the major systems, revisit your original inspection report, identify anything you've been putting off, and start making a plan.

You Don't Need to Know Everything to Be a Good Homeowner

If you've owned your home for six years and you're suddenly thinking:

"I should probably know more about this stuff,"

you're asking a useful question.

Start with the big things.

HVAC.

Roof.

Water heater.

Plumbing.

Pay attention to deferred maintenance before a manageable issue has the opportunity to become a much bigger one.

Pull out your original inspection report and see what was identified when you purchased the property.

Do simple checks yourself.

Ask questions.

Bring in qualified professionals when you need them.

If you want to go above and beyond, consider whether having a professional home inspector take a fresh look at the house would be useful.

And please create a house binder.

Keep the receipts.

Keep the warranties.

Keep the service records.

Write down when major items were installed or replaced.

Your future self really will thank you.

Homeownership doesn't come with a perfect owner's manual.

You learn your house over time.

If you're a homeowner in Richland, Kennewick, Pasco, West Richland, Benton City, or elsewhere in the Tri-Cities and you're starting to think about what your house needs now or what you should address before eventually selling, I'm always happy to help you think through the real estate side of that conversation.

Book a time with me here.

Kim Feliciano
Tri-Cities, WA REALTOR®

Helping buyers and sellers navigate the housing market in:

Richland
Kennewick
Pasco
West Richland
Benton City

Website: www.heykimfeliciano.com
Say hello on socials: Instagram | Facebook | TikTok
Monthly market updates: YouTube