We’re having a successful ‘repair season’ this Summer in terms of productivity & financial standing. In Minnesota, a year’s worth of exterior home repairs gets shoehorned into the 6 months from May through October to take advantage of the good weather.
Right now our neighborhood is awash in a wave of roofers, siding companies, concrete sealers, landscapers, and painters. Salesmen – often the owners of their own little companies – are meeting with neighbors on sidewalks in front of their houses. Their pitches are interrupted only by other neighbors asking if they can stop by and look at their houses next.
We had a big hail storm blow through the neighborhood in late May. We just found out yesterday – when the adjuster climbed on the roof with our contractor – that we sustained enough damage in the storm to warrant a new roof. There are 48 homes in our immediate neighborhood and I’m guessing about half of them are in line for new roofs right now.
Our roof is only 13 years old in 2022, and despite 40 year shingles, the whole thing is needing to be replaced. The whole project is estimated to cost $35-$40K. Our share will just be our $2.5K deductible. I have to say that our insurance company, State Farm, was very good to work with in this claim. (That hasn’t been the case with several recent auto claims).
I’m hopeful that by autumn’s arrival, our whole house will be adequately ’hardened’ against Winter’s fury. We got painted last year, our concrete is well-sealed annually, and now a new roof. Should be good for a few years!
What projects are queued up for your Summer ‘Repair Season’?
MrFireStation 
A State Farm Underwriter didn’t like the ivy covering the front of my house for fire safety and infestation reasons. Because I live in a wildfire area, the local fire department inspects my house every year, and they tell me that they do not see the ivy as a risk. I have had a total of six rats and one rattlesnake enter my garage in 33 years, which hardly qualifies as an ‘infestation’ problem. More of a kid left the garage door open and a rat went after my grass seed.
I was unable to convince the underwriter that the ivy isn’t a problem.
So I am pulling down the ivy and will be replanting with Southwestern Theme featuring succulents, agave’s, tall cactus, and maybe a small tree. I am also planning to replant a large planter with a mix of native wildflowers to feed the birds and butterflies. I will also need to scrub and paint the stucco to cover up the discoloration left from the ivy.
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Are you going to do that landscaping work yourself, or do you have a guy to do that for you? We pulled out 8 old shrubs recently, to replace them with 8 new ones. The old ones were so hard to get out, my wife and I both said never again!
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Myself of course. Beats a trip to gym.
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