Professionals every first home owner should have in their contact list

If you are a first-time homeowner, establishing relationships with the professionals you’ll be calling on time and again for regular maintenance — and unexpected repairs — is essential for the long-term well-being of your home.

To help you establish your own team, we list home professionals who should be in your contact list for a well-maintained home:

1. Handyperson

This jack- or jill-of-all-trades can handle miscellaneous jobs around the house, including everything from hanging art and mirrors to installing closet shelving and making minor repairs.

Once you’ve found a good handyperson, keep a running list of small jobs you’d like to have done, and schedule a day of work whenever you have several tasks on it.

2. Painter

Unless you prefer to DIY, chances are you’re going to need the services of a painter sooner or later. From whole-house interior and exterior painting to specialty jobs like refinishing kitchen cabinetry, a skilled painter can get the job done quickly and beautifully.

Some painters handle only the actual painting, while others offer a host of other services, including colour consultation, decorative painting, drywall repair and wallpapering.

3. Plumber

A good plumber is a lifesaver when your kid somehow manages to get lego bricks stuck in the toilet pipe, but unclogging pipes isn’t the only thing this pro is good for.

Having a trusted plumber in your contacts is key when you need to install new fixtures, find the cause of poor water pressure or do repairs after a pipe bursts.

4. Roof and Gutter Company

One of the best things you can do for the longevity of your home is keep the roof in good shape — and the way to do that is by having regular roof and gutter maintenance done (tip: Put it on your calendar).

Once you’ve found a roofing and gutter company you like, set up a regular cleaning and maintenance schedule so you don’t have to worry about forgetting this important task.

5. Air Conditioning and Heating Service

To keep your ducted or reverse cycle system running smoothly and efficiently, it’s important to have maintenance and cleaning done regularly. The same air conditioning and heating repair pro who can take care of your heating and cooling system can usually also clean dryer vents, a simple but vital service that can prevent dryer fires.

6. Lawn and Garden Care Service

A lawn and garden care service can take care of mowing, to be sure, but even if you prefer to cut your own grass, there may be some tasks worth hiring a pro to take care of.

A gardener can help set up and maintain a drip irrigation and sprinkler system, trim hedges, prune rosebushes, and even handle seasonal leaf and snow removal.

Or you may want to look for a gardener who designs gardens from scratch or has a specialty, like creating drought-tolerant landscapes or edible gardens.

7. Electrician

Whether you want to install dimmer switches, add outlets, put in landscape lighting, service your ceiling fans or rewire an entire house, a licensed electrician is the right pro for the job.

Interested in adding smart lighting or other smart home features? An electrician can help with that too.

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This article via Houzz does not constitute advice; readers should seek independent and personalised counsel from a trusted adviser that specialises in property, a tax accountant and property design specialist.