Renewing home warranty....a waste of money? (1 Viewer)

[RobR]

Our townhouse my wife and I bought almost a year ago came with a one year home warranty. We used it on four different occasions for various repairs, most of which were already broken or slightly malfunctioning when we first occupied the house (each trade service call carries a fee of $45). We're undecided whether or not to renew it since we plan to remodel the kitchen and are getting all new appliances (dishwasher, cooktop, oven, sink, etc.), which will come with their own 1 year full warranty.

Renewing the warranty is $369. With each service call fee being $45, I'm not sure it's worth the money.

Do other homeowners on this forum use them, and if so, are they worth the money? Have you ever gone the whole year w/o the house requiring some kind of repair?

 

[Carl Johnson]

You'd be better off putting that $369 into a savings account and paying cash for repairs. I've been a homeowner for about a year now and I've spent less than that for routine maintenance. Besides, there has to be a limit to how much they will fix on a $45 service call.

 

[ken thompson]

Are you sure you have the option to renew? Usually the warranty companies do not allow people to buy these things for themselves rather only to people that are selling their homes. The warrantees are usually only good for the buyers after the home sells. I could be wrong.

 

[BrianB]

I could be wrong.

I think you are. We recently bought a "pre-owned" house that comes with a one year warranty through AHS that we're most certainly able to renew. We've already had them out to fix our furnace system.

 

[Justin Lane]

I guess it all depends on how handy you consider yourself. If you own tools and don't mind doing some work, I would get rid of the warranty. The only thing I would think a warranty would be useful with is appliances out of warranty. I would just the save the money and if a situation came up that required non-major repair, I would buy the tools and maybe a book on how to complete the repair. Ultimately this method would probably save you money, increase your collection of tools, and increase your overall repair knowledge which is nice to have as a home owner.

J

 

[ken thompson]

Brian, I guess they all must be that way then. Certainly warranty companies couldn't vary in their policies.

Rob, check with the company and see if renewing is an option for you. Some definitely dont allow it.

 

[BrianB]

Certainly warranty companies couldn't vary in their policies.

Sigh, Ken. You stated that you felt warranties weren't renewable. I gave an example showing you were wrong. No need for the heavy sarcasm.

In fact, out of boredom, a quick Google search showed up a bunch of "home warranty" companies. I clicked on the a few of them and they were open to anyone to get a contract - NOT just "house sales".

 

[Matt Stryker]

I've got an AHS warranty right now, and not only will they let you renew it, they seem to be anxious to get you for another year.

Is it worth it? I guess it depends on the age of your house. My house is 24 years old, and the furnace/blower is the original equipment. So the $370 a year is worth it for my peace of mind if it goes. With a newer house, I'm not sure if I would be as obliged to pay for it.

 

[Philip_G]

I've got an AHS warranty right now, and not only will they let you renew it, they seem to be anxious to get you for another year.

that should tell you something right there
When my dad started his HVAC business it was the home warranty companies that provided the business to get it off the ground and build a customer base. Honestly you're better off paying out of pocket, you'll get better service. The home warranty companies are so cheap. They also don't pay for code upgrades, so if you replace the furnace they'll put in the cheapest furnace, using the cheapest contractor, and you'll end up paying for all the upgrades so it will pass inspection. Unless the contractor doesn't permit the job, also common sadly.

 

[RobR]

The AHS (American Home Shield) warranty I currently have is certainly renewable. In fact, they've sent me three renewal notices already.

I haven't had to replace anything in the house, but AHS states in its policy that, if unrepairable, they'll replace the item with an equivalent one, i.e., if you have a cheap dishwasher, you get a cheap replacement and vice versa. I don't know how true that is in practice, but perhaps one of you who had to replace something through the home warranty can comment on this?

 

[ken thompson]

Not only do they replace a cheap dishwasher with a cheap dishwasher. But they replace a 10 year old cheap dishwasher with a 10 year old cheap dishwasher.

 

[MarkHastings]

While Mo is checking to see if the crayon in Homers brain made him dumb again:

Homer: "Extended Warranty? How can I loose!???"

Save the money and buy more DVD's!