Pros and Cons of a Home Warranty

A home warranty is different from having home insurance or a maintenance plan on your HVAC unit; so should you invest in one? Baggett Heating and Cooling explains the pros and cons of having a home warranty

A home warranty does not replace home insurance as it is meant to protect your home’s systems and appliance repair and replacement costs. While having a home warranty may sound like a good idea, Baggett breaks down the pros and cons that may help you decide.

Pros of a Home Warranty

• Peace of mind, especially if you’re not handy.
  • Home warranties can benefit new homeowners, especially first-timers who aren’t familiar with their home’s system.
• Fewer unexpected costs.
  • You’ll know the premium costs and deductibles you’ll have to pay for repairs so you can budget accordingly.
• It may be able to be transferred.
  • If you’re buying a house and those previous owners purchased a home warranty, they may be able to transfer it to you once they sell the property.
  • This isn’t the case for all warranties, so have them confirm they’re able to transfer it.

Cons of a Home Warranty

• Not everything is covered.
  • Read over the terms and conditions to understand exactly what your warranty covers. We hear from many homeowners that what they assumed would be covered, actually wasn’t.  So the “peace of mind” pro, could be a false sense of security.
• Most warranties don’t cover systems that haven’t been properly maintained.
  • If the previous owner did not take care of the system and it breaks after you move in, it won’t be covered. 
• You’ll have to pay the premium whether or not you need repairs during that calendar year. 
• Many respected and reputable companies will not work with home warranty companies.  Baggett does not and here’s why:
  • There is a lot of red tape, red tape is wasted time we can’t recoup.
  • We are forced to accept the prices they believe they should pay. We must base pricing on what’s necessary to provide knowledgeable, professional technicians and fast, reliable service.
  • More often than not, they will only cover “band-aid” repairs when a more expensive repair or replacement is in order. We prefer to give homeowner’s all the options and let them choose which is best for them.
• Due to the limited providers which will work with them, your wait time on a service technician and then repair could be much longer than if you had dealt directly with your preferred provider.
• Many start-up companies will contract with home warranty companies as a way to establish customers, which is smart on their part.  But for the homeowner that could be risky. The Bureau of Labor Statistics says that ⅔ of new businesses fail within two years and less than half survive 5 years. 

Our staff is here to help you understand whether or not a home warranty makes sense for your system. To help prevent any malfunction or ensure your system works properly on brand new or even older systems, Baggett recommends regular maintenance performed on your HVAC system. Regular maintenance is best for your equipment, and also it protects warranty coverage as well. Learn more about routine maintenance and join Baggett’s Preferred Customer Maintenance Club.

Baggett Heating & Cooling has served the Clarksville/Montgomery County area for over 40 years. Contact us by phone, text, or email.