Marc Cuniberti We often go into the weeds on economic issues here in Money Matters. Today, instead of going into the weeds however, we’ll go down the rat hole.
Literally.
One wouldn’t think that rats have anything to do with economics, but these furry little bastards just had a sizeable economic effect on my budget when they chewed away at not one, not two, but three of my cars electrical systems.
I had no idea rats held an affinity for wiring, but they do, and it cost me over two grand in total to fix all three cars.
All three cars were covered with one of those car covers at one time or another and that was the only similarity between them. My daughter was away at college so I covered her Mazda for a few months. The two other cars I cover to preserve the paint since they don’t get driven more than once a week or so.
I do have a monthly pest service but it wasn’t until the cars warning lights came on and we got the cars up on a rack that we discovered why the various electrical systems went out. The rodents had munched through various wires and harnesses on all three cars.
It was then I called the pest company and they informed me that covered cars can become homes to rats seeking shelter. Rats need to sharpen their teeth and they did so on my vehicles costing me a S**T load of money.
That got me thinking about my monthly services in general and the ones I have, which are few. But it can be an economically viable in certain cases to have a monthly service versus calling a company every time you have problem.
The three monthly services I have are pest control, a home warranty and a pool service. I have good reasons for having all three.
I once had rats in a house in Marin County. And you never just have one rat. They infested the walls before I even knew what happened. I tried trapping them myself, and that turned out to be a nightmare. We tried poison, and the rats died inside the walls. What a cluster that was.
If you have a bad pest problem, or a rat or mouse shows up, you have to address it immediately. If you don’t have a monthly service, you have to schedule a one-time service call. They’ll likely charge you up a “visit” charge just to come out along with the actual service charge. If they have to come back out, bang, another fee. It’s pretty much the same with a lot of service contractors.
In contrast, I pay about the pest guys $43 a month for whatever I need, whenever I need it. I call them any time and they come out the next day and they take care of everything, no questions asked, and no bill. They even have non-toxic solutions. So I’m good with that.
On the pool service, I guess I could do that myself, but I had small children in the house, and I did not want the chemicals around. With all the businesses I have, I am very busy. I just don’t have time to balance the pH and various chemicals and I suck at it anyway.
I am told that if you get the wrong PH or a chemical imbalance, you can possibly stain the bottom and sides of the pool as well as damage the equipment. So the monthly service fee here also made sense for our family.
Finally, I have a home warranty service. I pay about $150 a month now, up from about $60 a month when I started 15 years back. There is a $100 charge every time you call but over the years I have had almost every appliance replaced as well a couple of well pumps, a heater and pool pump. There is no doubt I have saved tons of money and stress using this service.
I will continue to have all of these contracts as they make economic sense because they have saved me time, money and stress over the decade and a half I have used them.
Whether you decide any monthly services for your home maintenance requires a bit of research and some simple math. Taking a few minutes to see what contract services are available on a monthly basis versus calling someone out every time you have a problem may be a worthwhile endeavor.
“Watching the markets so you don’t have to”
This article expresses the opinion of Marc Cuniberti and is not meant as investment advice, or a recommendation to buy or sell any securities, nor represents the opinion of any bank, investment firm or RIA, nor this media outlet, its staff, members or underwriters. Mr. Cuniberti holds a B.A. in Economics with honors, 1979, and California Insurance License #0L34249 His insurance agency is BAP INC. insurance services. Email: [email protected]
