Buy or DIY
I am handy, but there are some things I just won't do.
Growing up the son of a mechanical engineer, I spent countless weekends helping my dad with all sorts of home projects. It wasn’t unusual to find me up on a ladder or handling power tools that probably could’ve chopped my arm off. I can still hear my dad shouting at me to put on shoes before going near the circular saw. (We lived in Florida. This was a Florida Thing.)
I take pride in knowing a thing or two about carpentry, plumbing, and electrical work—it’s a great flex on my less capable friends! More importantly, these skills have saved Heather and I thousands of dollars on repairs and installations. But just because I can do something doesn’t mean I always do it. These days, we’re so busy with the girls and work, there’s a value proposition to consider every time.
When it comes to home maintenance and repairs, couples face this question on the reg: should we tackle the work ourselves or hire a professional? The DIY route might save you money upfront, but it can lead to costly mistakes if you’re not prepared. The work might also be time consuming when you don’t have the time to give. Understanding when to save and when to spend can help you avoid common pitfalls and make the most of your home improvement budget.
In this edition of The Joint Account, I’m going to share my thought process as a handy-ish person on what I do and don’t do around the house. Maybe my reasoning will break the stalemate in your house. Or you’ll make fun of me. Either way, let’s do it.
Mowing the lawn – BUY. I’ve farmed this out to landscapers since the day we bought our home. Your basic “mow and blow” service isn’t expensive, and it occurs frequently enough to where I find great value in not having to be the one cutting the grass each week.
Weeding and seeding – DIY. Surprisingly, all landscaping matters aside of mowing the lawn, I handle myself. Throughout the year, I pull weeds, fertilize and trim the overgrowth from our neighbor’s plants and bushes along our fence. I also reseed the dead patches in our grass each fall. IDK, there’s just something cathartic about it, especially pulling weeds!
Snow removal – DIY. Growing up down south, I still find it crazy that I have to deal with snow. On top of that, our house has a very long and steep driveway (we call it Mt. Boneparth). So, you would think hiring someone to plow us out of a snowstorm is an obvious choice. But that’s not the case. Years ago, after paying hundreds of dollars for snow removal one winter, I decided to buy a quality snowblower and take care of it myself. I did the math: after clearing the driveway and sidewalk six times, the blower would pay for itself. It’s also good exercise and a great way to kill time on days we’re all trapped inside.
Hanging things – DIY. Last I counted, we have three different gallery walls in our home, and all of them have been beautifully hung by yours truly. Whether it’s a collection of smaller frames or one giant work of art, there’s no job too big or small for me in this department. By the way, I nearly spit out my coffee when I learned the average cost to hang a single picture is around $60. Seriously?!
Electrical work – BUY. Anything beyond installing a flush mount fixture, light switch or electrical socket is a hard pass for me. My dad always said, if you value your life, you’d stay far away from anything that resembles advanced electrical work. I prefer not to FAFO by hiring a licensed electrician. I won’t install ceiling fans, either. They’re just too big and awkward.
Paint – BUY/DIY. Painting is an interesting one. For small areas like our downstairs office or the inside of a closet, I’ll put the tarp down and get to work. The same goes for spackling and painting over holes in the drywall. But when it comes to painting entire rooms, I’ll bring in the professionals to makes sure the job is done right. Besides, there’s nothing more frustrating than messing up the edges and getting paint all over your baseboard or moldings.
Gutters – BUY. I have no problems getting up on a ladder, but I am at the stage in life where I don’t need to be risking my safety to remove dead leaves from the gutters. There are so many ways for this to go wrong, and for $110 bucks, the gutter guy will do a much better job that I ever would. He even texts me a picture of the clean gutters when he’s done. If you ask me, it’s an excellent trade.
Closets – BUY/DIY. For our kid’s closets, I went to Home Depot and bought modular closet kits. They were so affordable, practical, and easy. For our closets, though, we spent a few more bucks to have something permanent and custom made for the space we had. Sorry, kiddos. Just one of those times when we deserve an upgrade!
Baby gates – BUY. We don’t have babies anymore, but I know many TJA readers are deep in the high-touch phase of parenting little kids. You would think installing baby gates would be easy, right? Not necessarily. We outsourced and purchased custom baby gates because our main staircase is so steep and narrow. There were some tricky angles to work with, too. More importantly, when I’m looking at a safety hazard, I’d rather spend the extra money knowing the job was done properly. It was a one-time cost I don’t regret.
Plumbing – BUY. I wish I was better at plumbing. A good plumber is hard to find, and even when you find one, they’re expensive. I’ll handle a quick clog—and I’m not afraid to get messy. Having a decent snake on hand should help resolve most situations and save you a bunch of money; however, if a pipe or faucet needs work, I am calling my guy, Ryan.
Grout – BUY. I regret the one time we hired someone to grout for us. It took less than a year for his work to degrade, putting me right back to where I started. The good news was that we didn’t spend a lot, so maybe this turned out to be a case of you get what you pay for. That being said, I’ve re-grouted an entire shower before, and it wasn’t a project I had fun with. This might be one that leave us truly sitting on our (half-broken) fence. Wonder what we’ll do next time.
While I pride myself on being a DIY Dad, I’ve learned that the real magic is in knowing when to step back and let someone else do the heavy lifting, quite literally. After all, time is money, and safety is priceless. So, whether you’re hanging pictures like a pro or dodging paint spills on your baseboards, remember: there’s no shame in calling in reinforcements. As for me, I’ll be here with my snowblower, ready to battle the next storm… while the gutter guy handles the rest.
Stay handy—or not!
Here’s a throwback from March 2020, when I had to replace our wall-mounted microwave 3 days into the COVID-19 lockdown. Of course it broke the day the world shutdown. I remember the appliance store delivering the new unit six feet from our back door and the delivery guy mouthing, “good luck” to me through the glass. I am not sure if he meant good luck with installing the microwave or with the pandemic. Anywho, this sucked big time, but I came through in the clutch.
TJA in the News!
Heather partnered back up with her dream pub, TheSkimm, to share her unfiltered thoughts to a spicy question in this week’s Skimm Money newsletter:
When is it appropriate to bring up finances when you’re dating someone?
We asked, you answered
A few weeks ago, I wrote about my attempt to teach basic money lessons to my daughter’s Girl Scout troop. We then asked readers how they’ve tried to teach their kids about money. Here’s some of your responses:
The Moneybunny books by Cinders McLeod are a good place to start! My students (K-5) seem to like them. - Jessie
I find with young kids it's really about values (like you mentioned) and behaviors - recognizing needs v. wants, delayed gratification, goal setting, being charitable, budgeting, etc. These are the things that they can take into adulthood. -Esther D.
I created a daddy bond 12 years ago to teach my eldest about bonds, debt, interest. He gave me a buck. I paid him back $1.05 one week later. He was six! -Phil P.
Also, my friend and colleague Alex Chalekian recently wrote Planting the Seeds of Financial Wisdom on his blog, which provides seven amazing conversation starters for speaking with your kids about money. It’s definitely worth a read.
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The content shared in The Joint Account does not constitute financial, legal, or any other professional advice. Readers should consult with their respective professionals for specific advice tailored to their situation.