It doesn’t take long for a home to start deteriorating, particularly if it isn’t lived in. If you want to protect your investment whether you live there or not, there’s plenty you can do in the fall and winter to maintain it. Maintenance is a year-round activity, no matter how cold or sweltering the weather. The experts at SWE Homes in Houston, TX regularly stress this point to clients, as they offer the largest selection of homes for sale in the Lone Star state and Georgia.

Let’s review some of the team’s best tips for ensuring home value throughout the fall and winter:

• Change Filters: Clean or replace every filter within your home, such as your air conditioner and furnace filters, to keep indoor air healthy. Air circulation is important in the fall, as you’re about to close all windows and doors in preparation for winter’s chill.
• Clean Gutters: Check your gutters throughout the fall and remove all debris before winter. Leaves and other debris create prime space for ice and snow buildup and subsequent damage.

• Perform Landscaping Work: Give your yard a little TLC by clearing all leaves, dead grass, twigs, and other debris from garden beds and lawns. Debris smothers grass and plants in the winter, particularly if there’s a layer of snow on top. A little landscaping keeps grass green for spring.
• Seal Leaks: Inspect your home for air leaks, such as those around windows and doors, and use weather-stripping materials to seal them. This contributes to a lower energy bill in addition to a more comfortable residence.
• Observe The Foundation: Check your home's foundation in the winter for cracks and holes. Mice and other pests seek warm indoor spaces in the winter via foundation damage.

Additional tips include repairing driveway cracks, covering grills and firewood piles, and cleaning your deck and all pathways. Discuss these and other tips with the owner-financing experts at SWE Homes today to make certain your home is at its best when staking that "For Sale" sign.

For more on homes for sale, including owner-financed homes, please contact SWE Homes today. Call (713) 413-1000 or visit the website.

SWE Homes, LP, Residential Mortgage Loan Originator NMLS# 341112