Invest in Quality and Durability

Star-Eagle Independent Newspaper – APR 2010

Spring brings changes. They are all around us. One that happened for me is the moving of The HomeFix Radio Show to 670 KBOI. A bit of a mental challenge for me, but like most things, I adjusted and got used to it. Thanks to those of you who twisted the radio dial and have found the new home for the show. It is going to be a great move.

More on the home improvement front, do you have a few things on the to-do list that got put off so long that you didn’t get them done last year? I know I did.

We all had a lot of factors that influenced what we did or didn’t do. Our economy drove a lot of those decisions. I just can’t see how we will ever look at our homes, their condition, their size, and the upkeep of them the same way ever again. We have all learned some valuable lessons.

A management instructor of mine once said that “You will worry less about what people think of you, when you realize how infrequently they actually do!”. How true. We have all gotten caught up in the appearance of “us’. What we drive, what we wear, what we eat, and where we live.

Guys like Dave Ramsey preach being debt free and looking at how we use our money. Joe Dominguez and Vicki Robin urge us to live more simply and to find comfort in their classic book “Your Money or Your Life”. Your Pastor has been telling you to be a better Steward of what you have and to not worry about what you don’t have.

So how does this all fit into you home repairs and improvements? My take on this is that now more than ever, you should invest in quality and durability. Given the choice to wait, save, and incorporate a quality piece of hardware or material to your home, I feel, is a better choice than buying junk only to be doing it over again sooner than you want.

Yeah, you might have to put off building that deck for another year. But wouldn’t one project done well, with quality materials, be better than two done with stuff that doesn’t last? Who cares what the neighbors think. I’d rather you saved up, paid cash, bought a great quality house paint, than some inferior bargain paint just to get it done.

The truth be told, many people who look like they are spending like crazy, are. They are charged up to their eyeballs on credit cards trying to project an image and perception and are trying to impress people that don’t matter.

The person we all should emulate in 2010 is the person who makes quality choices, informed decisions, and pays cash because they worked hard and saved.

For a while in my remodeling business I thought about taking Credit Cards for customers to pay their bills. I am really glad I didn’t, as some of them would still be trying to pay off those projects.

Repairing rather than replacing is another way to keep things going. It might not be what you want to do right now, but it is probably what you need to do right now.

Are you of this philosophy? Have you known this for decades? It is not a new concept, but it is new to many people never before faced with hard decisions to make.

Joe and Vicki Prin own Joe Prin Remodeling LLC, Idaho Registered Contractor #RCE-23530, and can be contacted at 573-1082 or by email- joe@joeprin.com. Listen to the HomeFix Radio show hosted by Joe, Saturdays, 9-10 AM on 670 KBOI