Top Spring Cleaning Mistake Homeowners Will Make This Year – Skipping Critical Home Maintenance

Majority of survey respondents will participate in spring cleaning, yet most admit they’ve neglected to do home maintenance as part of the ritual

Hippo (NYSE: HIPO), the home insurance group focused on proactive protection, today released findings from a national survey revealing that most U.S. homeowners are not completing home maintenance during spring cleaning, including the tasks most commonly known to cause problems this season.

A long-time ritual for many homeowners, 70% of respondents grew up in a home that participated in spring cleaning. But while half (51%) of homeowners plan to participate in spring cleaning this year, and a third (33%) have already begun, many have overlooked home maintenance, one of the most impactful ways to improve the health of the home.

“When one thing goes wrong within the home, it can create a wave of anxiety and dread about what could happen next,” said Hippo President and CEO Rick McCathron. “Spring is a great time to get ahead of home projects for the year. Hippo gives homeowners the confidence to complete regular maintenance tasks and prevent small problems from turning into big issues.”

Among U.S. homeowners who plan to do spring cleaning this year, less than half are planning on doing appliance (43%), structural (38%), and systems (26%) maintenance. However, one-third admit that the last time they did spring cleaning, they should have completed, but neglected to inspect their roof (33%); patch cracks in walls and windows (31%); clean or clear gutters, drains, or downspouts (31%); and/or ensure proper function of their HVAC unit (30%).

Hippo helps homeowners prevent problems with tools and year-round advice to complete tasks around the home. Since launching one year ago, Hippo Home Care, Hippo’s mobile experience designed to combat the stresses of home maintenance, has helped Hippo customers get personalized insights into their home health and on-demand home maintenance advice. To help more homeowners complete home maintenance this spring cleaning season, Hippo Home Care is now offering its host of features at no cost to homeowners, whether they’re current Hippo customers or not.

Hippo Home Care has a variety of components that give homeowners unparalleled insights into their home’s health and expert advice to keep small things from becoming big problems:

• Home Health: Take control of your home's health with a quantified assessment of your home based on your home's unique profile and get valuable insights about critical systems and potential problems.
• Maintenance Checklists: Never miss a critical task again with a personalized maintenance checklist based on the unique features of your property, so you know exactly what needs to be done and when.
• Home Care Experts: Take the stress out of complex maintenance problems and go from problem to problem solved with step-by-step guides and on-demand, 1-on-1 access to trusted maintenance experts.

Those who are skipping spring cleaning this year said that it’s because they feel overwhelmed by the projects that need to get done (43%), don't think it's necessary (43%), or feel it takes too much time (33%). Hippo Home Care provides seasonally important recommendations, with step-by-step actions, to make home maintenance feel less overwhelming and time-consuming. Nearly two-thirds (59%) of homeowners had something unexpected go wrong in their home in the past year, and spent $6,000 on average for repairs and maintenance, according to a recent Hippo survey.

To learn more or set up an appointment, the Hippo Home Care app is available for free download on the Apple app store and Google play.

Methodology

This survey was conducted by Omnibus on behalf of Hippo. Fielded between March 10-11, 2023, the results are based on 717 respondents (U.S. homeowners). Results were weighted to match the Census by age, gender, region, and other demographics.

About Hippo

Hippo is protecting the joy of homeownership, helping to safeguard customers’ most important financial asset by harnessing the power of real-time data, smart home technology, and a growing suite of home services to deliver proactive home protection.

Hippo Holdings Inc. operating subsidiaries include Hippo Insurance Services, Hippo Home Care, First Connect Insurance Services, Spinnaker Insurance Company, Spinnaker Specialty Insurance Company, and Mainsail Insurance Company. For more information, including licensing details, visit http://www.hippo.com.

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