Did you know that you should vacuum the hair and dust off the coils in your refrigerator twice a year? What about draining your water heater once a year?
Maybe not. And Kyshawn Lane didn’t either until he bought his first home in 2020 and learned how much work goes into maintaining it. After Mr. Lane started sharing his household hacks on social media, he amassed more than 1 million followers on Instagram. On his account, “Weekly Home Check,” he takes viewers on a tour around his house in Newark every week, clad in his signature lavender Crocs, showing his “homies” how to maintain their homes.
“In the process, I feel like I’m also learning to be a better homeowner,” said Mr. Lane, 35, who is also a flight attendant for United Airlines and a Broadway actor. “I’m learning a lot of things about my home. I’m learning a lot of hacks from the homies, and, you know, we’re all learning from each other.”
Buying a home is already a hefty expense, but with property taxes and the occasional call to the plumber, the costs are likely to pike up afterward. A study by Bankrate from earlier this year found that the average cost of owning and maintaining a typical single-family home in the United States, excluding mortgage payments, was just over $18,000 per year for expenses, such as property taxes, homeowners’ insurance and maintenance. Through his easy-to-follow videos, Mr. Lane has created a community of first-time homeowners, showing them how a little upkeep may save them money.
With the help of Matt Peterson, Mr. Lane’s fiancé, the account has morphed into a business. Along with posting weekly videos, they sell a digital version of their 35-page checklist, send out a weekly newsletter and even do paid partnerships with brands like Subaru and Lysol.
“A lot of the things about maintaining a home are not new concepts or new principles,” said Mr. Peterson, 37, who works in marketing and advertising for a record label. It was all about “repackaging it in a way that was maybe more user-friendly for people to appreciate.”
Mr. Lane, who grew up in an apartment in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, said he is the first in his family to own a home. He didn’t know what it took to buy a home and started considering it in 2016, but he knew he “wanted something to call my own.”
His long-term dream? A big home and a big family.
“I’d rented many apartments before,” he said, “and I was always like, ‘You know, this money that I’m paying in rent could be going toward a mortgage of mine.’”
In 2016, Mr. Lane started working with the Neighborhood Assistance Corporation of America (NACA), a nonprofit and a HUD-certified counseling organization. In its mission statement, the organization bills itself as “providing affordable long-term homeownership for both homebuyers and homeowners.” Through a mortgage with NACA, qualified homeowners receive below-market mortgage rates and don’t usually have to pay a down payment or closing costs. The program, Mr. Lane said, was rigorous and challenging, requiring him to turn in his financial statements every month to his counselor. But with NACA’s help, the home buying process became more “manageable,” he said.
In 2019, his search for a home began. With a budget of no more than $320,000, he settled on Newark. He had looked at around 15 homes on his own, but then he started working with Suzan Adedipe, an agent with Coldwell Banker, who drove him around a few neighborhoods.
“He knew what he wanted,” Ms. Adedipe said. “He wasn’t wasting time.”
And soon, he found it: A modest, three-bedroom home, listed at $259,000, that was recently renovated with a spacious, L-shaped backyard, ideal for entertaining. He closed at $260,000.
Moving into his new home with just one suitcase, Mr. Lane was eager to start his new journey of homeownership. Even a leak in the basement excited him. “This is what I asked for,” he recalled.
The second leak, however, wasn’t as exciting. Neither was the shower door that needed to be installed nor the bedroom windows that wouldn’t stay open. When he paid around $350 to get his windows fixed, Mr. Lane had a realization: He could likely maintain his home himself, and save some money along the way. He just needed to learn how.
With the help of YouTube, “Martha Stewart’s Homekeeping Handbook” and some of Mr. Peterson’s past experience, he got to work. And soon, the “Weekly Home Check” was born.
The videos, which Mr. Lane and Mr. Peterson started posting in 2023, aren’t a large-scale production, taking around two hours to film depending on the topic. Earlier this year in Newark, Mr. Peterson set up his iPhone inside of a ring light next to the sink, preparing to film Mr. Lane cleaning a drain.
With the camera running, he poured half of a cup of baking soda down the drain, then a quarter of a cup of white vinegar. With his hands in the sink, Mr. Lane compared it to a “science experiment,” as the reaction fizzed. The trick? The drain needs to be covered so the reaction goes through the pipes, he said.
“I think everybody has a hack,” Mr. Lane said in an earlier conversation. “There’s no right way to do one thing. It’s just trial and error.”
Getting ready for the New Year? Mr. Lane recommended some items off his checklist to get your house in pristine shape.
Update Your Home’s Insurance Policy and Take Inventory
To start the year, Mr. Lane recommends reviewing your home’s insurance policies and warranty to make sure it is all up-to-date — and to note any new valuables or renovations. He also recommends walking through your home and documenting everything on video, in case of a fire or other natural disaster.
Clean Refrigerator Coils
Mr. Lane recommends cleaning your refrigerator twice a year. Vacuuming the dust and hair off the refrigerator coils, he said, might save you some money on your energy bill and allow your refrigerator to perform better. American Home Shield, a home warranty company, recommends cleaning the coils more often if you have pets that shed.
Change Air Filters
Air filters, Mr. Lane said, should be replaced every one to three months. Manufacturers typically recommend a schedule in the instructions. For areas affected by an air quality crisis, such as wildfire smoke, change your filter once the air has cleared, according to our colleague at Wirecutter, because these will rapidly reduce a filter’s effectiveness. Filters come in multiple sizes, Mr. Lane noted, so be sure to check that you have purchased the correct sized replacement.
Test Smoke Alarms
Mr. Lane recommends testing your smoke detectors regularly, and the U.S. Fire Administration recommends testing them every month. Smoke alarms can be battery-powered or hooked up to your home’s electrical system, according to the U.S.F.A., so maintenance tips, like battery replacement, will vary.
Check For Water Leaks and Mold
When Mr. Lane’s basement kept flooding, he eventually hired a company to install a drain system, which diverts water to a pipe inside of a trench. Checking for leaks and water damage is important, he said in one of his videos, to avoid potential mold.
Prepare a Kit For Emergencies
If there’s an emergency, are you ready? Mr. Lane recommends two essential kits: a stockpile for sheltering at home and a “go bag” in case you need to exit quickly. You can also prepare a kit for your car. These kits should include items like water, food, first aid supplies, important documents and cash — anything you might need in an emergency.
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