Is a home warranty right for you?

Ilyce Glink and Samuel J. Tamkin, Tribune Content Agency on Jun 6, 2025

Q: Do you have any thoughts on home appliance service plans or existing home warranties that are offered or sold when I purchase a home?

A: We usually tell our readers that existing home warranties (as opposed to the new home warranties offered by builders) are a good idea for a certain segment of homebuyers, but they’re not for everyone.

So, will a home warranty or even an appliance warranty worth it for you?

There are quite a few home warranty companies out there, and they each offer different plans and options. In essence, home warranties are service contracts where the company will repair or replace something that’s gone wrong with your home within the one-year term of the plan. These warranties are not all inclusive.

Most basic home warranties cover some kitchen appliances, but not all of them. They may cover a washing machine and dryer depending on the plan. Others will include heating and cooling systems. And still others will cover problems with your electrical and plumbing system.

You have to remember, however, that a home warranty does not cover everything in a home. And, they usually charge a deductible or fee for each item they are called about. So, if you pay around $600 for a home warranty, you’ll have coverage for one year but may also pay a $100 service charge for each matter that comes up. In this example, the first thing that goes wrong with your home that’s covered under the warranty will cost $700, including the cost of the plan plus the service charge.

The question you need to consider is whether paying $700 is a good deal if something goes wrong with your home. Obviously, if the thing that goes wrong is not covered by the warranty, you’d be out of luck. However, if the repair of something is $400 and you paid $700, it might not be worth it.

Likewise, you may not have a great plan or get someone knowledgeable to service the issue. Home warranty companies aren’t perfect. The don’t handle every claim with excellence. The repair people may not be the best, and the repairs might not be top quality. You may not be satisfied at the end of the day. Unfortunately, some homebuyers have varied experiences with home warranty companies.

The same goes for the purchase of warranties for appliances directly from stores. You may end up with a lemon of an appliance, and the store may not back up their warranty process. Or, the repair may not fix the problem, the part they need may take a long time to get, and you may be out of having the use of your appliance for a long time.

Sam has had some clients that have been very happy with their home warranty purchases. In some cases, heating and cooling systems have needed repairs and the warranty company did a great job in taking care of the issue. In other situations, a kitchen appliance died and the warranty company replaced the unit.

So, like with anything else, you have to do a bit of research to make sure the home warranty company you select is top notch. If you select to buy a warranty on an appliance, you’ll want to know who will make the repair if something goes wrong. Sometimes a manufacturer offers the home warranty and other times, the vendor handles the warranty coverage.

We don’t have enough room here to go through all of the different problems and successes that our readers have had with home warranties out there. So, we can only say if you research the company and they get good reviews, and you are nervous above several appliances and the heating and cooling systems in the home, the warranty route might be a good way for you to go.

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(Ilyce Glink is the author of “100 Questions Every First-Time Home Buyer Should Ask” (4th Edition). She is also the CEO of Best Money Moves, a financial wellness technology company. Samuel J. Tamkin is a Chicago-based real estate attorney. Contact Ilyce and Sam through her website, ThinkGlink.com.)