Protect your home and family

NEW YORK (Money Magazine) -- Unexpected repairs needed for a house or a loss of a family member can catch a person off guard. Here are steps that can be completed in two days or less to help you prepare for a sudden event.

Devote four Saturdays a year to home maintenance and you can prevent costly repairs later. The biggest threat: water damage, which can lead to rotting and mold, says Dave MacLellan, co-author of "The National Home Maintenance Manual" and founder of Housefixit.com.

FALL

Day 1: Clean the gutters - clogs can cause water to back up into the eaves, and the acid produced by leaves and bird droppings eats away at metal. For better energy efficiency, change the air filter in your furnace.

Day 2: Water can seep in around windows and doors, so open each one to check whether dirt has clogged the weep holes, the small drains in the tracks. Unclog them with a straightened paper clip.

Next circle your home's exterior looking for gaps around windows and doors. Fill them with caulking. Also watch for protruding nails. As the temperature changes, the holes expand and contract, pushing out the nails. Replace them with galvanized nails.

SPRING

Day 1: Inspect your roof from a ladder (walking on it can cause damage). Look for shingles or tiles that have loosened, slipped or blown off. You'll likely want to hire someone to install new shingles (the smallest project will start at $250); ignore the problem and one day you may have to spend $11,000 to $30,000 on a new roof.

Day 2: Repeat the fall inspection of your walls. Change your furnace's air filter again.

• Week 1: FACE FACTS: No one likes to plan for his or her own mortality - perhaps that's why 55 percent of Americans don't have a will, according to a survey by FindLaw.com and Ipsos Public Affairs. And many have insufficient life insurance.

• Week 2: LEARN THE LINGO You'll need a lawyer's help drafting essential estate-planning documents, but it helps to know what your lawyer is talking about first. Read Lesson 21 in the MONEY 101 series to acquaint yourself with the basics, like the difference between a living will (which dictates your wishes about life support in case you are incapacitated) and a living trust (which places your assets into the hands of a trustee).

• Week 3: TALK Air out the stuff you'd rather not think about: who should bring up your young children if you and your spouse die young, what measures would you want taken if you became incapacitated and who should get your assets.

• Week 4: MEET Armed with with this knowledge and a plan, make an appointment with an attorney. In addition to a will or living trust, you'll need a durable power of attorney (which lets someone else handle your business if you can't) and a health-care proxy (which empowers someone to make health decisions for you). Depending on the complexity of your estate, you'll pay from $750 to $3,000.

• Week 5: SIGN Swing by your lawyer's office again to review and sign the papers