5 Essentials Things That You Need To Do When Moving Into Your New Home

 

If you have just bought your house and are a first time home buyer, then likely haven’t thought much beyond how you plan to decorate once you get moved in. When it is your first time going through the process, you probably don’t realize that there is more to it than turning a key and moving your stuff in.

There are a few things to take care of to make sure that you don’t have any surprises later one. Some big and some little, but things you can avoid if you have a checklist of essentials when moving into your new home.

In this article, I will go over several of the things you need to be aware of and take care of before you get too settled in.

 

1 – Change the locks ands security system

 The people you bought the house from are surely trustworthy and would not dream of attempting to break into your house by using a copy of the old key. The odds of this happening are very slim.

However, did they have a dog walker that had access? What about a babysitter? Landscaper? There could be people with access that you have never met and have no idea of whether they can be trusted or not.

For peace of mind, it is a good idea to just change the locks and the settings of the security system like passwords and codes.

 

2 – Upgrades for efficiency

 The last owners of the house likely hadn’t spent any money upgrading any of the systems for quite some time. For example, the heating system may not be as efficient as it should be so you’ll end up wasting money if you keep the old heaters or air conditioners.

Size your HVAC system to make sure that you are getting the most out of it. You may find that it is not getting the job done efficiently and will need to be upgraded by getting a new boiler.

For your hot domestic water needs, you may be fine with what you have. But if you want to make things more efficient, you may want to upgrade to a tankless water heater for endless hot water for showers and appliances. To get the right one for your water needs, you will also need to know how to size a tankless water heater.

 

3 – Make it safer

Old houses can have a lot of hidden factors that make it unsafe without you even realizing it. You should add some smoke and carbon monoxide alarms or upgrade them if they already have some.

You don’t want to risk a fire and not have the alarm sound when you are unfamiliar with the new house. And carbon monoxide and even radon could be silently filling your home with toxic gases. It’s better to be safe than sorry with these things.

Fire extinguishers need to be replaced or upgraded when you move in as well. Make sure that you have several around the house besides just the kitchen. A laundry room also needs one as dryer fires are very common.

If you have a pool then you will also need to add some safety features like a pool alarm and a fence that surrounds it.

 

4 – Get familiar with electrical system

 Find your circuit breaker or fuse box in your home and make sure that you understand how the system works. Hopefully the last owners labeled all of the breakers so you know what goes with which area of the house.

If there are no labels, then have your spouse help you determine what the circuits control by going to different rooms and turning the breakers on and off to see what happens.

If you have a fuse box, then this is a good time to think about upgrading. Many fuse boxes can’t handle the load of modern living with high energy demands. They are also usually a fire waiting to happen as these fuses can burn out.

 

5 – Don’t remodel right away

 You may want to set up your home before you actually move in to avoid the disruption of a remodel.

This is not a great idea as you don’t know how you will use the space just yet. A kitchen can look nice on paper when you think of the design, yet not function properly if you don’t understand the flow of the space when you are actually using it.

Get to know your home and then remodel according to how it actually works once you are living there.

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