Whether it’s your first or fourth, buying a new home is an incredibly exciting – and often overwhelming – life event. You spend months searching, visit dozens of open houses, and sign countless documents. Then, when those keys are finally transferred to your own eager hands, you can finally breathe a huge sigh of relief and accomplishment.
But just because the closing is behind you doesn’t mean there’s not more work to be done.
Here are 7 things every homeowner should do before you settling in for the long haul.
Change the locks.
There’s no way of knowing who else may have keys, so change all locks to ensure that only you and those you so designate have access to your new home.
Familiarize yourself with the circuit breakers,
main water shut off valve, gas shut off valve, and all other major system components in your home.
Buy a personal fire extinguisher
and learn how to use it. Also make sure your home has working smoke and carbon monoxide detectors.
Clean the inside and outside of all cabinets.
Use a mild cleaner and wipe down all shelves and replace contact paper if needed.
Check for plumbing leaks and faulty fixtures.
While these are typically uncovered during a home inspection, a lot can happen between the day the inspection is performed and the day you move in.
Steam clean the carpets.
Whether you hire a service or rent a steam cleaner and do it yourself, life in your new home will be off to a better start with only the dirt and dust you track in to worry about and clean up after.
Develop a home maintenance checklist.
It should include routine tasks to help keep your home in tip-top shape while extending the life of major systems and appliances. And here, we’re not just talking about tasks you perform, but those others should perform for you, such as annual heating and cooling system inspections, gutter cleaning, fireplace cleaning, etc.
Here at Eagle Service Company, you can count on us for all your home plumbing, heating, cooling, and indoor air quality needs. Routine maintenance, high quality repairs, new system design and installation – we do it all, and always with a guaranteed upfront price and your satisfaction ensured. Contact us today and let us know what needs to get done – it’s just that simple.
