Home Sweet Home: 5 Often Overlooked Steps to Take When You Buy Your First Home

With a long list of to-dos during the house-buying process, it’s only natural to forget a few things. Even crucial tasks can fall by the wayside. If you’ve just moved into your very first home and are eager to start living comfortably, don’t forget to take care of these important tasks:

Review Your Homeowner’s Insurance Policies

Home insurance is integral to obtaining a mortgage. Many new homeowners purchase the policy that suits their needs at the time but isn’t necessarily the most fitting for their needs in the long term. Once you’re all settled into your new abode, review your insurance policies to ensure adequate coverage and potentially avoid a future insurance claim dispute.

Make sure your policy amount is ample for both your house and contents to avoid financial shortfalls. You might even look at policy additions to ensure complete coverage in events such as flooding, storms, fires, and floods. The more comprehensive your policies are, the more peace of mind you can enjoy. You can also take this opportunity to review automotive insurance policies to see if you can take advantage of multi-policy discounts.

Change the Locks

The average home can see multiple owners over several decades with only one set of locks. Without knowing who has keys to your home, changing the locks or rekeying them might provide much-needed peace of mind. Fortunately, changing house locks is a reasonably straightforward task for the average locksmith and doesn’t typically come with a high price tag. Once your locks are changed, you can rest assured that your household occupants are the only people with easy access to your home.

Change Your Mailing Address

Living in the digital age has meant many of us receive important documents and bills via email. However, that doesn’t mean you don’t still receive correspondence through the post. When you move house, set up mail-forwarding so any mail delivered to your old address is forwarded to your new one.

You can also write a list of all the establishments you receive mail from regularly so you can remember to update your address in their systems.

Create An Emergency Fund

Surveys have found that over half of Americans couldn’t afford a $1,000 emergency expense and don’t have a financial safety net. As a homeowner, that can be a dangerous game to play when you’re responsible for your property’s maintenance.

If you’re in the financial position to set money aside for a rainy day, make it your priority. An emergency or rainy day fund can ensure you can cover the costs of urgent repairs like plumbing problems and roof leaks. You might even have some left over for cosmetic upgrades to add value.

Write a House Maintenance Plan

Even brand-new homes will need maintenance after a time. When you buy your first home, consider writing a house maintenance plan to keep on top of the most pressing tasks.

If you purchased a building report before buying, you can use this as the foundation for your maintenance plan. Otherwise, write one from scratch with tasks like cleaning the gutters, performing yearly roof inspections, water blasting hardscapes, and inspecting plumbing.

Maintenance plans can be essential for keeping your home in excellent condition and ensuring you have funds set aside to perform those crucial maintenance tasks.

Buying your first home can be time-consuming, with many tasks on your to-do list. However, those tasks don’t stop being important once you’ve signed on the dotted line. Once settled in, prioritize these above to enjoy a far less stressful homeownership journey.