Things to do before moving into your new home!
by: Andrew Goodman
Q: I just bought my first home and I was wondering if there is anything I should be doing prior to moving in.
A: When you settle on your home you are officially a homeowner and are free to do what you want to your home, in accordance with any HOA or condo association rules/regulations of course. However, there are a few things I recommend a buyer doing before he/she moves in.
Change the Door Locks: I am sure the seller gave you all of the keys they had to the property at settlement, but how do you know if you have EVERY key? For instance, I have given out several keys for my home to my family members, my housekeeper, neighbors, etc. I may not be able to get all of the keys back from these individuals when I sell my property because they may have lost the key, they may have moved, etc. When buying a new construction property in a condo building or in a new development, it may not be that big of a deal if they have locks that have pins drop to fit your new key once you put your new key in the lock. Once those pins drop no keys besides the ones you have will work. But lets say you purchase a newly renovated town home that is not in a new development community. There could be 10 keys floating around with 10 different contractors. You just don’t know who has one. Be safe and change all of your locks.
Mail: Make sure you have had all of your mail forwarded to your new home from your old one. If new residents have moved into your old home, they may not be so kind to hold onto or forward you your mail.
Utilities: Your utilities should have already been switched into your name as of the settlement date. However, you may want to double check and make sure the utility companies did their job. Also, if you want TV, phone, or Internet, be sure to set that up as it usually takes a couple days to have someone come out to install. Many of us can’t live in a home without TV, phone, or Internet. So make it easy on yourself and have that setup prior to moving in.
Home Renovations: If you are planning on painting your home, replacing any flooring, etc., you want to set that up and have it completed before you have furniture in the home. Working on a vacant home is a lot easier than having to deal with working around or constantly moving furniture around to do the work.
Meet The Neighbors: Meet some of your neighbors. Moving into your new home/neighborhood is a happy experience and many neighbors see that as a perfect opportunity to meet and start a good relationship. And who knows? Maybe they will even lend a helping hand.
Happy Moving!!!!