You’ve made it.  You found your home, spoke to experts, signed through reams of legal documents to get here.  You’re finally a homeowner!   Now the real work begins!  Successful homeownership is a journey and not a destination.  It means being on top of your bills, planning for repairs, and more.  Here’s a checklist of top 10 tasks that will set you on the right path:

1. Clean Your House

Whether you do it yourself or hire it out, cleaning the apartment is an important first task.  Not only is this a good way to vent and clear out the funk, it’s also an opportunity to check the nooks and crannies of the house and seek out potential problems that need repair.

2. Change Your Lock(s)

This is an often neglected but important step.  You don’t want the previous homeowners to enter your home and the best way to ensure that is to change the lock.  If you’ll do it yourself, make sure to bring the exact make/model of the existing lock set to a hardware store.  You’ll be surprised at the countless variations of locks, some requiring quite a bit of carpentry on the door.  

3. Change Your Address

Needless to say, you want to go through all your accounts and make sure your address is updated so your mails are routed to the new home.  This may include employment address, credit cards, driver’s license, and more. You can also set up a mail forwarding status with the post office.

4. Change Your Utilities

Don’t want to lose power or gas services?  Make sure you find out who the supplier is in your area and notify the companies that you’re now the account holder. As an extra side-note, make sure to disconnect your services from your previous property and return the cable boxes if required.  You won’t believe the number of tenants and new homeowners forget about returning the modem!

5. Call Your HOA (Condo-Only)

If you’re moving into a condominium, make sure to connect with your Homeowners Association (HOA) to find out about support services, contacts, and HOA billing requirements.  They will likely have important resources like where to drop the recycling, when are the HOA meetings, and more.

6. Create Your Maintenance Checklist

Homeownership is largely about maintenance.  This means creating a periodic checklist to look at various aspects of your property such as:

• Heating and Cooling systems 
• Roof and Gutters
• Cleaning the Chimney
• Landscaping
• Preparing for snow storms
• And more

7. Make Your Repairs and Improvements

Even homes that are move-in ready may need some repair or improvement.  From replacing the lock to updating a bathroom, each home has its quirks to deal with.  Make a list of defects you want to correct, build a budget, interview contractors, and get to work!

8. Tend To Your Tenants (Multi-Family Rentals Only)

For those that are moving into a multi-family property, you have a whole new set of circumstances to plan for.  This may include finding tenants, leasing the tenants, and making sure their issues are addressed as well.  Check out this New Landlord Toolkit to get you started.

9.  Automate Your Bills

As a new homeowner, you’ll discover that much of your time is spent managing bills.  From mortgage payments to utilities, the more you can automate your payments, the simpler your life becomes.  This also helps to reduce the possibility of a late payment penalties.

10. Celebrate With A Housewarming!

A new home marks a new chapter for you. You’ve done the hard work in setting yourself up for financial growth and psychological security.  Invite your friends to celebrate this milestone with you with a housewarming party!