Home Maintenance Move-In Tips & Checklist

Whether this is your first home or your tenth home, this checklist will help you maintain your new prized possession. This is a big investment that you have made in your life and can be very costly if you do not maintain and keep all the working parts up to date. Of course, you hope that the previous owner kept up with the appliances being serviced and maintaining the home, but there is no guarantee. I’m sure your thinking “But I had the home inspected by a Home Inspector and everything was in working and in good condition” or your real estate agent was able to negotiate repairs to items that were not functioning or broken, but this still does not warrant that all items in the home will continue to work upon your move in three to six months down the line.

These tips and checklist can also be useful if you have purchased a “new build” home. Use it as a monthly reminder of what you will need to do or schedule to help your home stay well maintained and in good working condition throughout the year. Depending on the time of year and which month you move in… Fall, Winter, Spring or Summer, this is where you will work your way down the list as to what needs to be checked, scheduled, or done on a monthly basis.

First Month of Move-In Tips/Checklist

• Schedule AC/Heater to be cleaned and maintained… If this has been done, check filters and date them once you have replaced them with new ones.

• Have the chimney inspected and cleaned by a professional.

• Schedule Pest Control to spray inside & outside the home, yard and attic. Clear all empty wasp/bee nests and spider webs away from the house, playsets, and lawn furniture.

• Check that all gates latch and lock correctly

• Check sprinkler heads around the yard. Make sure they are not buried and spray correctly in the right directions. This will give you time to familiarize yourself with the different zones and how the timers work.

• Trim/cut branches from trees and bushes away from the home, roof, and windows.

• Replace the locks to the front door, back door, and interior garage door. If the locks are keyless entry, make sure to change codes from the previous owner’s.

• Make sure the garage doors are functioning and replace the batteries in the garage door openers.

• Check that all sink and shower drains are running smoothly and there are no clogged drains or leaks under the vanities.

• Replace all light bulbs, both inside and outside of the home.

• Maintain water softener and check salt levels monthly… the water softener manual will tell you what type of salt your machine runs on.

• Check weatherstripping on doors to make sure that no air is entering your home from outside or escaping from inside the home. This can also prevent bugs and unwanted pests from entering the home.

Remember these are tips to use that will help keep your home running smoothly. You will need to determine which tips and checklist you would prefer using for your home and your family's needs. These are not all the items you will need to check in your home but a suggestion of what I have seen my buyer clients run into upon moving into their new home. You can print the “Move-In Tips/Checklist that I have attached and create a binder titled “Home Maintenance Binder” Follow my blog for monthly tips and checklists throughout the year that you can add to your “Home Maintenance Binder”.