Picture this... you’re at the closing table with your real estate agent. After signing all the paperwork, the sellers hand you the keys to your very own home.
The excitement is bubbling over, and you can’t wait to move your belongings in. You're itching to put your stamp on it 🎨🖼️. You want to repaint. Clean the carpets. Hang up your artwork. Maybe even a full renovation. But wait a moment 🛑
Before you jump in, consider what needs your attention first as you step foot into your new haven. There are many important things you won’t want to miss for your safety, security and peace of mind. Let’s talk about 5 common mistakes first time homeowners make after moving in:
Mistake #1: Not Changing The Locks
So, you're holding those shiny keys in your hand. Exciting, right? But here's the thing: you might not be the only person who has a set. Even if the previous owners promise these are the only keys, there might be some forgotten-about dog walker, housesitter, family friend or ex-partner who has a copy. Or maybe even the sellers before that, or the sellers before that! After all, you have no idea when the locks were last changed.
For your peace of mind, hire a locksmith as one of the first things you do. Replacing the locks is like giving your home a security makeover (and, at the same time, you might want to consider installing a Ring doorbell or another type of camera if this is important to you). It's a little extra expense, but better safe than sorry!
Mistake #2: Ignoring The Systems
Getting the keys is the first step of owning a home… and now you have a long road of home maintenance ahead of you to ensure all the pieces of your home’s puzzle work smoothly and efficiently.
The primary aspects you’ll want to be concerned with are the heating, cooling, plumbing, and electrical elements of your new home. It's important to know how all these systems work, and getting the right insurances in place, to avoid potentially expensive repairs down the road. For example, your heating and cooling systems, commonly referred to as “HVAC”, will need regular maintenance.
You’ll want to ensure you change the filters regularly, you should book bi-annual services by a qualified technician, and you might want to have some kind of HVAC insurance or protection plan (like this PSEG one) in case anything goes wrong.
Understanding the plumbing system is also important to help prevent leaks or damages. For example, an important message a lot of plumbers want you to know is that even is wipes state they are “flushable”, you should never flush them!
It’s important to establish relationships with qualified and trusted professionals in your area to ensure you have someone to call if there’s an emergency. You could also pay them for an initial service to introduce yourself and ask them for some maintenance tips, to help prevent future problems. If you’re new to your area and can’t ask for recommendations from friends or family, then be sure to ask your trusted realtor who to call.
Mistake #3: Heading To The Paint Aisle
Are you dreaming of a new bedroom in Sherwin Williams Redend Point? Maybe you want to cover everything in Blank Canvas by Behr? Hold your paint brush for a moment. While it may be tempting to get those keys and head straight to Home Depot’s paint aisle, there’s many good reasons for holding off for at least a few weeks, or months.
That color that looks so delicious on the shelf might become a completely different hue when in your dimly-lit dining room. Or your kitchen might have so much natural sunlight pouring in that any color immediately becomes more orangey. Give your new home time to show its true colors in different lights (but of course it never hurts to grab a sample paint or two to apply a test streak while you wait!)
Another thing to consider is that your walls may have lots of little cracks and holes that may become more glaringly obvious when you paint over. You’ll want to give yourself some time to fill those blemishes before applying paint. And this might be a long process of waiting for the filler to dry, then sanding over, then fillering over again if the first time wasn’t perfect!
Giving yourself some time to be patient and getting those things done properly will save you a lot of frustration when it comes to painting. And, speaking of frustration, remember that moving is stressful. You’re going to have weeks or months of unpacking, so while it may seem sensible to paint before you unpack, when the room is a blank canvas, it’s just going to delay making your house a home as you’ll still be living in a sea of boxes!
For a less stressful experience, we recommend you unpack and move all your furniture in, settle in and live in the home a few months first so you can decide on color schemes and change any furniture you want to change, and then make a choice about wall color so it suits your needs as an experienced homeowner rather than a brand new homeowner.
Because after all the stress and expense of moving is done, you might just want to hire some professional decorators to properly do the job quickly and seamlessly anyway!
Mistake #4: Buying Out Crate & Barrel
Feeling the urge to fill every corner with brand new furniture and luxury decor? Slow down. Just like with painting and decorating, you’ll want to give yourself time to take a breather, settle in, before you make any impulse purchases that you might regret. Especially when it comes to buying big furniture, like a fancy new King Size bed or gorgeous Crate and Barrel leather sofa. Those big pieces can drain your bank account faster than you realize.
My advice, if you’re desperate to get shopping, is to create a Bookmark folder on your Chrome browser, and while you’re scrolling Raymour & Flanigan late at night, you can bookmark the things you like to give you time to reassess in a few months.
Maybe by the time you’re ready to make any big purchases, you decide those pieces you craved after becoming a new homeowner won’t make sense in your new bedroom or living room anyway, and you might be glad you didn’t buy anything impulsively.
Mistake #5: Speed-Dialling The Contractor
Renovating might feel like an exciting adventure, but remember: patience is your ally. There’s a time and a place for immediate renovations... for instance, if you purchase your home with the upfront intent of remodeling a bathroom or kitchen, and you’ve fully budgeted for this and already hired your contractors, then of course it makes sense to do that immediately!
But if you move in and unpack and then immediately decide you just need a shiny white, Quartz-countered kitchen, it might be time to take a breather and be patient before hiring a contractor.
Needs change over time and you might want to settle into your home for a few more months before making any huge decisions that might require loans of hundreds of thousands of dollars!
You don’t want to renovate the kitchen, then a year or two down the road want to knock through the wall to the dining room to create one HUGE eat-in kitchen and have wasted all that money creating a gorgeous kitchen!
Also, if you’re buying in South Jersey you should know homes are appreciating in value very quickly because of ongoing high demand so if you can hold out a year or two, you might be able to access an equity-release tool to make those renovations to your home! Work smarter, not costlier.
If you want one of our expert real estate agents to come and let you know if your planned revonovations will add value to your home, or be a total bust, send us a message here.
