Buying Your First Home? The Move-In Checklist, From Closing Day to the First Month

The smoothest move-ins are arranged before you ever sign. A week or two ahead, make these calls so everything is already yours the day you get the keys.

• Line up your homeowners or renters insurance early. If you have a mortgage, your lender will require proof of insurance before closing, so start as soon as your offer is accepted.
• Call every utility: electric, gas, water, sewer, trash, and internet. Schedule each account to switch into your name on your closing date, so the lights and water are already yours when you walk in.
• File your change of address with the postal service. They recommend filing about two weeks before your move, and you choose the date it takes effect.
• Gather your closing paperwork in one folder so nothing is missing on the day.

If you get the keys before moving day, use the empty rooms. These jobs are much easier with nothing in the way.

• Deep clean inside the kitchen cabinets, bathroom drawers, oven, and vents, and vacuum the refrigerator coils.
• Do the messy work now: refinish or replace floors, steam clean carpets, and paint walls before the furniture arrives.
• Clear lint from the dryer vent where it exits the house. Built-up lint is a fire hazard.
• Put a fresh filter in the furnace or air handler, and write the filter size on the unit so reorders are easy.

The first day is about safety and knowing where things are. These steps take an afternoon and save you a lot of stress later.

• Change the locks or have them rekeyed, reset any keypad codes, and clear the garage door opener's memory before pairing your own remotes. Previous owners, their friends, and old contractors may still have keys or codes.
• Find the main water shutoff, the main gas shutoff if you have gas, and the breaker box before you need them in an emergency. Make sure the water valve turns freely and the breakers are labeled.
• Test every smoke and carbon monoxide alarm and replace the batteries. Check the manufacture date on the back: smoke alarms are meant to be replaced 10 years after that date, and many carbon monoxide alarms sooner. Replace any that are past their date.
• Place a multipurpose (ABC) fire extinguisher in the kitchen and another near the furnace or garage, and keep a flashlight by the breaker box.
• Walk the whole home and take a slow video of its condition, including any damage the movers or sellers left. Pause on built-ins and appliances so the labels are readable.

Week one is paperwork and setup. Work through it a little at a time so nothing falls through.

• Confirm every utility actually switched over and the first bills are in your name.
• Update your address with your bank, your employer, your driver's license and vehicle registration, your voter registration, and every insurance company you have a policy with, so renewal notices reach you. Most states set a deadline for the license and registration, so check yours.
• Factory reset the thermostat, video doorbell, smart locks, and any security system so the previous owner's account no longer has access, then connect them to your own network.
• Find the furnace and water heater and note where their shutoffs are.
• Walk the outside of the house after a rain. Downspouts should carry water several feet away from the foundation, and if there is a sump pump, pour water into the pit to confirm it turns on and drains.
• If there is an HOA, get the documents and read the rules before you change anything outside.

Month one is about records. The work you do now is what you will lean on the day something breaks.

• Build one appliance file: model and serial numbers for the water heater, furnace, air conditioner, refrigerator, dishwasher, and washer and dryer, plus the warranty for each. Register the warranties on anything that came with the house and anything new you buy.
• Walk each room and photograph or video your belongings for a simple home inventory. Include serial numbers on electronics. Store the files somewhere outside the house, such as cloud storage or email.
• Keep closing documents, the title insurance policy, lender disclosures, the inspection report, receipts, and paid bills in one home file. A fireproof box or a secure cloud folder is ideal.
• Ask your county or state tax office whether a homestead exemption or a first-time buyer property tax credit applies to you. Many have filing deadlines.
• Check for slow leaks: look under sinks, around toilet bases, and around the water heater. Then read your water meter, use no water for two hours, and read it again. If the reading moved, something is leaking.
• Set up a simple maintenance calendar: gutters cleaned each fall, the furnace checked before winter, the air conditioner serviced before summer, and alarm batteries changed when the clocks change.

By closing day you already have a policy. Now is the time to actually read it, before something happens, not after.

The declarations page is the short summary sheet that lists your limits and deductibles. Our guide on how to read a declarations page walks through each line. CoverageDecoder can read your policy for you and turn what it finds into questions ready for your licensed insurance agent.