First Things to Do After Moving Into a New House: The First-Week Checklist
Quick answer: Before the truck unloads, walk every room and photograph any existing damage. In the first 48 hours, change or rekey the exterior locks, find the main water shutoff and the electrical panel, and test every smoke and carbon monoxide alarm. In the first week, put a few water leak sensors under the water heater and sinks, replace the HVAC filter, write down how old the big systems are, file your change of address, and decide how you will pay for the first major repair. That last one matters more than people think, because the first breakdown in a new house tends to show up within a year.
I spent twelve years unloading trucks into houses that were new to the people standing in the driveway. The crew is gone by dinner, the boxes are everywhere, and for the first time it is just you and a building you do not really know yet. I watched a lot of families learn where the water shutoff was during a leak. This list is the order I would do things in, and the order I did them in at my own place.
On move-in day
1. Walk the house before the truck unloads
Before a single box comes off, walk every room with your phone and take photos and a short video. Scuffed floors, dented door frames, a cracked tile in the entry. If the crew damages something during the unload, you need proof of what it looked like before they arrived. This takes ten minutes and settles arguments that otherwise go nowhere. It also tells the crew lead that you are paying attention, which honestly makes for a more careful unload.
2. Decide where things go, then stand at the door
Tape a sign on every door: MASTER, KID 1, OFFICE, KITCHEN, matching the labels on your boxes. Then stand inside the front door and direct traffic for the first hour. A crew that knows where things go is faster, and on an hourly local move faster is cheaper. My moving day checklist covers the rest of the day in order.
3. Set up the beds and the open-first box
Before anyone starts unpacking the kitchen, assemble the beds and make them. At 11 p.m. nobody has the energy to find bed rails. Then open the box you packed with coffee, toilet paper, chargers, a few tools, medications, and a change of clothes. If you did not pack one, the moving essentials checklist shows what goes in it next time.
In the first 48 hours
4. Change or rekey the exterior locks
You have no idea how many keys to this house exist. The previous owners, their dog walker, a contractor from three years ago, a neighbor who watered plants. Rekeying with a locksmith usually costs less than replacing locks, and a rekeyable smart deadbolt lets you do it yourself in a few minutes per door. If you also reset any garage door keypads and remove old codes from the opener, you have closed the most common gap.
5. Find the main water shutoff and the electrical panel
Find them now, while nothing is wrong. The main water shutoff is usually where the line enters the house, in a basement, crawlspace, utility closet, or in a box near the street. Turn it off and back on once to make sure it actually moves; old valves seize. Then find the breaker panel and check whether the breakers are labeled. If they are not, flip each one with a helper calling out what went dark and label them with a label maker. The night a pipe bursts is not the night to learn this.
6. Test every smoke and carbon monoxide alarm
Press the test button on every alarm. Look at the date on the back; smoke alarms are typically meant to be replaced about every ten years, and a lot of houses change hands with the original builder alarms still on the ceiling. If any are missing, dead, or old, replace them with combination smoke and CO alarms. Put a fire extinguisher in the kitchen and one in the garage while you are at it.
7. Check that every utility is actually in your name
Electric, gas, water, trash, internet. Call or log in and confirm the account is yours and the service start date is right. If the previous owner canceled service before you set it up, some utilities will shut it off with no notice, and the reconnect fee is pure waste.
In the first week
8. Put leak sensors where leaks start
Water damage is one of the most common and expensive things that happens to a house, and the leak itself usually starts small. Four to six Wi-Fi water leak sensors placed under the water heater, behind the washing machine, under the kitchen and bathroom sinks, and behind the toilets will text your phone the moment the floor gets wet. They cost less than one insurance deductible.
9. Replace the HVAC filter and note the filter size
Pull the furnace or air handler filter, write the size printed on its edge, and replace it. The filter you inherited may be months or years overdue, and a clogged filter makes the system work harder and fail sooner. Buy a multi-pack in the right size so the next one is already in the closet.
10. Write down the age of the big systems
This is the step almost nobody does, and it is the one that predicts your first big bill. Look at the data plate on the water heater, the furnace, the AC condenser outside, the dishwasher, the range, the refrigerator, and the washer and dryer. The manufacture date is usually printed there or encoded in the serial number. Write it all on one sheet and keep it in a kitchen drawer.
Rough rule of thumb: tank water heaters commonly last around 8 to 12 years, central AC and furnaces somewhere around 15 to 20, and dishwashers and washers around 10. If your inspection report shows a 13-year-old water heater and a 16-year-old AC, you are not paranoid for planning around them. You are reading the calendar.
11. Decide how you will pay for the first big repair
New homeowners get hit with an early repair surprisingly often, and it lands right after you spent your savings on a down payment and a moving truck. You have three options, and it is worth picking one on purpose rather than by default.
- Savings. The cleanest answer if you have it. A common guideline is to set aside roughly 1 percent of the home's value per year for maintenance and repairs.
- The seller's home warranty. Check your closing paperwork. Sellers often buy a one-year home warranty as part of the deal. If you have one, find the provider and the plan number now, read what it covers, and note the expiration date.
- A home warranty of your own. A home warranty is a service contract that pays for repair or replacement of covered systems and appliances that fail from normal wear, in exchange for a monthly or yearly price plus a service fee per visit. It is not homeowners insurance, which covers sudden damage like fire or storms. Warranties make the most sense when several of the systems on your list from step 10 are older. Choice Home Warranty is one of the larger national providers and will quote a plan for your address in a couple of minutes. Read the coverage limits and exclusions before you buy any plan, from any company; caps on individual repairs and exclusions for pre-existing problems are where these contracts differ.
My take, from watching a lot of people move in: if you have an older water heater, an older HVAC system, and no repair fund yet, a warranty for the first year or two is reasonable insurance against the worst-timed bill of your life. If your systems are new and you have savings, put the money in the savings account instead.
12. File your change of address and update accounts
File with USPS online for mail forwarding, then work the list: driver's license and vehicle registration (many states require an update within a few weeks of moving), voter registration, banks and credit cards, employer and payroll, insurance policies, subscriptions, and anything that ships to you. Forwarding is temporary; the accounts need the real address.
13. Update your homeowners or renters insurance
Your policy should have started on closing day if you have a mortgage, but call and confirm the coverage amount reflects what you actually own now, especially if you bought furniture for the new place. If anything was damaged in the move, check what your mover's valuation covers first; I explained the gap between valuation and insurance in what movers won't tell you about insurance.
In the first month
14. Deep clean before you fully unpack
Cleaning an empty cabinet takes a minute. Cleaning around your stuff takes ten. Wipe the inside of cabinets and drawers, clean the refrigerator, and run the dishwasher empty with a cleaner before your dishes go in. Clean the dryer vent too, all the way to the outside; previous owners almost never do, and lint buildup is a fire risk.
15. Meet the neighbors and learn the house's habits
Introduce yourself to the people on either side. They know which day trash goes out, whether the basement has flooded before, and who the good local plumber is. That last piece of information is worth more than any app.
The short version
Photograph before the unload, change the locks, find the shutoffs, test the alarms, put sensors where leaks start, and write down how old everything is. Then decide on purpose how you will pay when one of those old things fails. Do that in your first week and the house stops being a stranger a lot faster.
Frequently Asked Questions
What should you do first when you move into a new house?
Walk and photograph the house before the movers unload, set up the beds, and open your essentials box. Within the first two days, change or rekey the exterior locks, locate the main water shutoff and the electrical panel, and test every smoke and carbon monoxide alarm.
Should I change the locks on a new house?
Yes. You cannot know how many copies of the old keys exist. Rekeying by a locksmith is usually cheaper than replacing the hardware, and rekeyable deadbolts let you do it yourself.
Do I need a home warranty after buying a house?
It is optional. It is most useful when several major systems or appliances are older and you do not yet have a repair fund. Check first whether the seller included a one-year warranty at closing. If your systems are new and you have savings, setting money aside may serve you better.
How long do I have to change my address after moving?
USPS mail forwarding can be set up any time, ideally a week or two before the move. State deadlines for updating a driver's license and vehicle registration vary, and many fall within roughly 10 to 30 days of establishing residency, so check your state's DMV site.