The process of buying a new house can be overwhelming, full of paperwork, meetings, and financial stress. Once you’ve signed your contracts, there can be a sense of relief that it is officially your home, but there’s still so much to do. During your search for new homes in Minneola, you may not be thinking through all of the next steps, so we did it for you. This checklist will help you feel confident in the moving process and know what to prepare for as you make plans for the future.

Pre-Move Essentials

Before you move in, you’ll want to tackle a number of tasks upfront. Knocking these off your list can make the rest of the process run more smoothly.

1. Transfer Your Utilities

During the sales process, you should understand exactly what physical utilities are available in your new home: water, gas, electricity, and any others. Depending on the location, you may or may not be able to choose what utility providers you use, in which case you can get a variety of quotes. These companies are usually timely in activating new setups, but it’s better to notify them of your move-in date as soon as possible. This is especially true in times that are considered “moving season” when they may be busy.

2. Update Your Address

When you start doing this, you’ll probably realize your address is way more places than you realize. The most important thing to do is forward your mail and then update official accounts like your bank, credit cards, registrations, and driver’s license. During the forwarding period, anytime you get a piece of mail from another service, go online and permanently update your address with them. By the time the service ends, you should have everything important switched over.

3. Set Up TV and Internet

After the hard work of moving, you’ll want to sit down at night and watch some shows to relax. Having your cable and internet set up before moving day will allow you to feel at home right away. You can also take this time to research local pricing and what providers work best in your area, and then schedule the installation at least 2 to 3 weeks in advance to ensure they’re done on time.

4. Document Valuable Items

Whether they are expensive or just sentimental, moving valuable items can be nerve-wracking. One way to ease this anxiety is to take an inventory of your valuables and take a photo of each that shows their current condition. This way, if something happens during the move, you can refer to the difference. Even with a very responsible moving company, damage can happen, so it may also be looking into moving insurance.

5. Find Important Documents

You’ll need to move all your important documents, like birth certificates and social security cards. You should move these yourself, not with the movers, so grab them ahead of time and put them in a special place. This is also a great time to purge what you don’t need, label and organize everything, and shred what you don’t.

6. Find Local Services

Over time in your new home, you’ll find your favorite local restaurant and coffee shop, but some services will come in handy right away. Finding a landscaper, a cleaner, and any other maintenance people you may need will be important, and you can establish a good relationship from the beginning. If you’re able to talk with the previous owners or neighbors, they may have good recommendations, but if not, you can always use apps like Yelp.

7. Put in a Time-Off Request

After all your items are in the house, you’ll be busy unpacking and waiting for deliveries, repairmen, and installations. Even if you are able to work from home, you should use time off to move and take care of as much as possible. The two days post-move are crucial in getting somewhat settled, so planning accordingly will save you stress in the future.

8. Schedule a Cleaning

The best time to clean every corner of your new home is before your furniture is moved in. The previous owners may not have done this, so having a fresh start is a great way to set the right tone for your new home.

9. Do Any Repairs Early

Some renovations may be things you plan to do years own the line, but other simple repairs are likely on your agenda to start with. As many things as you can get scheduled in advance should be done before you move in. Things like painting or installing built-ins should be done before your furniture arrives.

Post-Move Essentials

Now that you’ve settled into your new house, there’s still a lot to do. Once you have all the everyday essentials done, you can set daily or weekly goals as you move to finish setting up. Be realistic about what you can do and try to tackle one room or project at a time.

1. Recruit Help Unpacking

The first few days of unpacking can be overwhelming and will likely be easier with more people to pitch in. Ask friends or family to help and offer a meal in exchange. You can make this run smoothly by assigning tasks and deadlines and determining the best order to unpack. Plus, if you have loved ones there, it may make the process more enjoyable.

2. Get New Locks

While the previous owner turns in their keys, there is no way to know what copies are out there. Past cleaners or house sitters may have spare keys you don’t know about. You can hire a locksmith or reinstall them on your own- maybe even with a smart keypad that allows the use of fingerprints to enter.

3. Find the Shut-Off Valves

If you encounter an emergency leak or need to shut off the water for repairs, you’ll need to know where the shut-off valves are. There are often multiple places where you can do this, including a personal shut-off valve, your water company’s shut-off valve, or the water meter. You should inspect the inside and outside of your home to identify any valves.

4. Find the Circuit Breaker

You may eventually need to reset a circuit breaker or replace a fuse, and looking for the circuit breaker in the dark can be difficult. These are often located outdoors, in the basement or garage, in storage closets, and in hallways. It’s also important to know the difference between a circuit breaker and a fuse box.

5. Set Up a Home Security System

If you already have a system or contract for security in your home, you should be able to contact your provider and have it transferred to your new property. If you don’t, this is a great time to take the step. Smart and DIY systems may be good options, or you can go with something more traditional and put in cameras and an alarm system.

6. Prepare to Be Locked Out

At some point, everyone has been locked out of the house by mistake. It happens to the best of us, but having a backup plan will help. Common plans are a key hidden in a discreet spot, a garage code, or a neighbor who holds an extra key. If you choose a smart keypad, this may not be an issue either.

7. Look at Your HVAC System

Whether it includes air conditioning, a furnace, or any other tools, your HVAC tool is a critical part of your house and one that is usually expensive. For the sake of your wallet and your comfort, it’s important that you or a technician look at the system for warning signs that something is off, even if this was done during your home inspection. You can get on top of maintenance this way and avoid any major issues.

8. Test Smoke Detectors

Smoke detectors are an easy and inexpensive way to gain peace of mind around potential fires in the future. However, without proper maintenance, they may not function correctly and offer that protection. You should always test the smoke detectors in your new home. Light a match or spray a special test aerosol near the sensor every couple of months to ensure they work as expected.

9. Make a Maintenance Checklist

As you go through the setup in your new home, you will have a good sense of what maintenance needs to be done. Use this to make a seasonal checklist that helps you keep on top of everything in the future. Remember that some of these may not have been on your lists in a previous home, like yard work or cleaning gutters, so you may need to add some. Include the contact information for local services as well so you always know who to call.

While moving can be overwhelming, both before and after the big day, the goal is for you to create a home that you love. A few weeks of hard work and planning can make it a smooth process and one that makes years of your life more enjoyable.