New homeowner checklist: the first week, month and year

The first day: know how to stop things

Learn to turn things off while nothing is leaking and nobody is in a hurry.

Your first-day walk-through

1. 1. Find the main water shutoffLook where the water line enters the house, often in the basement near the front wall or next to the water meter. Ready.gov says to find the main shut-off valve and tag it so everyone can find it. Take a photo. If the valve is stuck or rusted, have a plumber look at it.
2. 2. Find the gas shutoffThe main gas valve is usually at the meter outside. Don't turn it off to practice: Ready.gov says not to actually shut off the gas when practicing, because only a qualified professional can turn it back on. Just know where it is. If you ever smell gas, get everyone out first and call the gas company from outside.
3. 3. Find the electrical panel and label the breakersOpen only the small outer door, never the panel cover behind it. If the breakers aren't labeled, have someone flip them one at a time while you note which lights and outlets go dark. Ready.gov says to shut off the individual circuits before the main breaker if you ever need to cut all power.
4. 4. Test every smoke and CO alarmPress and hold each alarm's test button until it sounds. First Alert says to test smoke alarms at least once a month. Ready.gov says to have smoke alarms on every level of the home, including the basement.
5. 5. Locate the furnace filter and water heaterFind the filter slot and note its size. Find the water heater and its cold-water valve on top. Take a photo of each label for your records.

The first week

• Set up the utilitiesPut electric, gas, water, trash and internet in your name, and save each provider's emergency number in your phone. The gas company's number matters most: Ready.gov says to call it from a neighbor's home if you smell gas.
• Rekey or change the locksYou can't know who still has keys. A locksmith can rekey the existing locks instead of replacing them. Change garage and keypad codes too.
• Check every alarm's dateSmoke alarms have a date printed on the back. Ready.gov says to replace the whole unit every 10 years or as the maker says, so anything older goes on the shopping list now.
• Learn the sump pump, if you have oneFind the pit in the basement, see where the discharge pipe leaves the house, and know which outlet the pump plugs into. Our guide on how to test a sump pump walks through it.

The first month

• Change the furnace filterYou don't know when it was last done. ENERGY STAR says to check the filter every month and change it at least every 3 months. Note the size printed on its edge so you buy the right one next time.
• Write down every applianceFurnace, air conditioner, water heater, washer, dryer, fridge, dishwasher, range. For each one, note the brand, model number, serial number and rough age, all on a label inside a door or on the side. This one list answers most future questions: which part, which manual, still under warranty or not.
• Find the manualsCheck the drawers for any the last owners left. If not, the model number usually finds the manual on the maker's site.

Use your inspection report

If you had a home inspection, the report is the best map of your house you will ever get, and most people read it once, during the sale, and never again. Go back to it now. Make one list of every finding, then sort it into three groups: safety items to handle right away, repairs to plan this year, and things to watch. Inspectors often note the age of the roof, furnace and water heater, so copy those into your appliance list. When a finding says to have something evaluated by a licensed pro, do that before you try a repair yourself.

The first year

• Schedule heating and cooling serviceENERGY STAR recommends a yearly tune-up of your heating and cooling system, and says equipment more than 10 years old should be evaluated by a professional HVAC contractor. In the Chicago area, book the furnace visit before the first hard cold, when contractors tend to get busy.
• Watch each season onceYour first winter shows you drafts and cold rooms; your first heavy spring rain shows you where water goes. Write it down.
• Keep every receiptRepairs, service visits and improvements all belong in one place from the start. Our guide to the home records binder covers what to keep.
• Plan for upkeep moneySee our guide to a home maintenance budget for the common rules of thumb.

Carbon monoxide

If the house has a gas furnace, gas water heater, gas range, fireplace or attached garage, it needs CO alarms. CPSC says to put battery-operated CO alarms, or ones with battery backup, on every level of the home and outside sleeping areas, and notes that interconnected alarms, where one sounding sets off all of them, are best.

Questions people ask