It’s been about a year since our daughter purchased a home in another city.  After we completed shopping for her home, the closing process and unpacking her boxes, we realized there was a missing component to her home buying process.  What do you do after your settled?  It’s not time to put up your feet and relax just yet!

Below is a list of things every homeowner should do shortly after moving into their new home.  At Penn Homes, we want your home to be a safe and healthy place to build lifelong memories in.

1.  Create a home maintenance checklist.

To make sure your home stays safe and healthy for you and your family, you should regularly check, clean and/or test a wide variety of interior and exterior systems and structures. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has a Home Maintenance Checklist that you can download from the HUD website . It provides basic guidelines for keeping your home dry, clean, well-ventilated, free from contaminants, pest-free, safe and well-maintained.

2.  Make sure you have enough insurance coverage.

At a minimum, you need to purchase a homeowners insurance policy to cover the house and all of your family’s belongings inside. To determine how much insurance you need, find out how much it would cost to rebuild your house today on your existing lot. Your personal property coverage should then be anywhere from 55 to 75 percent of that amount.

Damage caused by natural disasters such as flooding, earthquakes and hurricanes are not covered by regular home owner’s policies, so depending on where you live, you may want to consider additional coverage. Your insurance agent can help you figure out the right amount of coverage and suggest upgrades or additional policies that would be appropriate for your specific situation.

3.  Protect your home from break-ins.

If you bought an existing home, you should rekey the locks right away. You never know who the previous owners gave keys to. The National Crime Prevention Council recommends that every exterior door should have a dead-bolt lock with a one-inch throw. They should be at least 1 3/4 inch metal or hard wood with the hinges on the inside.

Install a peephole or wide-angle viewer—not a chain—in all entry doors so you can see who is outside without opening the door. Sliding glass doors can be secured by placing a long piece of wood at least one inch thick in the track. Keep all entrances and doors well-lit, and prune shrubs so they don’t provide hiding space for someone who wants to break in.

4.  Prepare an emergency kit.

In the event of a disaster, local officials and relief workers may not be able to reach your home immediately, so you should have an emergency kit on hand.

Basic services such as electricity, gas, water, sewage treatment, and telephones may be cut off for days, or even weeks, so you should be prepared. The Federal Emergency Management Agency recommends stockpiling at least three days’ worth of food and water for your family. Their website http://www.ready.gov/ offers a list of items to include in a basic emergency preparedness kit, as well as guidelines on food and water storage and protecting yourself from airborne contaminants.

5.  Improve your home’s energy efficiency.

Even if you’ve purchased a brand new home with the latest energy-efficient building materials and techniques, there are still some improvements you can make to save even more money on utility bills. For example:

• Replace incandescent light bulbs with longer-lasting CFL or LED bulbs.
• Install a programmable thermostat that can be set to automatically adjust the heat or air when the home is most or least used.
• Increase the insulation in your attic, on exposed water pipes and around your water heater.

The U.S. Department of Energy has an online Home Energy Saverâ„¢ tool for home owners at http://www.hes.lbl.gov/ that recommends energy-saving upgrades that are appropriate for the home, the climate and local energy prices.

Even if you haven’t just moved, these suggestions will help you protect your family and maintain your investment for years to come.  If you have any suggestions that you feel would be beneficial to a new homeowner, please comment below.  We’d love to hear your tips for moving into a new home.

An informal poll of professional remodelers revealed five tips for maintaining your home to keep it in top condition and support home value. Proper home maintenance should start with a regular inspection of the home’s exterior and the heating and cooling system to ensure the home is running smoothly.

1. Inspect the roof
An examination of the roof will reveal spots that need repair, preventing leaks that ruin home interiors and valuables. Regular roof maintenance prevents roof problems leading to structural damages and other expensive emergencies.

2. Add insulation
Most houses can benefit from installing or repairing the insulation barrier in the home. Adequate attic insulation, in particular, keeps the home from losing energy with wasted heating and cooling. A better insulated home means less work for the heating and cooling system and lower energy bills.

3. Repaint surfaces
A fresh coat of paint does wonders for a home by updating the color palette and giving the home a shiny new start. Quality paint jobs also protect surfaces and prevent problems like rotting wood. Consider using no- or low-VOC paints for reducing fumes while drying and keeping the home air quality more comfortable.

4. Monitor flashing and caulking
Worn window flashing and caulking allows water to penetrate the walls, causing damage to drywall and framing. Asking a professional to inspect windows can prevent water intrusion, saving thousands in major repairs down the road. Additionally, examine caulking and sealing in bathrooms to ensure water isn’t leaking into walls or floors.

5. Check the water heater and heating and cooling system
Waiting until the water heater, furnace, or air-conditioning fails will cost more in emergency repairs. Bring in experts to assess these units to ensure they are functioning and receive needed repairs. Newer water heaters and HVAC systems can increase home efficiency, bringing down water and energy bills.

For more information about remodeling, visit www.nahb.org/remodel.