Beyond the New Home Smell: 5 Things to Do After Buying New Construction

So, you just purchased a new construction home. Congrats! New construction comes with some very obvious benefits, such as builder warranties, brand new mechanical systems, and the ever-more-common monetary incentives. Plus you get what you want, exactly how you want it, with no thought of pulling up the previous owner's dingy green carpet. The same carpet that was advertised as “charming”. However, contrary to what you might think, there are still things you should do to increase your quality of life and the safety of your new home.

Without further ado, let's dig into my top five first things to do when moving in!

1. Register Your Warranties

The first one is quite obvious, but with new appliances, it is your responsibility to register the warranties! These warranties can often be found inside the appliance manual. Don't assume that the builder warranty covers these items, as generally the only warranties from builder to buyer will be structural (foundation, framing, etc.), mechanical (plumbing, HVAC, and electrical), and cosmetic (nail pops, drywall cracks, etc.). Bonus tip– if everything you put into your oven comes out looking like I do, after a week of laying out on the Carolina coast with no sunscreen and no concept of a UV index… Maybe hold off on the warranty call, and Doordash instead. 

2. Secure Your Doors

This one is interesting, and usually goes without a second thought. When a door is installed, the whole door assembly is placed within a section of the studs, framed to receive a door. Pretty self-explanatory. After this, the handle is installed, as well as the little metal piece in the frame that catches the latch and holds the door shut. This is called the strike plate. Not to be confused with what the Los Angeles Angels baseball team calls their home plate. 

Strike plates are installed with screws a little longer than half an inch—usually 5/8ths of an inch long. These are just long enough to bite into the door frame. Would you be surprised if I told you that this standard is the same for exterior doors? Meaning exterior door strike plate screws, the ones responsible for securing your home, are barely (if at all) secured into the structural stud behind the door frame! In home security terms, that’s what we call a polite suggestion. 

I highly recommend swapping these screws for ones at least 3 to 4 inches long. This will anchor your strike plate to the structural stud behind the wall, instead of relying on the cosmetic frame to keep you and your home safe.

3. Sweep for Screws and Nails

On the topic of screws, let's address the effort builders take in cleaning up the construction site. I'm sure nobody reading this has ever driven over a screw or nail whilst driving through a neighborhood that's in construction. In all seriousness, builders do their best, but when we're talking about tiny little fasteners, it's nearly impossible to get every single one. You could practically build a second, very small house with all the leftover screws you'll find. For less than $15, you can pick up what's called a magnetic sweeper at Harbor Freight. Wheel this over your yard a few times to minimize the chances of a nail or screw poking a hole in a lawn mower tire, or worse, someone's foot.

4. Check Your HVAC Filters

With a brand new house, the last thing you want is to put excess strain on your brand new HVAC system. This can happen fairly easily in your filters! During construction, wood and drywall dust fill the house with a thick fog on almost a daily basis. These particles are exactly why filters are installed, but not to handle dust at such high volumes. I highly recommend you give these filters a quick look. And don't be surprised if you find the painters have sprayed over the whole thing! I wish I could say I’ve never seen it before.

5. Take Pictures

My last recommendation is super simple, and free! But believe me, doing this can save you from a world of hardship down the road when submitting your one-year cosmetic warranty claim. TAKE PICTURES! Take pictures of the cabinets, the ceilings, the walls, under the deck—everywhere you can fit a camera. Like any good company, builders are in the business of making money. Fair enough. Taking pictures during your blue tape or final walkthrough will protect you from the blame game you could experience going back and forth with the warranty department, whose favorite phrase seems to be, "We don't remember seeing that."

 For something so simple, just do it. I promise, you’ll thank me later.

A Bonus Tip

You thought I was stopping at five? Well, here's a bonus! Make yourself familiar with your warranty guide, all the relevant points of contact, and all the booklets and doodads given to you by the builder. If painting over the standard matte paint voids your warranty, you would surely want to know about it before redoing the whole house.

I’ve covered some ground on this brief guide, and I hope you take something away from it to make your life easier. I'm sure there are things I missed, like of course hiring a fantastic realtor instead of relying on the model-home agent that's on the builder's payroll to represent your best interests. With that in mind, think of Anthem Properties next time you go tour new construction. We’re happy to assist in all things real estate!