Once you’ve found and bought your first property, the next step is to find all the essentials to keep your household up and running.
Where do you start? The following is a short guide for first-time homeowners on what to buy for their first property. Also included in this post are a few tips on how to get first home essentials without breaking the bank.
Essentials for newly-built homes
Newly built properties often come with furnishings that are called standard specifications. These standard specifications are amenities which you and your builder arranged to be included in the property you are buying. Usually this means that the property you will receive upon turnover will look similar to the model unit or the architectural plan you were shown during the sales pitch.
Typical standard specifications include appliances and furnishings such as a dishwasher, refrigerator, washing machine, dryer, shower, sinks, baths, bathroom tiling, lighting fixtures, and flooring throughout the property.
Be specific in asking about the standard specifications with your builder, so you’ll know what to buy and what to leave out when shopping for your first home essentials.
Essentials for second hand property
When buying second-hand property, on the other hand, you will first need to decide on what to do with the stuff your seller left behind.
Just like when buying newly-built property, some of the furnishings and appliances can be included in the sales contract. But there are also exceptional instances when the seller leaves some items behind even when the items have been left out of the contract. Pray hard that your seller will be generous like this, so you won’t have to spend too much buying new stuff for your house!
If you’re buying a second hand house with a garden, you will also have to prepare basic gardening tools to keep the garden in mint condition. A few of these basic tools include a lawnmower, a shovel, a rake, trowels for weeding, gardening gloves, and sacks. If aren’t that familiar with gardening, you can ask the previous owners which tools they used to maintain their garden; so that you won’t buy tools you won’t need.
Keep in mind that not all sellers are the same. A handful of them may be generous, as I’ve mentioned earlier. But there is also a chance that they’ll leave you with tons of ugly furniture and used utensils. Obviously, the best solution for this is to throw everything out! I’m just kidding.
A smarter way to deal with these unwanted items is to turn them over to the nearest second hand furniture outlet or charity store in your vicinity. These shops may pick up the items for free.
Must haves for both newly-built and second hand property
Make sure that you have a first aid kit in your house at all times. It’s better to be safe than sorry, after all. Basic first aid kits usually have plasters, bandages, antibiotic ointment, thermometer, small scissors, tweezers, as well as over the counter pain killers.
Another must have for every house are basic DIY tools. I’m not talking about power tools in this one. What I’m referring to are hammers, pliers, screwdrivers, a few nails, and screws. Keep these for small repairs in your house, so you won’t have to call the handyman all the time!
Tags: first home essentials, first property, first time homeowners, newly built properties, second hand property
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