First-Time Homeowners Share The Most Important Things They Didn't Even Know They Needed

An item I never see listed but I use a lot. A big container of zip ties.

Honestly about 10 thousand dollars

Because that first few months is going to be very expensive as there isn't "one" thing you need but about 200

If you lived in an apartment you might not have things like ladders, lawn mowers and such

A voltage pen! Old houses can have weird wiring and sometimes you just want to know if that old plug in works. Save yourself the zap. These things are cheap and handy.

Yes, we did have a home inspection! But once the papers are signed and the warranty expires, you are on your own. And Murphy's Law dictates that is the exact time for stuff to get weird.

You have 8 grand worth of carpet? Buy the $300 carpet cleaner so you dont live on a dirty rag

Everyone really needs a shop vac at some point and will be happy you own when you need it. Shop vacs should come with every baby

First time your baby projectile pukes across the whole house you will understand.

A toilet plunger. Until you know your new homes plumbing... look out.

A fire extinguisher.

I was hanging something at my boyfriend's place and asked if he had a stud finder. "Well, of course, but I don't see how my mirror is gonna help right now."

Keeper.

A tarp.

Extremely underrated.

Got a big pile of leaves in the front that you wanna move to the back? Slide it around on a tarp.

Did your grill cover blow away in the storm last night? Cover it with a tarp.

Have a broken screen panel on your screened in porch from the same storm? Hang that tarp.

Need a drop cloth while you paint your kitchen? You get yourself a tarp.

Need to catch branches on the ground while your prune your trees? Get a bucket.

JUST KIDDING GET A TARP.

One key. Have all your door locks set to the same key.

When my wife and I first bought our house, I told her the same thing. The first couple of days after we closed, we planned to paint and replace all the door knobs and deadbolts. The house had 3 different keys: one for the knobs, one for the deadbolts, and one for the detached garage. On the day of closing, I changed them all with matching knobs and deadbolts so they all used one key.

Come a few days after closing and we get a knock on the door. It's the previous homeowner with a box full of a few things that they didn't realize they had packed: the owner's manuals for all the appliances, a little hook tool to open and close the flue, and about a half dozen keys to the doors. As soon as they left, I turned to my wife and said "and this is why we changed the locks."

This took me 7 years to discover: An Air Comb

This thing is simply a stick with some holes drilled in it, and you attach it to an air compressor.

What would you need this for? Well, my old house was built in 1969. It had a 17 year old HVAC system, which did not perform very well. I hired 5-6 different HVAC contractors to come out and diagnose the issues, and each one told me something different. The problem was that the system could not keep up with the weather - hot days were hot inside, cold days were cold inside. We bought a window AC to help in summer, and oil filled electric radiators to help in winter.

The system ran 24x7 most days, and during the summer we were lucky to see temps in the high 70's indoors, it was more like 84 - 88 degrees. In the winter, well, we were freezing. It was like it wasn't even on.

When I sold my house I gave the buyer measurements of all the windows and all warranty paperwork (roof, furnace, windows etc). I also provided a list of all house quirks.

Example: our garage opener sensor was askew ever so slightly so when you pulled in on the right side spot you had to aim the opener to the left - this may sound stupid but it will save them a sh*t ton of aggravation.

Another example: we had lovebirds nest in our front hedges - they would come every year and lay eggs. When that happens they get VERY defensive of their space which made our front door pretty much unusable. We didn't mind, but they might, so we left information on who to call to relocate them (a local nature center will come and do it for free!)

We also provided our garden and plant information - we had a pretty decent garden and nice little flower arrangements. We also provided the name of our landscaper, handyman, roofer, the kid's number to call to shovel snow in the winter, plumber, furnace people, oil company we used and other oil companies in the area for bids.

i tried to provide everything I was not provided when we bought the house.

A notebook for house repairs and reno'ing. As the years go by, it can be really hard to track all the things you do, and when you did them. Was there a one year warranty on that window replacement, or two year? When did the furnace get serviced last? We're currently dealing with a huge tunneling under our yard with the City due to drain issues, and also had work done 7 years ago. Trying to remember what and where the City and plumber dug/did back then, is causing some issues now. Take notes new home owners of Reddit, lots of notes!

Get a decent brush, like a Corona Excalibur and learn how to cut in really well. Learning how to cut in will save your HOURS trying to tape everything perfectly. If you spill paint let it dry a couple hours before cleaning it, especially on carpets. One little dot of paint on a carpet is easy to cut off with a razor blade, a big smear of paint in the carpet is impossible to get out.

Take the time to prep the walls, skim coating with joint compound if necessary, you will see every imperfection through the paint, don't think it will cover it up. Fill holes, and prime water stains.

Water-key. It's the little key you use to open the tiny manhole cover that connects your house's water to the city line. When you get that open, you can disconnect your house from water pressure. I've been able to fix a lot of things with that off.

A bidet, I now think using paper is unhygienic and kinda gross. I haven't felt this good about my butthole ever. A bidet is just so good.

I bought a leatherman first week after buying my house. It lived at my hip and saved me many dozen trips to the toolbox for a quick adjustment or tightening of bolts or screws or cutting something. I used to think swiss army knives were the shit, but then I realized you could have one with a set of pliers built in.

A headlamp. Invaluable for hands free spot lighting during repairs, painting, etc. Couldn't believe how much we used it or how glad we would be to have it

Extra insulation. When we had our home inspected the inspector told us that the insulation we had was adequate, but in a few years new regulation would require more if we wanted to sell the house. I contacted a company that would blow in insulation on top of what we already had. When he asked how much I wanted to put, I said put as much as will fit.

It ended up costing us more than $800 but since we live in the deep south, I thought this was a good investment.

Years later we had to replace our air conditioner. When the employee asked how much we pay for electricity for the hottest part of the year, I said conservatively about $100 a month. He looked at me in shock and said a house this size should run $200 to $300 during those months. He didn't really believe me until he went into the attic. He said he has never seen so much insulation in a house before.

That investment paid for itself in the first couple of years.

Sticky traps for insects. When I first moved in I found an old sticky trap behind the washer. It was a bit dusty so I threw it out. A month or so later I started seeing spiders everywhere in the house. It was so bad that I would update my weekly spider count on a dry erase board. Finally I bought a shit ton of sticky traps and out them all over the floor in the laundry room. To date I've caught numerous spiders, a couple flies, and both of my stupid f*cking cats.

Best thing I've had while being a homeowner is an extra fridge in the garage. Expanded cold storage is extremely useful. Beer, bottled water, frozen meat, extra ice, etc.

H/T: Reddit