Your First Year as a Homeowner in London — The Complete Guide

Day one, before you unpack a single box: change the locks on the front door, back door, and any outbuildings. You do not know who has keys from the previous owner — estate agents, previous tenants, contractors, and relatives of the seller may all have copies. Locate the stopcock (usually under the kitchen sink), the gas meter and isolation valve (usually an external meter box), and the consumer unit (fuse board). Test that the stopcock turns freely. Check the smoke alarm on every floor — if they do not work, replace immediately. Install carbon monoxide detectors in any room with a combustion appliance. Register the meters with your chosen energy suppliers. Set up home insurance — buildings cover should have been in place from exchange, contents from when you moved in. Photograph every room before you unpack.

Within the first four weeks, book a boiler service by a Gas Safe registered engineer — even if the seller provided a recent service certificate. Your own engineer establishes a baseline and may identify issues the previous service missed. If the seller did not provide an EICR (Electrical Installation Condition Report), commission one — for older properties in particular, the condition of wiring may be very different from what you assumed from the conveyancing process. Book a professional deep clean before you fully unpack — cleaning empty rooms is far more effective than cleaning around furniture and boxes. Check the loft for evidence of leaks, pest activity, or missing insulation.

The middle months of year one are about understanding what you have bought. Run the heating system through a full cycle — test every radiator, bleed those with cold spots, check the system pressure. Run every tap and flush every toilet — check water pressure, drainage speed, any signs of leaks under sinks or behind cisterns. Walk the perimeter of the property in heavy rain — where does water collect? Are the gutters draining properly? Does the basement or cellar take in water? Check the roof from ground level with binoculars — missing tiles, blocked gutters, damaged lead flashings. Note every issue you find, no matter how small. This list is your maintenance programme for year one.

Spring (March–May): external check after winter, gutter clear, garden preparation, book exterior decoration if needed. Summer (June–August): ideal for exterior painting and outdoor projects; check for pests; security review if going on holiday. Autumn (September–November): book boiler service, clear gutters after leaf fall, draught-proof windows and doors, insulate exposed pipes before winter. Winter (December–February): frozen pipe prevention (keep heating at minimum 12°C), know your emergency contacts, plan next year's improvements. Each season has specific priorities. Doing them in the right order keeps your home in good condition and avoids the expensive emergency that arrives when you have ignored routine maintenance.

One of the most valuable things you can do in year one is find reliable help before you need it urgently. An urgent situation — burst pipe, boiler failure, lockout — is the worst time to be doing research. Ask your neighbours for recommendations. Use trade body directories (WaterSafe for plumbers, NICEIC for electricians, FMB for builders, MLA for locksmiths). Or use Hampstead On Demand — our in-house team covers all of NW London. Once you have used someone and been satisfied, keep their number. A specialist who knows your property (your boiler model, where your stopcock is, the quirks of your wiring) is significantly more efficient than a new person every time.

The standard financial planning advice for property maintenance is 1–3% of the property's value per year. For a £1 million property in NW London, that is £10,000–£30,000 per year. This includes: routine maintenance (boiler service, gutter cleaning, annual check); cyclical decoration (external every 5–7 years, internal as needed); system replacements (boiler has a 15-year life, roof a 30+ year life but gutters and flashings need attention); and unexpected repairs. In year one, your maintenance spend may be higher than average as you address the deferred maintenance of the previous owner. Budget accordingly and resist the temptation to spend it all on cosmetic improvements while leaving the boiler and roof to chance.

There are jobs you can do yourself safely and legally, and jobs where attempting DIY creates risk. Generally safe DIY: painting and decorating; fitting flat-pack furniture; replacing light fittings like-for-like (but turn off the circuit first); minor carpentry; garden maintenance; bleeding radiators. Not for DIY: any gas work (boiler, cooker, gas pipe — legally must be done by a Gas Safe engineer); notifiable electrical work (new circuits, consumer unit replacement — must be done by a Part P registered electrician); structural alterations (removing walls — must be designed by a structural engineer); asbestos removal (licensed specialist required). The cost of getting these wrong is not just financial — it can be lethal.

In London, it is easy to live near people for years without knowing their names. As a new homeowner, introducing yourself is both good manners and practical. Your immediate neighbours are your first line of help if you are locked out, if something happens while you are on holiday, or if there is a problem affecting both properties (a shared drain, a party wall, a tree). They are also the people whose goodwill you need when you want to do a loft conversion or extension. A small gesture of introduction at the beginning saves significant awkwardness when you eventually need something.