New Homeowner? Your First 90 Days in Canada: A Practical Checklist

Owning a home is mostly a set of small systems: where things are, when they need attention, and where the paperwork lives. The first ninety days are when you build those systems, while everything is fresh and before the first surprise. Here is a calm, ordered way to do it.

Week 1: safety and access first

Before anything cosmetic, make the house safe and make sure you can control it in an emergency.

• Rekey or change the locks. You do not know who has a copy. Rekeying is inexpensive and worth doing before your first night.
• Find the shutoffs. Locate and test the main water shutoff, the electrical panel (and label the breakers if the previous owner did not), and, if you have gas, the gas shutoff. Knowing where the water main is turns a burst pipe from a disaster into an inconvenience.
• Test the alarms. Check every smoke and carbon-monoxide detector and replace batteries. In much of Canada, working CO alarms near sleeping areas are a legal requirement, not just a good idea.
• Locate the big-ticket equipment. Find the furnace, water heater, electrical panel, and sump pump if you have one, and note whether anything looks aged or neglected.

Weeks 1 to 2: utilities, address, and insurance

• Set up or transfer utilities: electricity, gas, water, internet, and waste or recycling if it is billed separately. Do this before closing where you can so nothing lapses.
• Confirm home insurance is active. Your lender almost certainly required a policy effective on closing day. Confirm it is in force, understand what it covers, and note your deductible. This is also the moment to start a home inventory, which makes any future claim far easier.
• Update your address with your bank, employer, provincial ID and health card, the CRA, and any subscriptions. A mail-forwarding order buys you a buffer while you catch the stragglers.

Weeks 2 to 4: understand the money

• Property tax. Learn how your municipality bills it (often a few instalments a year) and set up your account with the city. If it is not paid through your mortgage, budget for it directly so a large bill never surprises you.
• Your mortgage. Confirm your first payment date and amount, and note your renewal date now while you are thinking about it, so a renewal is never a scramble later.
• A maintenance reserve. A common rule of thumb is to set aside roughly 1 to 3 percent of your home's value each year for upkeep and repairs. Treat it as a real line in your budget, not an afterthought.

Weeks 2 to 6: start a home record

This is the step most new owners skip, and the one that pays off for years. Create one place, digital or physical, for everything about the house:

• Ownership and legal: the closing documents, title or deed, and the property survey.
• Warranties and manuals: appliance manuals with their model and serial numbers, plus warranty expiry dates. Snap a photo of the label on each appliance and the furnace now, while you can reach them.
• History and permits: any building permits, renovation records, and inspection reports.
• Practical details: paint colours and finishes, filter sizes, and a contact list for the plumber, electrician, HVAC technician, and roofer you will eventually need.

Keeping this in one organized place is exactly what Habyn helps homeowners do, so that when a warranty is about to lapse or you are selling in five years, nothing is lost. Our guide to tracking warranties and appliances goes deeper on that piece.

Weeks 4 to 12: get ahead of maintenance

• Service the systems. Book a furnace or HVAC service if there is no recent record, and note the age of the roof, furnace, water heater, and major appliances so you can plan replacements instead of reacting to failures.
• Change what is easy. Replace the furnace filter, learn its size, and set a recurring reminder to swap it.
• Build a seasonal calendar. Ontario and Canadian homes have a rhythm: gutters and heating in fall, air conditioning and exterior in spring. Our home maintenance schedule is a ready-made starting point.

What not to rush

Resist the urge to gut and renovate in month one. Live in the house through a season first. You will learn where the light is good, where the drafts are, and which "obvious" change you would have regretted. The best renovations come from a few months of actually living in the space.

Frequently asked questions

What is the single most important first-day task? Find and test the main water shutoff, and rekey the locks. Safety and control come before anything cosmetic.

How much should I budget for maintenance? A common guideline is 1 to 3 percent of the home's value per year. Older homes and detached homes tend toward the higher end.

Do I really need a home inventory? It is one of the highest-value hours you will spend. If you ever file an insurance claim, a documented inventory of what you own turns a stressful process into a straightforward one.

When should I start thinking about my mortgage renewal? Note the date now. You can typically shop and lock a renewal rate a few months before it comes due, and starting early is how you avoid auto-renewing at a posted rate.

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The homeowners who find ownership easy are not the handiest ones. They are the ones who wrote things down early. Habyn gives your home a single, organized memory: records, warranties, maintenance, and value in one place. See how Habyn helps homeowners.