Whether you are planning to buy your first house or you are looking to move or improve a property read on. For a new homeowner there are tips and tricks to help you make a house feel more like home.

How to make a house feel like home

When searching for a new property, there are endless practical considerations to take into account. From the square footage to the design, you’ll need to assess potential properties to determine whether they fit your needs. However, a property that’s perfect on paper won’t necessarily feel like a home. 

How do you know it is the right property?

For many people, finding the right property depends on a gut feeling, at least in part. While building surveys and title searches are a necessary part of the process, your innate reaction to a property is telling. How you feel as you enter a new property can tell you whether it will really feel like home or not. 

You’ll need to view a property to determine whether you can see yourself living there. However, there are other things you can do to decide whether it’s right for you. Check out these top tips to make a house feel like home:

1. Choose the Local Carefully

When you’re choosing where to live, don’t think solely about the commute to work, the proximity to schools or even local amenities. While these are all important factors, the environment and surroundings should do more than just serve your practical needs. 

If you thrive in nature and love being outdoors, for example, living near to forests or woodland could be the perfect choice. Alternatively, if you plan to spend much of your time on the links, consider a golf property. For families who enjoy the hustle and bustle of urban life, selecting a property in a busy town or city might be the ideal option. 

2. Be Prepared to Make Changes

In many ways, the location and surroundings are the most important things to consider when deciding where to set up home. After all, you can make significant changes to a property once you own the title to it. 

Ask yourself, are you prepared to renovate or remodel a property? If so, you’ll be able to create your dream home and design a house that truly fits your needs. From adding extra space to creating an open-plan living environment, there are many ways to make a house feel like home.

Of course, planning to renovate a property doesn’t mitigate the need for comprehensive property surveys and assessments prior to purchase. Furthermore, you’ll need to factor in the potential cost of remodelling when you’re deciding whether a particular property fits within your budget. 

3. Unpack Quickly

Moving house is a challenging and often exhausting process, which is why you’ll be glad to finally be settled into your new home! While you may not manage to unpack all of your belongings in a day or even a week, it’s important not to let the task drag on for too long. 

Even if you aren’t sure where to place your things just yet, take the time to unpack boxes. Surround yourself with things that are familiar to you and that you love to look at. When items are left in packing boxes, it brings practical challenges that can affect your mood in the property. Make unpacking an important focus in the first few weeks at your new home. 

In addition to this, living in a bare environment, surrounded by boxes, won’t make you feel more at home. By getting to work and unpacking everything or hiring professional movers to do this for you, you’ll be surprised at quickly your new house feels like a home. 

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4. Display Artwork

When you first move into a new property, adding decorative features and accessories might seem a low priority task. If you’re focused on installing furniture or getting the utilities up and running, the décor might, understandably, feel a little less important. 

However, your surroundings have a major impact on your mood and how relaxed you feel. By displaying some or all of your existing artwork in your new property, you can feel at home much more quickly. Similarly, be sure to display decorative accessories, such as sculptures, framed photographs or beloved trinkets, around your home as soon as possible. 

If planning to renovate or redecorate take time to consider what will work. Hanging paintings, pictures or photographs on the walls won’t affect your ability to move materials around when it’s time to redecorate. So don’t hold back when it comes to hanging your favourite artwork. Alternatively, displaying artwork by leaning it against the wall or on shelves is a quick fuss-free way to add character. It will make the space feel more welcoming. 

5. Invite Friends and Family Over

When you’re having trouble settling into a new property, invite friends and family to visit. Their presence in your new living space can have a remarkable impact. As well as showing off your new abode to people who matter to you, you’ll be making new happy memories in your home. Instantly you’ll feel more connected to your new home and more settled. 

While a dinner party, BBQ or casual drinks can be a great way to share your new home with guests, there are other options to consider if distance prevents face-to-face visits. If you’re relocating overseas or your loved ones are unable to visit in the near future, arrange virtual get-togethers instead. 

With video calls and group chats, you can spend quality time with your friends and family in your new home, even if they aren’t there in person. 

Transform Your Dream Property into a Dream Home

It can take some time until a new property really feels like home. So try not to panic if you don’t feel completely settled in your new house straight away. No matter how excited you are by the prospect of moving into a house, it’s common to have reservations. Doubts may creep into your thoughts as the moving date gets closer. But hold firm. You can make it work. 

A final tip on how to make a house feel like home

Always take your time to find the right location. The local environment and property can help to ensure that you’ll be happy in your new home. Similarly, putting your own unique stamp on a new home will make it your home. And remember to surround yourself with the things and people you love. Your dream property will form around you and it will feel like a dream home in no time. 

USEFUL REFERENCES FOR A NEW HOMEOWNER

At Houesitmatch.com we like to offer useful and practical articles on topics for our readers. In this selection we offer you a number of suitable pieces from our own blog on buying and preparing new home.

New home features you didn’t know you would want

Ideas to help you establish a new home quickly

Housesitters keep pets safe at home and save money

What a housesitter does – Top 10 responsibilities