THE ULTIMATE NEW UTAH HOMEOWNER PUNCH LIST

Published by: Bradley
Published date: March 16, 2026
Last updated: March 16, 2026
Estimated read time: 11 minutes

You bought a house.

Excellent.

You survived:

the lender,

the inspection,

the appraisal,

the title company,

approximately 74 electronic signatures,

and the deeply humbling experience of discovering how much money closing costs actually are.

Now you've got the keys.

You walk inside your new Utah home and immediately start thinking about:

paint colors,

furniture,

a new backsplash,

that weird wall,

and whether you could fit a hot tub somewhere.

Stop.

We need to make a list.

Not the home maintenance checklist. That's what you do forever.

This is the new homeowner punch list:

The stuff I'd inspect, repair, adjust, replace, document or at least understand during your first few months of owning the house.

Because before we make it pretty, I'd like to make sure:

the doors lock,

the water stays where water belongs,

the deck isn't plotting anything,

and you actually know what that switch in the basement does.

Welcome home.

Get your phone.

BEFORE ANYTHING ELSE: FIND YOUR INSPECTION REPORT

You remember the home inspection?

The thing you paid several hundred dollars for and then barely comprehended because you were simultaneously negotiating closing credits and deciding whether you could afford the house?

Find it.

That report is now your first punch list.

Go through every finding and divide it into:

NOW

Safety issues.

Water intrusion.

Active deterioration.

Security problems.

Anything potentially damaging the house.

SOON

Functional problems.

Repairs that aren't emergencies but shouldn't be forgotten.

EVENTUALLY

Cosmetic problems.

Convenience improvements.

Things that annoy you but aren't hurting anything.

Your inspector already spent hours identifying problems.

Don't pay for that information and then abandon it in your email.

1. CHANGE OR REKEY THE EXTERIOR LOCKS

First day.

I don't care how lovely the sellers seemed.

You have absolutely no idea how many copies of those keys exist.

Former owners.

Kids.

Neighbors.

Dog walker.

Contractor.

Cleaner.

Mother-in-law.

Some guy named Craig who watered the plants in 2019.

Start fresh.

Depending on your hardware, you may:

replace locks,

rekey existing locks,

or install new hardware.

Then test every exterior door.

Does it close normally?

Latch?

Deadbolt?

Does the strike plate line up?

Does the door require lifting, pushing or sweet-talking?

Your front door shouldn't have a secret technique.

2. FIND THE MAIN WATER SHUTOFF

Do this before you need it.

Locate the home's main water shutoff and make sure you understand how your particular setup works.

Also identify accessible fixture shutoffs beneath:

sinks,

toilets,

and other plumbing fixtures.

I'm not telling you to start operating unfamiliar valves indiscriminately.

I'm telling you to know where they are.

Because the worst possible time to search Google for:

“where is water shutoff house Utah”

is while your kitchen is becoming Lake Bonneville.

Take a picture.

Label it in your phone:

WATER SHUTOFF.

Future you will appreciate current you.

3. FIND YOUR ELECTRICAL PANEL

Same principle.

Locate it.

Make sure you can access it.

Don't build shelving in front of it.

Don't stack seventeen Costco totes against it.

And don't assume the handwritten labels inside are accurate.

Older electrical panels sometimes contain wonderful historical fiction:

KITCHEN

BEDROOM

LIGHTS

BOB'S ROOM

Who is Bob?

Nobody knows.

Bob hasn't lived here since 1987.

Eventually, having circuits properly identified is extremely useful.

Electrical problems and panel work belong with appropriately qualified professionals.

My screwdriver and general confidence do not constitute an electrical license.

4. CHANGE THE HVAC FILTER

This is one of the easiest first-day wins.

You don't know when the previous homeowner last changed it.

Maybe yesterday.

Maybe during the Romney administration.

Check it.

Confirm the correct:

size

type

and orientation

for your system.

Then make a note of when you changed it.

How often you'll need to inspect or replace it depends on your filter, HVAC system, household conditions, pets and manufacturer recommendations.

The Department of Energy recommends checking filters regularly because dirty filters can reduce airflow and system efficiency.

Then buy an extra.

You own a house now.

Apparently we stock furnace filters.

5. TEST EVERY SMOKE & CARBON-MONOXIDE ALARM

Do not assume they work because they're attached to the ceiling.

Test them according to manufacturer instructions.

Check their age.

Replace batteries or units as appropriate.

The U.S. Fire Administration recommends testing smoke alarms at least monthly and replacing smoke alarms when they reach about ten years of age.

Also make sure your home has appropriate carbon-monoxide detection where required.

This is not the category where we say:

“I'll get around to it.”

It's twenty minutes.

Do it.

6. LOOK UNDER EVERY SINK

Welcome to homeownership.

We're getting on the floor.

Open every sink cabinet.

Kitchen.

Bathrooms.

Laundry areas.

Look for:

active drips

old water stains

swollen cabinet material

corrosion

mold-like growth

damaged supply lines

things that smell wrong

Then check again a few weeks later.

Why?

Because you've just inherited the house.

You don't know its normal behavior yet.

A slow leak can be remarkably discreet while it destroys everything around it.

If something is actively leaking or requires plumbing work beyond appropriate handyman scope:

Call a plumber.

Your new cabinet doesn't need to become the experiment.

7. CHECK THE CAULK AROUND TUBS & SHOWERS

This is another one I would do early.

Inspect around:

tubs,

showers,

sinks,

backsplashes,

and wet-area transitions.

Look for:

missing caulk,

cracks,

separation,

failed joints,

or places water can obviously get behind finishes.

Water is one of the most efficient ways to convert:

small inexpensive repair

into:

why are we opening the wall?

If the sealant has failed, address it appropriately.

And if you discover actual water damage?

Don't simply install prettier caulk over it.

Find out what happened.

8. OPEN AND CLOSE EVERY DOOR

Yes.

Every one.

Bedroom.

Bathroom.

Closet.

Basement.

Exterior.

Garage.

Operate them like a deeply judgmental hotel inspector.

You're checking for:

sticking

rubbing

sagging

loose hinges

broken hardware

doors that don't latch

doors that don't lock

Make a list.

This is exactly the kind of work worth bundling.

Instead of calling a handyman because one bedroom door sticks, discover that:

three doors need adjustment,

two strike plates need attention,

one hinge is loose,

and the bathroom knob belongs in a museum.

Now you've got a useful project.

9. OPEN AND CLOSE EVERY WINDOW

Same thing.

Don't wait for the first beautiful spring day to discover the bedroom window hasn't opened since 2004.

Check whether windows:

open,

close,

lock,

stay open,

and appear reasonably sealed.

Look for obvious:

water damage,

damaged trim,

failed hardware,

or deterioration.

Be particularly cautious with painted-shut windows in older homes.

If you're dealing with an older Salt Lake house, lead-safe practices can matter when disturbing old painted surfaces. The EPA's Renovation, Repair and Painting rule applies to certain work disturbing lead-based paint in homes built before 1978. EPA Lead Renovation, Repair and Painting Program

Your 1951 window may have several generations of paint on it.

Don't attack it blindly with a sander.

10. WALK THE EXTERIOR PERIMETER

Go outside.

Walk around the entire house slowly.

Look at where the building meets the ground.

You're looking for:

water collecting near the foundation,

obvious drainage issues,

damaged exterior materials,

failed sealant,

wood deterioration,

vegetation touching the house,

and anything that simply looks wrong.

You don't need to diagnose it immediately.

Take pictures.

One of the most useful things you can establish during your first year is:

What did the house look like when I bought it?

Then when something changes, you have a reference.

11. WATCH THE GUTTERS DURING ACTUAL RAIN

You can stare at a gutter all afternoon.

Rain gives you better information.

During a decent storm—safely from the ground—look outside.

Is water:

flowing through the gutters?

overflowing?

pouring from a joint?

running behind something?

discharging from the downspout?

collecting near the house?

This is one of those homeowner moments where weather becomes free diagnostic equipment.

Use it.

12. RUN EVERY SPRINKLER ZONE

If your new Utah house has irrigation, don't trust the little diagram taped inside the controller.

Run it.

Stand outside.

Watch every zone.

You may discover:

a broken head,

a buried head,

a sprinkler watering the fence,

a sprinkler watering the house,

a geyser,

an entire zone that doesn't work,

or the world's most aggressively irrigated sidewalk.

Fix the coverage.

Water the landscaping.

Not the siding.

Not the fence.

Not the driveway.

The driveway is not going to grow.

13. INSPECT THE FENCE & GATES

Don't just ask:

“Does the fence look ugly?”

Check the structure.

Grab the posts.

Do they move?

Look at the rails.

Look near ground level.

Check for:

rot,

loose boards,

failed connections,

leaning sections,

and damaged hardware.

Then operate every gate.

Does it swing?

Latch?

Drag?

Sag?

Does the post move with it?

One failing post or sagging gate may be a straightforward repair.

Multiple failing posts throughout the property are telling you something else.

Better to learn that now.

14. WALK THE DECK

If you've got one.

Look at the deck boards.

Then look underneath.

Inspect what you can safely see:

posts,

beams,

joists,

connections,

stairs,

railings,

and the area where an attached deck meets the house.

Walk the surface.

Grab the railing.

Does anything move?

A deck should feel profoundly uninteresting.

If you're thinking:

“Huh. That's got a little bounce.”

I want to know why.

If structural components appear questionable, have them evaluated appropriately.

We're not doing optimism-based structural engineering.

15. CHECK THE GARAGE DOOR

Your garage door is probably the largest moving object in the house.

Treat it accordingly.

Operate it.

Listen.

Look.

Check that safety features are working according to the manufacturer's instructions.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission has long emphasized functioning automatic-reversal systems on residential garage-door openers because of the potential for serious injury. U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission

If the door, springs, cables or opener need specialized repair:

Call a garage-door professional.

Especially the springs.

I'm fond of having all my fingers.

16. FIND OUT WHAT EVERY MYSTERY SWITCH DOES

Every house has one.

Flip.

Nothing.

Flip again.

Still nothing.

Now it lives in your head.

Before you accept permanent defeat, investigate.

A switch might control:

an exterior outlet,

half of a receptacle,

a removed fixture,

an attic light,

a garbage disposal,

a fan,

or something else entirely.

Don't start opening electrical boxes if you don't know what you're doing.

But do document the house.

Labeling things is one of the least glamorous and most useful things a new homeowner can do.

Including Bob's circuit.

We'll find Bob eventually.

17. LOOK AT YOUR WATER HEATER

Don't dismantle it.

Meet it.

Find:

the manufacturer,

model,

approximate age,

fuel type,

and where it is located.

Look for obvious signs of:

leakage,

corrosion,

water around the base,

or anything unusual.

Same goes for your:

furnace,

air conditioner,

boiler,

water softener,

and other major mechanical equipment.

Take pictures of the model and serial numbers.

Create an album on your phone:

HOUSE EQUIPMENT.

This becomes surprisingly useful when something breaks at 9:00 on a Sunday night.

18. CHECK YOUR DRYER VENT

Not just the lint screen.

The vent.

Clothes dryers generate lint, and the U.S. Fire Administration recommends cleaning lint from the filter before and after loads and ensuring the dryer exhaust vent is not restricted. U.S. Fire Administration – Clothes Dryer Fire Safety

If drying suddenly takes forever, that's information.

Make sure the vent system is appropriate and functioning.

This is one of those invisible maintenance items that deserves considerably more attention than whatever decorative pillow you're currently considering.

19. CHECK YOUR BATHROOM EXHAUST FANS

Turn them on.

Do they actually work?

A bathroom fan isn't there to provide ambient noise while you shower.

It's supposed to help exhaust moisture.

If the mirror remains fogged until Tuesday, investigate.

Clean accessible dust buildup as appropriate.

And if you're unsure whether the fan is actually venting outdoors properly, that's worth determining.

Your attic doesn't need a steam room.

20. CHECK THE LITTLE STUFF THE SELLER STOPPED CARING ABOUT

This is where Built by Bradley enters the story.

Once you've handled safety, water and major systems, make the annoying list.

Look for:

loose cabinet hinges,

missing knobs,

damaged trim,

holes in drywall,

loose towel bars,

broken shelving,

closet problems,

sticking drawers,

doors needing adjustment,

damaged baseboards,

loose handles,

unfinished transitions,

and all the other little projects the previous homeowner stopped seeing years ago.

None of these individually justifies existential despair.

Collectively, they make a new house feel surprisingly tired.

Fixing twenty small things can sometimes make the house feel more transformed than one expensive cosmetic project.

21. WALK AROUND WITH A SCREWDRIVER—METAPHORICALLY

Please don't actually start tightening every screw you encounter.

The point is:

Touch your house.

Grab the:

railings,

door handles,

cabinet pulls,

shelves,

fence posts,

towel bars,

and other things intended to remain stationary.

What moves?

Loose things tend to become looser things.

And loose things are frequently cheap to fix before they rip out, break, split or take part of the wall with them.

22. LOOK FOR DEAD SPACE

Now we can have some fun.

You've handled the responsible homeowner stuff.

Walk through the house again and look for:

awkward alcoves,

empty walls,

under-stair space,

unused vertical space,

terrible closets,

blank garage walls,

weird hallway ends,

spaces beside fireplaces,

and corners where no normal piece of furniture fits.

That's potential:

shelving

built-ins

storage

benches

cabinetry

workspaces

garage organization

Now you're not repairing the house.

You're making it work better.

This is my favorite part.

23. DON'T IMMEDIATELY RIP OUT EVERYTHING OLD

Especially in an older Salt Lake home.

Stop.

Look first.

That:

solid wood door,

original casing,

old cabinet,

built-in,

hardwood,

or strange piece of millwork

may be worth preserving.

Old doesn't automatically mean bad.

New doesn't automatically mean better.

Sometimes the best thing you can do to a 1950s house is stop trying to make it look like a 2026 apartment complex.

Repair good materials.

Replace bad materials.

Know the difference.

24. WAIT BEFORE DOING THE BIG COSMETIC PROJECTS

This is difficult.

I know.

You've owned the house for 72 hours and already have a Notes app called:

HOUSE VISION.

Live there first.

Use the kitchen.

Walk through the entry carrying groceries.

Figure out where shoes accumulate.

Notice where you wish you had an outlet.

Discover which room gets brutally hot in July.

Learn which closet is useless.

See where everyone naturally puts their stuff.

Then renovate.

You will make better decisions after the house has had time to annoy you.

Annoyance is data.

25. BUILD THE MASTER PUNCH LIST

Here's the actual system.

Create five categories.

1. SAFETY

Loose railings.

Questionable stairs.

Security problems.

Smoke/CO issues.

Anything that could hurt somebody.

2. WATER

Leaks.

Drainage.

Failed caulk.

Water intrusion.

Anything wet that shouldn't be.

3. ACTIVE DETERIORATION

Rot.

Failed exterior finish.

Loose structural components.

Problems currently getting worse.

4. FUNCTION

Doors.

Gates.

Hardware.

Cabinets.

Storage.

Things that don't work properly.

5. BEAUTY

Paint.

Trim improvements.

Built-ins.

Shelving.

Finish carpentry.

The fun stuff.

Work roughly in that order.

Because your new walnut floating shelves will not console you when the ceiling starts dripping.

YOUR FIRST WEEK

If you've just closed, here's what I'd prioritize:

Change/rekey exterior locks.

Locate the water shutoff.

Locate the electrical panel.

Test smoke and CO alarms.

Check the HVAC filter.

Look under sinks.

Check obvious wet areas.

Test exterior doors and locks.

Photograph major equipment.

Read the inspection report again.

That's enough.

You do not need to renovate the bathroom Saturday.

YOUR FIRST MONTH

Now:

operate every door and window,

run irrigation if seasonally appropriate,

inspect fences and gates,

inspect the deck,

watch drainage,

check the dryer vent,

inspect exterior wood,

check garage-door operation,

and build your complete repair list.

Then start knocking out the little stuff.

This is usually when the house starts feeling like yours.

YOUR FIRST YEAR

The first year is when you learn your house through all four Utah seasons.

Pay attention.

What happens during:

snow?

spring runoff?

heavy rain?

irrigation season?

100-degree heat?

freezing weather?

Which doors move seasonally?

Where does snow accumulate?

Which room gets hot?

Where does water go?

Which exterior wood gets hammered by afternoon sun?

Take pictures.

Make notes.

By your first anniversary, you'll understand your property dramatically better than you did at closing.

Then you can make smarter improvements.

THE BRADLEY NEW-HOMEOWNER RULE

You don't need to fix everything.

You need to know what everything is doing.

That's the distinction.

A 1952 house may have:

old trim,

weird walls,

patched drywall,

a questionable closet,

and a gate with an attitude.

Fine.

Character.

What I don't want is:

active water damage you didn't notice,

a railing nobody tested,

a deteriorating deck nobody looked underneath,

or a leak quietly eating your kitchen cabinet.

Know the house first.

Then improve it.

BOUGHT A HOUSE IN THE SALT LAKE VALLEY?

Send me your punch list.

Or better:

send me the inspection report plus pictures of the stuff you actually care about.

I'll help separate it into:

FIX NOW

FIX SOON

WATCH IT

MAKE IT BETTER

and

CALL SOMEBODY WHO IS DEFINITELY NOT BRADLEY.

Then we can bundle the handyman and carpentry work instead of making seventeen separate service calls.

Doors.

Trim.

Shelving.

Cabinets.

Built-ins.

Fence.

Gate.

Deck repairs.

Garage storage.

Installation.

All the weird little projects that came free with the mortgage.

Call or text Bradley:
(801) 644-3329

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