You know you’re a first-time homeowner when…

Here are a few things we’ve learned when it comes to first time home owning…

Opening the door to your first home is an unforgettable feeling - what follows in the next weeks and months can be just as memorable, but perhaps not for the same reasons.

Here are a few things we've learned when it comes to first time home owning...

Related: Top 5 home-buying headaches revealed

Other people's version of ‘clean' doesn't quite match your own

mop basket bin and wooden table

(Image credit: Future PLC/Mark Scott)

When you walked through the door you were so relieved to see that they did indeed clean the bathroom and vacuum through the house. But on around day three of living there you're discovering that cat hair knows no bounds and is in fact all over the curtains, skirting boards and kitchen cupboards.

You have no idea how the heating works

heating system door and doormat

(Image credit: Future PLC/David Giles)

Spending hours twiddling dials on the boiler is your new hobby. Surely one of these magic buttons will make this house warm? New homes should come with instruction manuals. Fact.

You have nowhere near enough cutlery or crockery

kitchen with crockery unit

(Image credit: TBC)

When you lived alone, only owning 4 of everything was totally fine. Now everyone in the world wants to come see your new pad and you're swiftly running out of mugs. Apparently drinking tea out of a Pyrex jug is not acceptable. And neither is plastic cutlery.

You have a million plans for the place and absolutely no funds

wooden lader wardrobe hot tub and jazzy ceiling light

(Image credit: TBC)

You've used all your worldly savings to buy the place and will be living off beans on toast for a while. That walk-in wardrobe, hot tub and jazzy ceiling light will have to wait.

Every home has it's own scent

scented candles

(Image credit: Future PLC/David Giles)

And it's not necessarily bad, just foreign. Unless it smells like damp dog. Or hamsters. Scented candles, reed diffusers and a good airing should sort you right out.

You can't find the right key for the windows

before bed check 5 things keys phone wallet

(Image credit: Future PLC/Colin Poole)

You've moved in and are loving the amount of space you now have. Feels a little stuffy though - best air out the rooms. But no, the previous homeowners have turned finding a key for the window into a game of Fort Boyard. Good luck with that.

You made a rash decorating decision you now regret

green bedroom with white duvet cover and patterned headboard

(Image credit: Future PLC/Debi Treloar)

Just wanting to put your mark on the place, you painted a wall, just to make a change. However the colour you chose definitely looked better in the pot and doesn't actually go with anything.

You realise you have no concept of how to tend a garden

variety of herbs in container planter in garden with pots

(Image credit: Future PLC/Tim Young)

All of a sudden you are responsible for green things that don't just grow in pots and pretty much tend for themselves (air plants, take a bow). Now weeding, raking and mowing have to fit into your weekend tasks.

You grow to hate other people's wallpaper choices

floral bedroom wallpaper with bed with cushions drawer sidetable and flower vase

(Image credit: Future PLC/Richard Gadsby)

You thought you could live with that shiny silver wallpaper in the master bedroom for a while. Wrong - after two weeks of staring at it, it's absolutely got to go.

Related: The ultimate house viewing checklist

You discover things in the loft that you least expect

the bathroom before the makeover

(Image credit: Future PLC/David Giles)

You thought they were meant to empty that when they left. Apparently that didn't include tonnes of broken Lego, a three-legged table, and a rather creepy looking dolls house. Yes, really!

But despite all this, it's yours and you couldn't be happier!

Are you a first-time homeowner?

Deputy Editor

Jennifer is the Deputy Editor (Digital) for Homes & Gardens online. Prior to her current position, she completed various short courses a KLC Design School, and wrote across sister brands Ideal Home, LivingEtc, 25 Beautiful Homes, Country Homes & Interiors, and Style at Home.