You have this dream of buying an old home and then vamping it up to bring it back to its former glory, which is something homebuyers do every day. However charming an older house may be, they come with pitfalls, especially if the house has been uninhabited for a while, which means you have to be especially cautious when it comes to moving in your belongings. After the home is yours and you are ready to move in, schedule yourself a few extra days between calling movers like Affordable Transfer Co Inc. and actually moving your stuff. Here are a few things you should do before moving into an old house that has been empty for quite some time.

Go ahead and check for pests.

Spiders throughout the home, crickets in the basement, and even a family of rats may be claiming an old house as their own because it has been without human presence for a while. The last thing you want to do is move in your things and discover you have a bunch of house guests just waiting to creep and crawl into your stuff. So before you move, have a professional pest control agent take a look, or at least examine the house thoroughly on your own and spray, set traps, or implement some form of pest control strategy.

Check the house over to ensure it is secure.

You don't want to move your belongings into a home and then discover your door locks are not completely functional or there are broken windows. These are things you should check out before you get started with your move. Take the time to walk through the house and check all windows and doors for signs of issues. If doors have outdated locks, such as those that require a skeleton key, replace them with door knobs more up-to-date and capable of keeping the house secure from vandals.

Ensure there are no water leakage problems.

This may be something you look for before you purchase a home, but before you carry your things in the house, do a double check. If you move all your stuff in and a rainstorm blows through, it will be a frustrating experience to see all of your things directly in harm's way. Wait until a good rainy day and head to the house to look for signs of trouble. If the weather is mostly dry at the time, grab a garden hose and simulate rainfall by spraying down the roof for several minutes.