Get your home ready for cooler weather while it's still nice outside.

The days are getting shorter, and the nights are getting cooler. The kids are trudging off to school again with their backpacks and light jackets, and leaves are starting to fall from the trees.

Yep, it’s official: Fall is here. Now is the time to finish up any last-minute late-summer maintenance projects, and get your home and yard ready for fall.

Just follow our easy checklist, and your home will soon be clean, warm, and ready for the cool days to come.

Exterior prep

• Fix cracks in concrete and asphalt. Depending on where you live, these may be the last weeks this year when it will be warm and sunny enough to repair driveway and sidewalk cracks.
• Clean out the gutters. No one loves this job, but we all need to do it annually. A few hours of work can prevent big problems later on. And while you’re up on that ladder, visually inspect your roof for damaged shingles, flashing, or vents. You can also inspect the chimney for any missing mortar, and consider tuck-pointing if needed.
• Turn off outdoor plumbing. Drain outdoor faucets and sprinkler systems, and cover them to protect them from freezing weather to come.
• Start composting. If you don’t already have compost bins, now is the time to make or get some. All those accumulated autumn leaves will bring you gardening gold next summer!
• Clean outdoor furniture and gardening tools. It may not be quite time yet to put them away, but go ahead and make sure your outdoor furniture and gardening tools are cleaned up and ready for storage over the winter.
• Plant bulbs for spring-blooming flowers. A joyous and beautiful sign of spring is when tulips and daffodils start popping up everywhere. Plant bulbs in October, as soon as the soil has cooled down, to reap big rewards next spring. If you’ve never planted bulbs before, select a spot in your yard that gets full sun during the day.

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Written for Zillow Blog by:  See Jane Drill