Getting Home Ready for Baby: Car Seats, Nursery and Budget

Getting the house ready is often the first pregnancy job a partner can fully own. It is concrete, it can be finished before the birth, and some parts of it really matter for safety. The trick is to focus on the few things that matter most rather than on everything a baby store suggests.

This guide covers three areas: the car seat, which you need before the first drive home; a safe place for the baby to sleep; and the paperwork and budget decisions that are easy to forget. It draws on guidance from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), the Safe to Sleep campaign led by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) and the U.S. Department of Labor. It does not recommend specific products, and it is general information, not medical or legal advice: your baby's pediatrician, a certified car seat technician and your health plan can answer questions about your situation.

Start with the car seat

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists lists making sure you have a car seat, installed properly, among the things to do before labor begins. The AAP says all infants should ride rear-facing, starting with their first ride home from the hospital. NHTSA says a child under age 1 should always ride in a rear-facing car seat.

Rear-facing seats come in three types, as NHTSA and the AAP describe them:

• Infant-only seats can only be used rear-facing. The AAP notes they are small, have carrying handles and usually come with a base that stays in the car.
• Convertible seats can be used rear-facing and later turned forward-facing. They typically allow a child to stay rear-facing longer, but they are bulkier and stay in the car.
• All-in-one seats can be used rear-facing, forward-facing and later as a booster.

On choosing, the AAP is blunt: no one seat is the "best" or "safest." The best seat is the one that fits your child's size, fits your vehicle, is installed correctly and is used properly on every ride. NHTSA adds that not all car seats fit in all vehicles and suggests testing a seat in your car before you buy it.

Installing it right

NHTSA and the AAP both stress reading two manuals: the one for the car seat and the vehicle owner's manual. A few rules come up again and again:

• Use either the lower anchors or the seat belt to install the seat. The AAP says the two are equally safe and that you should generally use only one, unless the car seat and vehicle manufacturers say it is OK to use both. If you use the seat belt, check the vehicle manual for how to lock it.
• Check that it is tight. The AAP says if the seat moves more than an inch side to side or front to back at the belt path, it is not tight enough.
• Never put a rear-facing seat in the front seat of a vehicle with an active front passenger airbag. The AAP explains that an inflating airbag would hit the back of the seat, right against the child's head.
• Check the recline angle. The AAP says all rear-facing seats have built-in recline indicators, so the baby's head does not flop forward.
• Keep children in the back seat. NHTSA recommends the back seat at least through age 12.

Then get it checked. NHTSA says certified child passenger safety technicians at car seat inspection stations will inspect a seat free of charge in most cases and show you how to install and use it. The AAP suggests that expectant parents consider working with a technician before the baby is born so the ride home is safe.

Finally, register the seat with the manufacturer so it can contact you about recalls. NHTSA also offers e-mail recall alerts.

Once the baby is here, a few habits matter:

• Snug harness. The AAP describes a pinch test: you should not be able to pinch any slack in the strap at the shoulder. The chest clip should sit at the center of the chest, even with the armpits.
• No bulky coats. The AAP explains that winter coats and snowsuits can compress in a crash and leave the straps too loose. Buckle the baby in thinner layers and put a blanket over the straps if needed.
• Travel only. The AAP says car seats should be used only for travel, not for sleeping or feeding outside the vehicle.

If your baby is born preterm, the AAP says they should be screened in the hospital to make sure they can ride safely in a semi-reclined seat.

Used and hand-me-down seats

Borrowing gear saves money, but be careful with car seats. The AAP advises avoiding a used seat if you don't know its history, and lists other red flags:

• It is too old. Check the date of manufacture on the label and the manufacturer's recommended lifespan.
• It has no label showing the date and model number, so you can't check for recalls.
• It has no instructions, or it is missing parts.
• It has been recalled.
• It was in a moderate or severe crash.

The AAP notes that some manufacturers recommend replacing a seat after any crash, even a minor one.

Nursery basics: a safe place to sleep

A nursery doesn't need much to be safe, and less is better. The Safe to Sleep campaign says to place babies on their backs to sleep, for naps and at night, until they are 1 year old. It describes a safe sleep surface as firm, flat and level, not at an angle or incline, and covered only with a fitted sheet. A crib with nothing in it but a fitted sheet may look bare, but Safe to Sleep calls it the safest option. Pillows, stuffed toys, crib bumpers, loose blankets and weighted products all stay out.

Where the sleep space goes also matters. Safe to Sleep recommends room sharing: the baby sleeps in the parents' room, near the adult bed, in a separate space made for infants, such as a crib, bassinet or portable play yard. It says this is safer than bed sharing and safer than the baby sleeping in a separate room. Safe to Sleep also says car seats, strollers and other sitting devices are not recommended for regular sleep. Our Birth & the First Weeks guides cover safe sleep in more depth.

Paperwork and budget

A few money and paperwork tasks are easier to handle before the birth:

• Health coverage for the baby. The Department of Labor explains that a birth may trigger a special enrollment period to add the baby to an employer plan or a Marketplace plan. Under HIPAA's special enrollment rules for job-based plans, the department's FAQ says enrollment generally must be requested within 30 days after the birth. Find out now who to contact and what form to use.
• Hospital stay coverage. Under the Newborns' and Mothers' Health Protection Act, the Department of Labor says plans that cover maternity or newborn care generally must cover at least 48 hours in the hospital after a vaginal delivery or 96 hours after a cesarean, unless the attending provider, in consultation with the mother, decides on an earlier discharge.

For the budget itself, separate needs from nice-to-haves. For example, imagine a couple with a fixed amount to spend. They might buy the car seat and a safe sleep space new, then borrow clothes, a stroller and other gear from friends. The safety items come first, and the extras can wait until you know what you actually use.

Key takeaways

• Have a rear-facing car seat installed before labor; the first ride home is rear-facing.
• The "best" seat is the one that fits your baby and your car and is installed and used correctly every time.
• Get the installation checked by a certified technician, often free, and register the seat for recalls.
• Avoid used car seats with an unknown history, missing labels or parts, a recall or a crash history.
• Place the baby on their back for every sleep, on a firm, flat, level surface with only a fitted sheet, in the parents' room but not in their bed.
• Learn the deadline for adding the baby to your health plan; for job-based plans it is generally 30 days after birth.

Sources

• National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Car Seats and Booster Seats
• American Academy of Pediatrics (HealthyChildren.org), Car Seats: Information for Families (last updated April 16, 2026)
• NICHD Safe to Sleep campaign, Safe Sleep Environment for Baby
• NICHD Safe to Sleep campaign, Ways to Reduce Baby's Risk
• U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration, Childbirth and Adoption
• U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration, FAQs on HIPAA Portability and Nondiscrimination Requirements for Workers
• American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, How to Tell When Labor Begins (last reviewed November 2025)