When it comes to moving to a new house half the battle is simple organisation. With a mountain of tasks both big and small to complete before the big day, the sheer volume of the move is often more stressful than any of the financial or legal strains.
While it’s an unlikely a checklist ever single handily saved the world, we do believe that all great achievements started with a plan. That’s why we’ve put together this moving home checklist. We’ve made a list of all the essential things to be completed in the run up to the move, so you can easily keep track of your progress and make sure nothing is forgotten.
2 Months To Go
With your offer accepted, solicitors informed and a rough move in date expected you can begin to get most of the big legal and financial stuff out of the way.
- Get a good quality journal or file to keep track of important documents for your move. Keep track of to-do lists, important numbers and dates, and details from phone calls.
- Confirm move date with anyone else that needs to be in the know immediately – landlords if you are renting, along with relevant banks and government bodies such as inland revenue as well as schools.
- Once schools are informed and confirmed, source and order any new uniform. Double check with new schools that they have any records or information they need and confirm the first day of school.
- Start arranging your mortgage with your lender and look to resolve any immediate potential problems.
- Start to arrange new insurance – check and arrange for your current policy to cover your move or get new insurance. Get any valuable items assessed accordingly.
- This is also a good opportunity to contact your other insurance companies and inform them your change of address, for example car, pet etc.
- Start researching your new location – identify and find essential facilities such as doctors, shops etc.
6 Weeks To Go
With not problems (hopefully) so far you can finalise any of your big legal stuff and start to prepare for the monumental task of packing. This will take an entire checklist of its own to make sure you pack properly and avoid any stressful situations on move in day. You’ll still need to make sure your financials and legal requirements are sorted including the Chartered Surveyor, but this is a good opportunity to start decluttering. Even if the worst happens and the move falls through, it’s never a bad idea to have a spring clean!
- Find a RICS Surveyor. This should preferably be done immediately after the above, particularly once your mortgage and move date have been confirmed.
- Make a full inventory of your items and identify which of key items, such as furniture, is making the move.
- Plan for your packing, remembering to start with a complete declutter. Use your inventory to create a complete packing checklist and decide on a rough schedule and order for packing your items.
- Declutter before starting any of your packing plan including your loft, shed and other storage places. This is important to make sure you can accurately completely the next step. Dump, donate or sell anything you are getting rid of as soon as you can to avoid any clutter lying around the home.
- Get removals and any necessary storage quotes based on the remaining items you will be taking with you. If you plan on saving by doing your own removals, make sure you have confirmed or booked the transport you were borrowing or renting.
- Check parking for your removals in your current and new locations. If there are parking restrictions, you will need to start arranging for the relevant permits from the council.
- Start arranging and ordering your packing supplies according to your checklist. Your removals or storage companies should be able to provide all the materials you need for a low cost.
- Arrange for your landline and broadband. Research options for your new home and contact your current providers to arrange for the move or cancel if you are switching. If you are switch, contact your new providers and arrange for the move. Internet can notoriously take longer than you think.
1 Month To Go
By this point its full steam ahead. With the survey complete you can finalise your moving date and arrange for the exchange of contracts. With your date set its now time to finalise everything for the moving day including any removals, such as booking your removals company and planning the best route for the size of removals vehicles.
- Finalise a moving date arrange to exchange contracts with your solicitor.
- Confirm and book your removals and storage from your preferred quotes.
- Start packing your least essential items according to your packing checklist. Store boxes in the least used rooms of the house.
- Book any necessary furnishings for the new home. Carpets, curtains and other items that might need to be made will take four weeks or more.
- Book cleaners for the new home to clean between the previous owners leaving and your move in, if the previous owners haven’t already agreed to do so.
- Book any necessary hotel accommodation.
- Confirm your change of doctors, dentist or opticians if necessary. If you are moving within the same town, simply let them know if your change of address. If you are changing, make sure you arrange this with both old and new providers.
- Notify the relevant authorities to arrange for your new council tax.
2 Weeks To Go
This is your chance to confirm all the vital details with the relevant parties, such as changing addresses and finalising school dates. If there any services you still need, such as disposing hazardous materials your removals can’t take, now is the time do it.
- Confirm details for the moving day with the relevant people including your removals company, solicitor, estate agent and even previous owners. This should include emergency numbers, times and costs or payment.
- Arrange any pet and child care for the day, preferably with friends and family.
- Make arrangements for your white goods such as dishwasher and washing machine if you’re not simply leaving them or your removals company isn’t providing the additional service. This may include booking a plumber and/or arranging for proper disposal.
- Also dispose of any other materials your removals won’t or can’t handle such as dangerous liquids or other materials.
- Notify your utilities company including electricity, gas and water. You will need to give at least 48 hours notice but arrange to do these at least a week before.
- Cancel local services such as milk or regular food deliveries, cleaners, newspapers etc.
- Start to run down perishable items like your freezer food. Plan to use them up and stop ordering more.
1 Week To Go
In your final week you should be organising all your important documents that you might need at hand and finishing up the last of your packing. This is where your moving survival kit will come in handy, as you’ll start to feel the stress of living with the bare minimum while you finish packing.
- Update your TV Licence to your new address or arrange for a new TV licence if you are getting one of the first time.
- Finish up the bulk of your packing and begin to pack more essential items. You will need to begin organising your life to accommodate this, for example leaving only a few sets of cutleries out and packing the rest or packing all but a few glasses.
- Prepare your moving day survival kit of all the essentials you’ll need on the day and put them in a safe place to save them from the packing frenzy.
- Organise all your most important items and documents together and in a safe place. This will include your folder of moving documents, passports, driving licenses, important bank and insurance documents as well as cash, jewellery and other small valuable items.
- Arrange for mail direction and update address with the post office as well as anyone else that will need to know your change of address. For example, the DVLA, any other banks you deal with and so on.
- Do the last of your laundry including bed linen so it’s clean for the final run up and first week of the move. Pack and label them clearly.
- Send out change of address cards to friends and family.
- Finalise any necessary payments, for example with your removals company, storage or other services.
- Defrost your fridge and freezer once all perishable items are used up.
- Clean out your kitchen cupboards and pack anything that you can take with you or bin other food items that are out of date or you don’t need anymore.