The Ultimate Moving Home Checklist Not to Forget a Thing
As professional home organisers, we’ve helped with many home moves over the years and have learnt plenty about what’s important to consider in the lead up to, during and after moving day!
We understand that uprooting your home can be an overwhelming time so we’re sharing our ultimate moving home checklist which covers everything from planning and organising your home move to packing up your home to help you make sure your move is as stress-free as possible.
Our checklist is split up into three sections: the first two covering what you need to do prior to moving and the final one covering the most exciting part; moving day!
Ahead of your move
You’ve found your new home and it’s time to get the ball rolling on your home move with these initial tasks:
Create a dedicated moving folder
This should be a physical folder where you can group together all checklists, plans and your moving schedule (which should include all key dates) along with any other moving paperwork. Keeping everything grouped in one handy place will allow you to feel organised and in control of your move.
Start decluttering
The best way to start packing for a move is to first declutter. You should begin decluttering as far in advance of your move as you can.
Purging each room before packing up will help you to eliminate any items you no longer use or don’t need in your new home. You should sell, donate, or trash any unwanted items before your move so as not to waste time or money packing them up and unpacking them at the other end.
Additionally, take this opportunity to move any item you come across that is in the ‘wrong’ location within your home to the correct location so that when packing does happen, all items will be packed (and unpacked) in their correct location.
Contact utilities companies
Get in touch with your current utilities companies to let them know the date you will be moving out of your current home. Also set up installation / start-dates for utilities in your new home. This should include gas, electricity, water, phone, tv and broadband.
Contact the local council
It’s a good idea to get in touch with the local council to figure out what you’ll need to do in terms of council tax. You will also need to get yourself onto the new electoral roll.
If you’ve been renting prior to buying your new home, confirm your moving out date with your lettings agent or landlord and arrange a time for your outgoing inspection. You may also decide to set aside some funds for final bills and cleaning costs prior to moving out.
Book appointments with people who can help with your move
As soon as you can, you should start booking appointments with companies / people who can help facilitate your move. This could include:
Movers (to provide packing materials and help pack-up and move your possessions to your new home)
Professional organisers (to help manage your move, declutter beforehand and set up your new home)
Handymen (to dismantle furniture / build or rebuild furniture, hang artwork etc. in your new home)
Cleaners (to clean your new home pre move-in and your old home post move-out)
It’s a huge task to coordinate and complete a home move entirely on your own, so book these services early to avoid missing out. Be sure to check with friends and family who have recently moved for any recommendations.
Just before your move
In the remaining days before you move into your new home, to ensure that everything goes smoothly on the big day, the following items should be ticked off your moving checklist:
Label up boxes
Get organised by adding clear and descriptive labels to all boxes that are packed up. Create a list detailing what is inside each box to make it easier to find things when you’re unpacking in your new home.
You do not need to list each individual item packed within each box but go into as much detail as you feel is necessary for you to ensure you won’t have to rip open every box to find one pair of pyjamas! File this list inside your moving folder so you’ll know exactly where it is when you need it.
Arrange child and pet care
If needed, you should arrange child and pet care for moving day.
Defrost your fridge / freezer
If you’ll be taking it with you to your new home you should defrost your fridge / freezer in the days before your moving company comes to collect it. If it’s staying it’s a good idea to give it clean before moving day ready for its new owners.
Note existing damage to furniture
It’s a good idea to note any damage to your furniture before it is moved. Take photographs of any existing damage and save all images together in an album on your phone or computer.
This way if a piece of furniture takes a knock or a bump during the move you will be able to check the damage against your records.
Let people know your change of address
Make sure you let people know your change of address. As well as friends and family, you should let royal mail know, along with your banks and any subscription services you use.
Pack a ‘last in, first out’ box
This is the box that will be packed away last and unpacked first. It should contain all the essential items that you will need to get you through the first few days in your new place.
Think logically when packing this box; eating, showering, and sleeping are the essential first activities you are likely to do in your new home so include food, toiletries, medications, towels and bed linens along with pyjamas, a change of clothes and kids’ stuffed animals!
If you take medication, make sure you have enough of it on hand to last through the initial moving period. This will help you to avoid rifling through boxes to locate important items.
Double check and confirm the date of move
Although this seems obvious, it’s not something you want to get wrong! In the days before the move, confirm the date with your estate agent and your moving company and any other people you are hiring to facilitate your move.
Moving day and beyond
With the big day upon you, these are the final few tasks left to complete on your moving checklist:
Record metre readings and opening metre readings in your new home
Take final metre reading for water, gas and electricity in your old home and opening metre readings in your new home. It’s easiest to do this by taking photos using your mobile phone.
Do a final walk through of your home
Before leaving your current home, do a final walk-through to ensure nothing has been left behind. Make sure that all windows and doors are locked and that utilities are turned off.
Leave the keys behind for the new occupants, making sure that someone with a spare key is at your current home until the removals company has left.
Have boxes and furniture placed in their relevant rooms
Make sure that the movers place boxes and furniture in their relevant rooms according to their labels and your inventory list.
Unpack your most-used rooms first
Once you and your belongings are safely in your new home, it’s best that you begin by unpacking the rooms you use most frequently first. This normally includes bedrooms, bathrooms and kitchen followed by the home office, laundry room, playroom, dining room etc.
With boxes and furniture already placed in the correct rooms, now all that there is to do is start unpacking and setting up your new home.
Get expert help for your home move
If this all sounds a little too overwhelming, we have some good news for you: you don’t need to handle all of these time consuming tasks alone. Homefulness is here to help!
Our home organisation experts can help take the hard work of moving home off your hands by coordinating your entire move, working alongside you during packing, moving and unpacking.
Our goal is for you to be settled in your new space, stress-free, unpacked and organised! Get in touch with us today to discuss your next home move and how we can help.
