Moving house checklist
Ordered by when it needs doing, from six weeks out to the first night in the new place. Copy it, delete what does not apply, and share it so nobody does a job twice.
41 items
Makes your own editable copy. No account needed.
The items
- Six weeks out
- Confirm the moving date in writing
- Give notice to your landlord, or confirm completion
- Get three removal quotesAsk whether packing materials and insurance are included. Usually not.
- Book a day off, and one either side
- Measure the big furniture, and the new doorways
- Start using up the freezer
- One month out
- Sell or give away what is not comingYou pay to move every box.
- Order boxes, tape, bubble wrap, marker pens
- Arrange mail redirection
- Tell the school, if there is one
- Book a parking suspension if the street needs it
- Two weeks out
- Notify utilities of the switch date
- Electricity and gas
- Water
- InternetThe longest lead time of the lot. Do this first.
- Council tax
- Update the address: bank, insurance, licence, doctor, dentist
- Cancel or move the local stuff: gym, cleaner, veg box
- Pack everything you will not need for a fortnight
- The last week
- Label every box with the room it goes toRoom, not contents. The people carrying it only need the room.
- Pack a first-night boxBedding, loo roll, kettle, mugs, chargers.
- Bag up screws and fittings, taped to the furniture they belong to
- Charge the drill
- Confirm times with the removal firm
- Arrange the children and the petsElsewhere, all day, ideally.
- Moving day
- Photograph the meter readings, both properties
- Walk the empty rooms before the van leaves
- Keep keys, documents and phone chargers on you
- Hand over the old keys
- Check the inventory against the van
- First days in the new place
- Find the stopcock, the fuse box and the boiler
- Test the smoke alarms
- Register with a doctor
- Register on the electoral roll
- Meet the neighbours and find out which day the bins go out
Makes your own editable copy. No account needed.
Questions people ask
- When should I start a moving checklist?
- Six to eight weeks before the date. The jobs with a lead time — notice to your landlord, a removal quote, mail redirection — are the ones that go wrong late.
- What do I need on the first night in a new house?
- Bedding, loo roll, phone chargers, a kettle, and something to eat with. Pack them in one clearly-marked box and put it in the car, not the van.
- Who do I have to tell that I am moving?
- Your employer, bank, doctor, insurer, the council, the electoral roll, and anything that arrives by post on a schedule. They are all on this list.