Moving checklist
Excalibur Moving and Storage experts want to make sure that you are prepared for your big move! In this checklist, you will find a few tasks you can do each day to help simplify your move and ease the adjustment to your new home.
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Relocation will be much easier with the proper planning and organization. This checklist will help you get your things in order before and during the move in order to help you prepare. And to make sure you are not forgetting something important. Feel free to contact our Excalibur Moving and Storage and we will provide you with all necessary additional information.
Preparing For Your Move
Two Months Before Move
- Sort and purge.
Go through every room of your house and decide what items you’d like to keep and what items you’d like to discard or donate. Moving is a great time to do so.
- Check homeowners insurance policies
See if moving is covered in your policy. Be sure your new home is protected by transferring fire, theft and other personal property insurance.
- Create a moving binder.
Use this binder to keep track of everything—all your estimates, your receipts, and an inventory of all the items you’re moving.
- Organize school records.
Go to your children’s school and arrange for their records to be transferred to their new school district.
- Take measurements.
Check room dimensions at your new home, if possible, and make
One Month Before Move
- Choose your mover and confirm the arrangements.
Select a company and get written confirmation of your moving date, costs, and other details.
- Begin packing.
Start packing the things that you use most infrequently, such as the waffle iron and croquet set. While packing, note items of special value that might require additional insurance from your moving company. Make sure to declare, in writing, any items valued over $100 per pound, such as a computer.
- Label.
Clearly label and number each box with its contents and the room it’s destined for. This will help you to keep an inventory of your belongings. Pack and label “essentials” boxes of items you’ll need right away.
- Separate valuables.
Add items such as jewelry and important files to a safe box that you’ll personally transport to your new home. Make sure to put the mover’s estimate in this box. You’ll need it for reference on moving day.
- Do a change of address.
Go to your local post office and fill out a change-of-address form, or do it online at usps.gov. But in case there are stragglers, it’s always wise to ask a close neighbor to look out for mail after you’ve moved. Check-in with him or her two weeks after the move, and again two weeks after that.
- Notify important parties.
Alert the following of your move: banks, brokerage firms, your employer’s human resources department, magazine and newspapers you subscribe to, and credit card, insurance, and utility companies.
- Forward medical records.
Arrange for medical records to be sent to any new health-care providers or obtain copies of them yourself. Ask for referrals.
Two Weeks Before Move
- Arrange to be off from work on moving day.
Notify your office that you plan to supervise the move and therefore need the day off.
- Tune-up.
Take your car to a garage, and ask the mechanic to consider what services might be needed if you’re moving to a new climate.
- Clean out your safe-deposit box.
If you’ll be changing banks, remove the contents of your safe-deposit box and put them in the safe box that you’ll take with you on moving day.
- Contact the moving company.
Reconfirm the arrangements.
- Pack your suitcases.
Aim to finish your general packing a few days before your moving date. Then pack suitcases for everyone in the family with enough clothes to wear for a few days.
A Few Days Before Move
- Defrost the freezer.
If your refrigerator is moving with you, make sure to empty, clean, and defrost it at least 24 hours before moving day.
- Double-check the details.
Reconfirm the moving company’s arrival time and other specifics and make sure you have prepared exact, written directions to your new home for the staff. Include contact information, such as your cell phone number.
- Plan for the payment.
If you haven’t already arranged to pay your mover with a credit card, get a money order, cashier’s check, or cash for payment and tip. If the staff has done a good job, 10 to 15 percent of the total fee is a good tip. If your move was especially difficult, you might tip each mover up to $100. Don’t forget that refreshments are always appreciated.
Moving Day
- Verify.
Make sure that the moving truck that shows up is from the company you hired: The USDOT number painted on its side should match the number on the estimate you were given. Scams are not unheard-of.
- Take inventory.
Before the movers leave, sign the bill of lading/inventory list and keep a copy.