2 MONTHS BEFORE YOUR MOVE
YOUR MOVE
Request a free quote from Sterdts for budgeting purposes. Make sure to request an in-house assessment before finalising
your move.
Determine how many packing supplies you’ll need, and designate a room where you can begin to store and organise them
and other items that will assist you in your move.
Research your new community and schools so you know as much as possible before you move.
Got enough people to drive your cars to your new home? It not, you’ll need a car mover. Contact Sterdts for a free quote.
Get an appraisal on your expensive items so you can insure them for your move.
If you are being transferred by your work, understand your company's moving policy.
Pare down, use-up, sell, recycle or donate anything you don't want to move. Make it a family project.
Make a moving folder or booklet - include an inventory of your household items with a video or photos.
YOUR RECORDS
Contact your insurance company to transfer medical, property, and vehicle insurance policies, and while you have them on
the phone - be sure to ask about coverage while you’re in transit. Sterdts also offers insurance options.
Create a designated folder for moving-related expenses where you can file all receipts for future reference.
Notify old and new schools and arrange for the transfer of school records and begin the process of registering in new
schools.
Notify doctors and dentists of moves, and seek referrals and collect all medical, dental and school records to ensure you do
not forget to obtain them at a later date; some require written permission for this. Keep these in a safe place.
Belong to any membership associations? Be sure to transfer membership to your new hometown.
YOUR FAMILY AND PETS
Make travel arrangements for you and your family. Whether it’s renting a car, scheduling a flight or reserving a hotel room,
book it at a time that will give you flexibility in case anything goes awry. Be sure to arrive well before the moving date.
If you’re nearing a pet’s regular exam, schedule it now, and start getting recommendations for veterinarians in your new
town.
QUICK TIPS
Contemplate holding a garage sale prior to your move; this will help you reduce the amount of stuff you need to move, and
earn some extra cash on the side. Start planning one now, or think of charities that could take your stuff.
Unless you’re buying packing materials new, keep an eye out of for used items that could be used for packing, like old
towels and sheets that could be used as packing material.
Do you need storage? Contact Sterdts for a free quote.
1 MONTH BEFORE YOUR MOVE
YOUR MOVE
By this point you should have already appointed a moving company (Sterdts maybe?). Check with them to confirm all the
details of the move are set. If you are packing on your own, make the proper arrangements and get the right supplies.
Arrange to connect and disconnect your cable, internet, electric and any other services you currently use and arranged for
service at your new home. Dealing with this at an earlier date will prevent any date and time conflicts you may incur.
If you need new blinds, curtains or furniture for your new home, buy them now and arrange it so they arrive at your new
home when your things do.
Start planning where things will go in your new home.
Create an inventory of your stuff so that you can compare against the moving company’s list to ensure you don’t lose
anything in the move. It’s also a good aid in determining how much moving insurance you need.
Are you taking appliances? If so, draw up a plan for how to handle them (disconnecting fittings etc.).
Get a head-start on your packing by packing things that you won’t need before the move, like seasonal items such as
summer sporting gear.
Arrange childcare and pet care for the day of your move, or think about a "safe" room they can be during the move itself so
they’re out of the way.
Make a packing plan - assign everyone a task and involve the kids.
Make an unpacking plan for the new home - who does what and diagram where the furniture goes. The movers will not
rearrange your furniture for you, so think this through.
YOUR RECORDS
Contact or visit your local Post Office to obtain a Change of Address form.
Give a change of address to the following: Banks, schools, friends and family, insurance company, doctors and specialists,
cell phone company, credit card companies, and magazine and newspaper subscriptions.
You may have to switch banks because your current bank doesn’t have branches in your new town. Investigate the popular
banks in the area you will be living in so that you can close and open new bank accounts as needed.
Check the requirements for a new vehicle licence and number plate registration at your new location.
If you will be making an international move, make sure your passport is up to date and has not expired. Passports generally
take +/- 6 weeks to process.
Let service providers - landscapers, cleaning services - know you’re moving, and look for new ones in your new hometown.
YOUR FAMILY AND PETS
You may also want to take you and your family to your dentist and/or eye doctor to get your routine check ups done. It may
take a while for you to find new family dentists and doctors in your new city that you are comfortable with.
Encourage children to make an address book of friends.
QUICK TIPS
Driving to your new house? Make sure your car’s ready for the trip, and that you have all the proper maps.
14 DAYS BEFORE YOUR MOVE
YOUR MOVE
Begin cleaning any rooms in your house that have been emptied, such as closets, basements or the attic, and check to
make sure you did not leave anything unpacked.
Moving plants? Check on their special moving needs.
Make arrangements to clean your new home, and the home you’re moving out of. Also, arrange for any services for your
new home that will be easier to do before your things arrive: carpet cleaning, wood floor cleaning, painting, etc.
YOUR RECORDS
Find pharmacies in your new town that you can transfer your family’s prescriptions over to. Make sure you have enough
required medication in case you don’t locate a new pharmacist/doctor immediately.
Organise important documents - will, passport, deeds, financial statements - to carry with you when you move; make
copies that you can pack with your household goods, but carry the originals with you.
YOUR FAMILY AND PETS
Is your pet ready for the move? Make sure you have transportation arranged, and that you have someone who can watch
the pet during the move. Also, make sure the pet is up to date on its shots.
QUICK TIPS
Collect valuable items such as jewellery or heirlooms and keep them separate from the rest of your packed belongings so
you don’t risk losing them.
Return any borrowed items, such as library books, and collect any clothing that you may have taken to be dry-cleaned.
7 DAYS BEFORE YOUR MOVE
YOUR MOVE
Pack any items you have not had a chance to pack yet. Your final week at home has the potential to be very stressful; don’t
push things off until the last minute.
As you’re packing, be sure you’re labelling each box for where it goes in your new home - if you don’t do this now, you
might very well forget what’s in what box. Also, where applicable mark the boxes “Fragile,” “Do not load,” or “Load last.”
Call your mover and confirm your move date, and make any special arrangements for items like a piano.
Arrange for payment for movers.
Confirm closing/move-in dates with your real estate agent; confirm dates with your storage people.
Disconnect and disassemble your computer and peripherals. Back up all your files for safety. You should plan to take these
files with you in the car or whatever mode of transportation you will be using to get to your new home.
Dispose of paint, oil, and weed killers. Drain fuel out of mowers. Discard gas tanks from grills.
YOUR RECORDS
Make sure all scheduled deliveries (newspaper, milk, etc.) have been cancelled or redirected to your new home.
Open a new banking account. Don’t close your old one until you move. If you bank online, be sure to update your address
for statement delivery.
Get together all keys, alarm codes and garage door openers and place them in a folder so that you can be prepared to
hand them over to the new owner or real estate agent.
YOUR FAMILY AND PETS
Start preparing your kids for the move. Talk about it, and engage them in the process - maybe they can help color-code
boxes to help the movers know where stuff goes.
Empty all lockers at school, work or at your gym.
Return any borrowed items from friends, the library or video store - you don’t want to fumble with this on your moving day.
QUICK TIPS
Think about quick and easy meals you can prepare for your family to use up the remaining food in your refrigerator so that it
does not go to waste, and also allow you to pack some kitchen items.
ON MOVING DAY
YOUR MOVE
Put together a moving day survival kit with items you will need for the trip and immediately when you arrive at your new
home. These items include toilet paper, snacks, bottled water, dishes, toiletries, towels, a few days’ worth of clothes.
Double-check any arrangements you might have made to transport your pet. Do you have proper travel gear?
Write out a list of things your movers will need: phone numbers; exact moving address and maps.
Check the inventory list and sign it. Put your copy in your moving folder.
Read the Bill of Lading/Transport Docs carefully and sign it, if it is correct.
Make sure you have the moving companies contact information with you in your moving folder.
In your new home, tape names to doors to assist movers; map out the floor layout so movers know what’s going where;
finally, prepare your new home for moving to prevent any damage.
If you don’t have professional cleaners coming in, make sure you clean your home before leaving.
Pack a moving day box of things you’ll be moving yourself so you have access to them right away. Cell phone, light bulbs,
tool kit, scissors, flashlight, trash bags, paper towels, toilet paper, aspirin and bed linens.
Pack pet food and pet litter.
Double check to be sure you’re on target for your utilities to be hooked up.
Do the walkthrough with your real estate agent. Make sure everything’s where it should be. Also ask for appliance manuals
and such.
QUICK TIPS
Empty, clean and defrost your refrigerator/freezer and use baking soda to rid it of any foul odours.
Notify the police in your town if your home will be uninhabited for a long period of time.
Before you move, mow your lawn one last time, especially if your home will not be unoccupied immediately after your
departure.
Make sure you know what to do with final trash.
7 DAYS AFTER YOU'VE MOVED
QUICK TIPS
Get your kids involved in the unpacking process, and help them find activities in your new town.
Did you get your moving deposits, if any applicable back yet?
Make sure you have fire extinguishers and fire detectors in your new home.
Do any quick repair work that needs to be done, if you didn’t do it before moving in.
Tackle some fun first projects to help make your house a home, like hanging pictures and other simple projects
Explore the new town - get acquainted, find out where everything is, etc.
Replace the locks if you’re uneasy about keeping the locks that came with the house.
Update your address for all these: voter registration, driver's licence, tax forms, new bank account, etc.
Start thinking about the larger home-renovation projects you’d like to get started, and prioritise them.
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