Moving House Checklist

If you plan to buy a home, you’ll likely need to get a mortgage. You should speak to a mortgage advisor or bank about this.

Various factors can influence how much you can borrow. Expect your mortgage to require a 10-20% deposit (you’ll pay this cash up front) and borrow up to 5x your annual income.

If you plan on renting, consider how much cash you have available monthly.

You should budget around 30% of your monthly income on rent.

Think about what you need in your new property.

For example, think about the size and location. Your budget will play a role here. Meeting all your criteria is not always possible, so think carefully about your priorities.

Once you’ve found a property you like, it’s time to make an offer.

If you’re renting, just contact the landlord. They’ll likely approve (or decline) you based on your credit score and income.

If you’re buying, the process is much longer. You’ll need to secure a mortgage and then find an estate agent. (However, you can also sell your house without an estate agent).

Before making an offer, consider the local market. You can offer less than the asking price, especially if the property has been on the market for a while.

If your offer is accepted, you’ll need to organise a survey for the property. Your mortgage provider and real estate agent can assist with this.

If there are issues with the property, you may need to revise your offer (or withdraw it completely).

Selling your home can be slow. You’ll need to be patient, even if you’ve found the perfect home to buy.

There are many ways to sell your home faster. But the most important factor for timeframes is usually what channel/method used.

Most people sell the traditional way – through estate agents. But there are trusted alternative ways to sell property, too.

One of these ways channels is cash buyers (like We Buy Any Home). It is generally considered the fastest way to get a guaranteed house sale.

Once the offer has been accepted and the property survey completed, the purchase should speed up.

The conveyancing solicitor will provide you with paperwork to sign.

Eventually, you’ll need to exchange contracts for the sale of your property (if selling) and the purchase of your new one.

After this, pulling out of a house sale will be expensive.

Eventually, the conveyancing solicitor will let you know the moving date (normally 1-2 weeks in advance), and details on where keys will be exchanged.

Make sure all your mortgage paperwork is in place. Talk to your mortgage advisor or bank about this.

You need to have a firm offer for your mortgage before contracts are exchanged.

This is not always be possible. However, if you can, find out things like:

• When the bins get collected (especially recycling)
• Where electrical or gas meters are located
• Whether they have documents for kitchen appliances they are leaving behind, e.g. warranties, manuals, etc.
• Who their broadband or phone supplier is (it’ll make the switch much easier)
• Where they purchased their tiles, wallpaper, or flooring. This is important if they ever get damaged and you need to replace them

We recommend you start packing as soon as you know you’re moving home. Start by packing the things that you are unlikely to need right away.

For example, if you’re moving in the winter, pack your summer clothes. You can leave furniture packing until the last days before moving.

You can hire a vehicle and move your own belongings, but it’s a lot of stress. Removal companies’ services come at a price, but it’s often worth the cost.

A few weeks before you move, start getting quotes from local removal companies.

Check reviews of removal companies before you hire them. And find out if they have insurance.

When you have a moving date, book the removal company that you’ve selected. You’ll likely be asked to pay a deposit before the move and then the full balance afterwards.

If you’re moving from a rental, you should pay a cleaning company to carry out your end-of-tenancy cleaning rather than doing it yourself.

They will ensure that the property is clean enough to get your deposit back.

You can book these about a week before your moving house date, but you can always look for quotes earlier.

If you’re downsizing, you may have too many belongings for your new property. You have two options here:

• Sell them
• Put them into storage

With storage, it’s important that you start looking for quotes as soon as possible. Depending on where you live, there’ll should be several storage units available to rent.

You’ll need to start changing your address with the following parties a few days before you move:

• Your bank
• Department for Work and Pensions
• HMRC (if a sole trader, or you run a business)
• DVLA, if you own a vehicle.
• Electoral roll – it is essential the electoral roll contains up-to-date information. It is a legal requirement.
• TV licensing (important if you plan on having a new TV at your property)
• Bank
• Credit cards
• Phone contracts
• Any bills that need paying.
• Loyalty cards
• Pension
• Insurance, particularly car and pet insurance.

When you have a house moving date, visit the Royal Mail website and process a redirect.

This will ensure that mail sent to your old address will be automatically forwarded to your new one.

This is particularly important if your new house is far from the old one.

The following should all be cancelled:

• Water bills
• Electricity bills
• Gas bills
• Landline bills
• TV subscriptions
• Broadband

and more.

In some cases, you can move contracts over to your new property. It’ll save a lot of hassle. Just contact the vendor to inform them.

Organise property insurance in the days before your move (i.e., when you have a firm date). You must be insured in your new property from the first day.

When you change your address with the local authorities, make sure you cancel your council tax at the same time. In most places, this can be completed online.

Not everybody will need a packing company, but if you have a lot of hefty furniture, it may be wise to book one. A packing company can dismantle the furniture and, in some cases, reassemble it at your new location.

A man & van is a method for smaller moves e.g. moving a few boxes and some smaller pieces of furniture. It is often an option for first-time buyers who may not have a lot of furniture, or those moving to a furnished rental. 

If you’ve got a lot of furniture to move (and big furniture), book a proper moving company. Ensure that they are insured for the move, particularly if you have something quite expensive.

Furniture removal companies will often be expensive, but worth the cost. They’ll carry the furniture around for you, saving you a lot of time and effort.

If anything needs to go into storage (particularly if downsizing), look for storage units. To get a quote, you’ll need a rough size of all the items being stored.

Always choose reputable, insured storage providers. This will ensure your items are in good hands.

For end of tenancy cleans, you’ll need a cleaner. Don’t do it yourself. Always ensure that the cleaner you choose carries out end-of-tenancies, and they are well-reviewed. It’ll ensure that the job is done properly, and give your landlord less opportunity to get your deposit back from you.