Checklist For Moving Into A New House

When you move into a new house, there’s a lot to consider other than unpacking your stuff. The most important thing for you to do as soon as you enter your new home is to know the house by associating with it, learning how it functions, and prioritizing the tasks you do as a homemaker.

Moving into a new house is not an easy task as there’s a lot more to do than one can imagine. From unpacking to placing the items into their respective place, cross-checking everything in the new to see whether it’s there as promised or not. It takes more than a month to convert a new house into our small happy world again. 

That is why to save you from toiling and exerting yourself to the core, we have curated a Moving Day Checklist, which you can refer to when you move into your new palace. This checklist will surely make your settling into your new home easy and soothing, seeing yourself relaxing sitting on the sofa with a glass of champagne in your hand and praising the beauty of your new home.

Points In The Checklist For Moving Into A New House

1. Take a walkthrough of the new house: 

You had done this part when you were prospecting to buy a new house. But, taking a walkthrough when you move into your house for the very first time is also necessary. This walkthrough is required to ensure three things, viz,

• All the previously agreed and the previous owner has made requested repairs or additions.
• Every point mentioned in the sale deed is present in the house.
• Every utility is working fine, including switches, outlets, and fixtures.

2. See how child and pet friendly it is: 

If you have a child and/or pet with you, you must check how friendly your new place is for both. By this we mean, how well your child and pet can grow at the new place, what are the places for them to play, does the house have something that might be dangerous or harmful for both of them, such as an open fireplace, a steep staircase, or anything sharp. If yes, it must be your first duty to cover all such things and save your child and pet from getting hurt.

3. Understand what is where and how to work around them: 

When you’ve entered your new home, you must check what is supposed to be kept where because the new house will be different in layout and structure than your old house. So, you have to keep all the items according to the design of the new home. Doing so would help you save a lot of time compared to experimenting with things at different places and then figuring out where it will look the best.

4. Ensure your utilities are up and working: 

Arrange for the utilities in your new house before you step in to live permanently. On the first day of your relocation, check everything is in its order and working efficiently, like the electricity, water, gas, heating & cooling, internet, phone, and others. It would help if you did not forget to inform the local waste management facility about you staying in your new house so that your garbage pick-up is all set up in due time.

5. Find the water valve and fuse box: 

The water valve and fuse box are the two most essential things in a house. You do not want to run around the whole house searching for them when you have to urgently turn off the water due to some reason or when the power goes off. So, you should find them right on your first day in your new house. This is one of the essential points marked in the checklist.

6. Deep cleaning the whole house: 

After walking through the entire house, your first action must be to deep clean the entire house from top to bottom and left to right. No corner must be spared of cleaning. Cleanliness is the best policy. If you find difficulty cleaning the whole house all alone, you may call professional cleaners and get the best of cleaning. It would be best if you did not make a compromise of any sort with tidiness.

7. Prioritize the repairs, if there are any: 

If you’ve moved into a house where somebody was living before you, you may find some repair projects that you must do immediately. You must have got the idea about these repairs or renovation at the time of house inspection. So, you know what is to be repaired or changed for the better and how you must do. If the repairs would cause dirt and dust around the new house, it is better to get it done in the first place before you clean the house and unpack everything to its respective place.

8. Reset the locks: 

You should rest your new house’s door and window locks because you never know who might lawfully or unlawfully break into your home knowing the previous lock code. Being prudent is always better than being sorry. If you can change the locks by yourself, what could beat that. However, if the task seems impossible to you, call the locksmith and let him do the needful.

9. Change your address: 

Before you move, you must inform about the change in your residential address of all those people/service providers with whom you do daily transactions or business. 

Besides your friends and relatives, the people included here are your fruit/vegetables or other essential commodities’ suppliers, your bank, subscription services providers, your lenders or borrowers, and all those who send you correspondence or bills regularly.

Suppose you have settled in a new state. In that case, you must also contact your motor vehicle and other governmental i.d. proof departments to arrange for a new driving license and additional identity/address proofs that have your new residential address.        

10. Meet thy neighbors: 

You must meet your neighbors on the very first day of your arrival at your new home. They can guide you around the locality and the neighborhood. You can learn about their nature and how welcoming they are by paying a visit.

If required, you can ask for some help with necessary supplies or get the house prepared. Remember that neighbors will be the first ones to help you during emergencies, so maintaining a friendly, and cordial relationship with them is a must. 

The Last Tips

Though the above checklist is a robust one and includes points that are actually important but are often neglected, however, based on this checklist, you can add or subtract points according to your wish and make one of your own.