Moving Soon? Remember to Take Your Paper Trail with You
There’s nothing more daunting than a huge task, looming in your future.
Final exams; getting your CV out there; getting a driver’s license; landing a job and organizing your wedding are a few. Another daunting task, very near and dear to the hearts of the staff at Bird’s Moving and Storage, is moving. First, there’s the uncertainty about renting a new place, breaking a lease, or selling your home and finding – and financing – the purchase of a new home.
If you have made it through this process and you are ready to start packing, Bird’s Moving and Storage experts have a few tips.
First, it likely took you some time to accumulate your home’s “stuff,” so take your time and from the day you decide to sell, buy or move, start reducing where you can.
Next, pack what you know you won’t need – for example, out-of-season clothing and home decor; extra linens; books; knick-knacks and the good china. Store it safely by taking advantage of your mover’s warehouse storage facilities (like we offer at Bird’s), or designate one room to hold your advance-packed goods.
Once you get the packing ball rolling, it’s very likely the big task ahead won’t seem so daunting. Now, it’s time to start thinking about your family’s paper trail.
You know you have one: Driver’s licenses; federal and provincial licenses such as passports, hunting or fishing permits; car and home insurance; health cards; credit cards; banking information; investments; medical, dental and veterinary services; mobile phone accounts; your Canada Revenue Agency information, and utilities (telephone; cable; Internet; satellite; water; electricity; natural gas or propane and other services). Remember to change information with all employers and benefit services, and make a list of incidentals that need contact information, like newspaper or magazine subscriptions or occasional service providers such as pharmacies; pool companies; heating and plumbing people; home alarm companies and landscapers or snow-clearing company.
A list for children could include schools; daycares; children’s clubs or programs; social media or entertainment accounts that are charged directly to a credit card (remember, your credit card is linked to your address, too).
Don’t forget friends and family: If your phone numbers will be changing due to a long-distance move, you’ll need to make sure your contacts are all aware of the new information.
At Bird’s Moving and Storage, we have created a checklist to assist you with all the information changes you’ll need to make. The stated times are really guidelines meant to spread out the job so it won’t seem so onerous. Here goes:
At 6 Weeks Before Moving
❑ Confirm moving date with your movers and book your building’s elevator, if you need to.
❑ Make a list of all paper trail addresses to be changed for all family members (see above suggestions).
❑ Make arrangements for storage, if necessary.
❑ Begin packing seriously: Accumulate supplies like boxes, bubble wrap, packing tape, markers for labelling boxes, and other needs.
❑ Reduce clutter by planning a garage sale or calling an auctioneer, or give items to charity.
❑ If your move is long-distance and involves flights, now is the time to book and confirm travel arrangements for people and pets.
At 4 Weeks Before Moving
❑ File a mail-forwarding request to Canada Post. Using the paid service will ensure all your mail reaches you safely, allowing time for account addresses to be changed. Canada Post suggests doing this at least five business days in advance of your move – but you can do it earlier, since all requests are organized by date.
❑ Send address-change notices via email to friends and family. For those not connected digitally, drop a note in the mail, the old-fashioned way.
❑ Begin changing addresses for your paper trail: Some of your changes will need to be made in person as you will need to show identification, but some can be easily done over the phone or via your online accounts.
❑ Schedule disconnections of utilities and reconnection at new address: Most of these, you will able to arrange through the companies’ online service requests. If you have purchased a new home, changes for municipal tax rolls will take place when your home ownership papers have been filed by your real estate lawyer.
❑ Contact your insurance company to change auto insurance address and request new home coverage.
❑ Begin to clear out your freezer.
At 3 Weeks Before Moving
❑ Get rid of all accumulated recycling, garbage and environmentally hazardous materials.
❑ Organize a file for the people who have purchased your home: Add operating manuals for appliances and contact information for pool service, landscapers, alarm companies and other occasional service providers. If there have been large repairs to your home, provide copies of invoices and contact phone numbers of the companies involved.
❑ Place calls to your medical, dental and veterinary service providers to change addresses or have records transferred, if your move is long distance.
❑ Transfer all prescriptions to a new pharmacy; make sure your doctors’ offices are aware of your new pharmacy choice so records can be transferred. Make sure you have enough meds on hand for the next three weeks.
At 2 Weeks Before Moving
❑ Ramp up the packing machine! Doing some packing every day will keep the job manageable. Begin packing closets now: Keep a duffel bag out for each family member and put clothing into it they can use in the days leading up to the move. Add toiletries in small containers – just enough to see your family through two weeks, until your regular toiletry items can be unpacked.
❑ Keep a small, open box for each child, with a selection of books, toys, stuffed animals or “blankies.” Pack the rest of the children’s belongings, even the gaming systems and all games.
❑ Clear out the freezer and defrost it. If you can’t eat everything that was in it, consider making a donation to a women’s shelter, food bank, soup kitchen or other charity.
❑ Return any borrowed items, such as library books, tools or things that belong to friends.
At 1 Week Before Moving
❑ If you have not yet done it, pack each family member a travel kit.
❑ Into your own travel kit, add all your moving and legal paperwork; enough cash for tips and a few meals out; travel documents if necessary; flashlight and batteries; family medications; passports; birth certificates and other identification.
❑ Pack a bag with bed linens and a few towels for arrival day at your new home.
❑ Find a home for any house plants you aren’t taking with you.
❑ If moving to a new province or city, arrange for the transfer of all your financial accounts to a new banking branch.
At 1 Day Before Moving
❑ Disconnect and prepare major appliances for moving. (Gas appliances such as stoves and barbecues must be disconnected and lines capped by a licensed gas fitter.)
❑ Drain gas-powered appliances, like lawn mower and trimmer. Drain water hoses for storage (or simply leave them connected for the new owners of the home).
❑ Call moving company or your moving crew to confirm start time
❑ Order or pick up snacks that can be eaten on the go by hungry family members and your moving crew. Pick up new smoke alarm and carbon monoxide alarm batteries to install in your new home.
❑ Keep out a box of cleaning supplies, so that you can go through each room as it is emptied by movers. Keep out a bag of toilet paper, paper towel and hand soap to place in your new bathrooms on moving day.
❑ If you have purchased a new home, today is the day you will likely be closing it – although it is possible to take possession in advance of your move, if you have arranged your own home’s sale to accommodate this. Plan for a trip to your lawyer’s office for signing of papers and picking up keys.
❑ Decide who will be staying at the old house to supervise movers, tidy up and empty refrigerator, and who will be going to the new home to begin cleaning and supervise move-in. Once you have your keys, pay the new home a visit and drop off vacuum cleaner and other cleaning supplies you’ll need on moving day.
On Moving Day
❑ If yours is a cross-city move and you are boarding pets or dropping off children at daycares, do it early enough so you have time to do other things before movers arrive.
❑ Make a note of all utility meter readings. Take photos so you can refer back to these.
❑ Remember to do two things: Eat and breathe. Moving is stressful, but your moving company is there to help you.
❑ Have cash on hand for tipping movers and arrange for your method of payment.
When You Arrive at Your New Home
❑ Do any cleaning you can before movers arrive. Bathrooms and kitchens usually require a good going over. Place paper products and soap in bathrooms and kitchen so visitors to your home can wash hands.
❑ Install the new smoke alarm and carbon monoxide alarm batteries and put each family member’s moving kit in their bedroom.
❑ Make beds as soon as possible – moving is tiring and you won’t want to fuss with linens if it gets too late.
After Moving In
❑ Don’t try to unpack everything at once. Don’t try to arrange all furniture the first day. Don’t hang any artwork or place photos about … it will take some time to become comfortable with lighting and furniture arrangement. Take some time to get to know your home.
❑ Take your time unpacking items like books and china, or things you don’t need right away. They’ll keep! Rome wasn’t built in a day; neither will your own castle feel like home right away.
❑ Don’t jump into renovations; take a few months to feel out the home’s layout, to discover what works and what doesn’t. Keep a list of things you would like to change and ease into renovations slowly. Renovating can get expensive; you want to make sure you have made the right choices.
Congratulations on a smooth move!
For a free, no-strings-attached quote, give our office a call at 905-682-2646 or get in touch here!
We’re Bird’s Moving & Storage: Comfortable settling the Niagara Region into new homes since 1933.