Moving House Checklist: Your Week-by-week Guide to Moving Day in 2026

8 to 10 weeks before you move

This is the planning stage rather than the doing stage. Decisions made now, particularly around your removal company and how much you’re taking, affect both cost and stress later on.

DIY, man-and-van, or a full-service removal?

A DIY move with a hired van works for a small flat and a free weekend, but it means you’re doing all the lifting, driving and insurance risk yourself. A man-and-van service suits smaller households who want someone else driving and carrying. A full-service removal, where the crew packs, moves and unpacks, costs more but takes the physical work off your hands entirely, worth it for larger households or if you’re short on time. Our house removals guide breaks down in more detail what each option typically includes.

• Confirm your moving date and, if renting, give your landlord the notice period stated in your tenancy agreement.
• Get quotes from several removal companies rather than booking the first one you find, our removal quotes page makes that easy to compare. Use our volume calculator first if you’re not sure how much you have, most companies quote based on volume, not just distance.
• Start decluttering room by room. Selling, donating or recycling before you pack means fewer boxes and a cheaper move.
• If you have children, contact schools early about transfers or new place applications, this can take several weeks in some areas and longer if you’re moving between local authorities.
• Flag any high-value items (art, antiques, a piano) with your removal company or insurer in advance, standard transit cover often caps the value per item.
• If you’ll need to store anything between moving out and moving in, ask removal companies whether they offer storage, it’s usually cheaper than booking it separately.

6 to 8 weeks before you move

With a removal company on the shortlist, paperwork and admin take over from planning.

• Book time off work for moving day, and ideally the day after, unpacking always takes longer than expected.
• Arrange childcare or pet care for moving day itself, a moving van and open doors are stressful for both.
• Start packing rooms you use least, using a room-by-room approach. Our guide to packing for a house move covers this in more detail.
• If you’re renting, book your end-of-tenancy clean or check-out inspection now, letting agents’ preferred cleaners often get booked up weeks ahead.
• If you’re buying, stay on top of your solicitor’s requests, delays here are one of the most common reasons moving dates slip.
• Order any furniture or large items for the new home now if you’ll need them from day one, delivery lead times of several weeks are common.
• Check whether your current home insurance covers you during the move, or arrange transit cover through your removal company.

See what a removal company would actually charge for a move your size before you commit to a date.

4 weeks before you move

• Start working through the who to notify list below, prioritising anything that needs advance notice: your bank, insurers, and your employer’s HR or payroll team.
• Order boxes and packing materials if you haven’t already, or start collecting free ones from local shops.
• Book utility connections at the new address. Broadband providers especially can need 2 to 3 weeks’ notice for a new line, longer if the property needs a new connection installed.
• Set up mail redirection with Royal Mail so nothing goes missing in the gap.
• If you live somewhere with restricted parking, check whether you need to apply for a parking suspension outside either property so the removal van can load and unload close to the door. Some councils need several weeks’ notice.
• Start using up food from the freezer and cupboards rather than moving it.

2 weeks before you move

• Confirm final details with your removal company: access, parking restrictions, and lift bookings if you’re in a flat.
• Pack the rooms you use least first: spare rooms, garages, lofts.
• Cancel or transfer local services tied to your address (gym membership, milk delivery, subscriptions).
• Register to vote at your new address once you know it, on the GOV.UK register to vote service, it takes about five minutes.
• Check your new council tax band and set up the direct debit, so your first payment isn’t late.
• If friends or family are helping on the day, confirm times with them too, not just the removal company.
• Return library books or anything borrowed locally.

1 week before you move

• Pack everything except a clearly labelled essentials box (toiletries, chargers, medication, a change of clothes, kettle and mugs).
• Defrost and clean the freezer.
• Confirm moving day timings with your removal company and, if buying, your solicitor.
• Take meter readings ready for your final bill at the old address.
• Back up photos and important files from computers before they’re packed away.
• Settle any final bills for services you’re leaving behind, so nothing chases you to the new address.
• Keep important documents (tenancy or mortgage paperwork, ID, medical records) in a folder that travels with you, not in the van.

Moving day checklist

Before the removal team arrives

• Take final gas, electricity and water meter readings and photograph them.
• Confirm your parking suspension is active, if you arranged one, so the van has somewhere to pull up.
• Keep your essentials box, important documents and any valuables with you rather than loading them onto the van.

While the van is loaded

• Do a room-by-room walkthrough with the removal team so everyone agrees what’s going and what’s staying.
• Take photos of any existing damage to your belongings before they’re loaded, in case you need to raise it later.
• Keep phone numbers for your removal company and solicitor or landlord to hand in case of delays.

Before you leave

• Walk through every room, cupboard, loft and garden checking nothing’s been left behind.
• Leave keys, alarm codes and appliance manuals for the new occupants, and collect the same for your own new home.
• Check the new property before unloading: services connected, no obvious damage, and clear access for the removal team.

Who to notify when moving house

Some of these need updating before you move, others can wait until you’re settled. Government and money-related contacts matter most, since ID fraud, missed post and lapsed insurance cause the most hassle if they slip.

Government and legal

Money and insurance

Health, education and utilities

Everyone else

Friends and family are the easy ones to forget once the official admin is done, but also worth updating: any subscriptions, deliveries or memberships (magazines, meal kits, local clubs) that are still tied to your old address.

You’ve done the planning, now lock in the right removal company for your date and price.

After you’ve moved in

First few days

• Do a quick clean before unpacking properly, even if the previous owners or tenants cleaned before leaving.
• Find your stopcock and fuse box, and test smoke and carbon monoxide alarms.
• Get an idea of how the boiler and heating controls work before you need them in a hurry.
• Check for post addressed to previous occupants, redirect or return anything that arrives.

Settling in

• Register with a local GP, dentist and vet if you haven’t already.
• Set up broadband and check your new bin collection days.
• If you bought the property, your solicitor usually files Stamp Duty Land Tax for you (due within 14 days of completion), but confirm this rather than assuming it.
• Update your address on anything you didn’t catch beforehand.
• Consider leaving a review for your removal company, it helps other movers compare options.