There’s so much to think about and do if you’re moving house, whether your’re buying or selling. We’d recommend that you start planning at least a month in advance before the big day.
Declutter
- First of all, let’s channel our inner Marie Kondo – “Keep only those things that speak to the heart, and discard items that no longer spark joy. Thank them for their service – then let them go.”
- Kitchen – donate or throw out all your multiple cooking utensils and appliances, mismatched or broken crockery, the unused cutlery, the multitude of cups the kids have given you as gifts that profess their love for you
- Pantry – throw out all the out of date pantry items, the half boxes of uneaten biscuits, the five boxes of cereal that no-one likes any more
- Furniture – anything that is broken needs to go
- Clothes and shoes – donate or throw these out if you haven’t worn anything in a year, you won’t need them at your new home
- Bathroom – how many nearly empty makeup bottles does one woman need – throw them out – same with shampoo/conditioner bottles, that blue eyeshadow you secretly love but haven’t worn forever, perfume/aftershave that you can’t sell or regift. the Bondi Sands bottles and mits
- The Cupboard you can’t open without everything falling on you – get rid of it
- The Man Cave – don’t touch this, just keep nagging him and he’ll give in eventually
- Paperwork – old bills, letters, bank statements – we only need to keep tax information for 5 years, the rest is useless since most of it is now online and accessible 24/7 (but don’t throw out the love letters and kids /drawings/paintings)
- Magazines and newspapers (you can find anything you need online these days from recipes to news articles)
- Devices – computers, phones, TVs, cords that belong to nothing, etc
Before You Move
- Donate your unwanted items that are still working or in good condition
- Have a garage sale
- Pack whatever you are taking with you in moving boxes marked clearly
- Go furniture shopping
- Compile a list of people/organisations that you need to advise of your change of address once you’re in your new home – day care, schools, employment, banks, financial institutions, car registration, insurances, strata manager, local council, government departments, post office, electoral roll and maybe even include your in-laws and teenage or adult kids on that list
- Arrange for your removalist
- Arrange for your young children to be babysat on moving day
- Arrange for your pets to be looked after on moving day
- Sort out the disconnection and connection of your utility services – electricity, gas, internet, phone, etc
- Arrange Contents Insurance – the Owners Corporation by law must insure the building
- Arrange Title Insurance
Settlement Day Is Approaching - The Serious Side
- If you’re selling your strata property
- Pursuant to the terms of the contract you have entered into with the buyer, you must allow them a final inspection of the property prior to settlement
- Make sure all of the Inclusions noted in the contract are still in the property
- The property must be left in the same state and condition as when the purchaser first inspected the property prior to entering into the contract
- You must deliver your keys and remotes to the selling agent prior to settlement
- If you’ve got any additional keys, remotes, etc a great idea is to leave them on the kitchen bench for the new owner
- If you’re buying the strata property
- Make sure you contact the selling agent to book in your final inspection of the property prior to settlement
- It is imperative that you do this final inspection because if you settle on the property and then find out there are things wrong with it, you have no recourse against the seller
- When you do your final inspection, the property must be in the same state and condition as when you first inspected it
- Once settlement has occurred, your conveyancer or solicitor will contact you and you can then collect the keys from the selling agent and start moving in
- If you are buying this property as an investment, arrange Landlord Insurance
For further information on settlement, contact your conveyancer or solicitor
After You Move
- Spend some quality time with your young kids and pets so they become familiar with their new home
- Start letting everyone know your new address
- Unpack
- Explore your new neighbourhood
- Make friends with your neighbours
- Relax and enjoy