Moving Guide – what to do, when.
You have found your perfect new build house and put down your reservation fee, but what next?
Three months to move in date
Find a solicitor
Now it is time to find your solicitor who will help guide you through the next steps of buying your home, getting you ever closer to your move in date.
Struggling to find someone you can trust? We can put you in touch with solicitors who specialise in the purchase of new build properties.
Mortgage and insurance
Now is the time for you to make your formal applications for your mortgage, based on the price and details of your chosen property. We can put you in touch with mortgage advisors who specialise in new build properties if you need.
Most lenders will also require you to have buildings insurance in place so it is a good idea to get this sorted at the same time.
Two months to move in date
New home demonstration
Arrange a new home demonstration, or handover, ahead of moving day so that your builder can show you how to use your new home. This appointment should cover appliances, central heating, where the stopcock is etc.
You can use this meeting as an opportunity for you to walk around your new home with the plans and check that everything is as it should be. Make sure that the appointment is long enough to cover everything and make sure you have a list of things in advance that you want to cover so that nothing is missed.
It is a good idea to check everything at this point, flush the toilets, run the taps, fill the bath to see if there are any leaks. It all might sound a little excessive, but checking things now gives you the opportunity to get anything fixed ahead of moving day.
Write down and photograph anything you notice, and then put it all in writing to the builder after the visit to make sure it gets done.
Six weeks to move in date
Internet/Phone line/Satellite TV
When setting up new internet, phone or tv, it can take weeks to get an engineer out to install everything, and there can be nothing more frustrating than going without your fix of Facebook or The Great British Bake Off. Therefore, get in touch with your chosen providers now and get those appointments booked in ready.
Post codes
Your builder should contact the local council to get your new address and post code created, however many businesses may not have it registered on their databases for a while. Royal Mail will need to be informed of the post code in order for it to go live, so once you have it, go ahead and let them know.
Order your bins
Get in touch with your local council to get your waste and recycling bins ordered. You can also find out when your bins will be collected which will be useful information to have when you move in!
Door number
If your house doesn’t come with a door number, get one ordered and ready to put up as soon as you move in so that the postman can find you!
Find your removals company
It is a good time now to find a removals company you are happy with and get them booked in, avoiding the stress nearer the time.
Four weeks to move in date
Set exchange date
It is around this time that you should be setting the dates for the exchange of contracts with your solicitor, and therefore the completion date following on from this. At this point you will need to make sure you have the monies for your deposit in your bank account, as this will be transferred on the date of exchange.
Two weeks to move in date
Exchange and complete
You should be now exchanging your contracts and paying the deposit, usually with completion following a week or two later. Not long to go now!
One week to move in date
Completion
With everything finalised, you should now have the keys to your new build home! Go and have another look around before you fill it with all of your belongings. Be sure to check everything with a fresh pair of eyes, looking for scratches, dents, holes, snags etc before you move in. Photograph them and put it all in writing before you move as it is easier to argue at this point that you didn’t cause them.
Moving day
The day you have been looking forward to is finally here! It is a good idea to check your meters as soon as you move in, making sure your utility provider has the right serial numbers, and take your meter readings as well. Also, locate the stopcock if you haven’t already, so that you know where it is in case of an emergency.