The moving house checklist, every job in order

Ready-to-go searches save two to three weeks. Ask for a fixed fee and the name of the person who handles your file when your usual contact is on holiday.

You legally need a valid EPC before a home is marketed in England and Wales. Book one through our sister company homesurvey.eu — £75 fixed, lodged on the national register.

Fridays and the last few working days of the month are the first slots to disappear. Insist the quote spells out waiting time, insurance level and cancellation terms.

Every box you move costs money to move. Sell, gift or tip now, while you have weeks to do it rather than hours.

Offers usually last three to six months. If the chain slips past it you may have to reapply at whatever rates exist then, which can change what you can afford.

One place — paper or phone — for the memorandum of sale, ID checks, quotes, meter photographs and every reference number you are given.

A Level 2 or Level 3 survey is your last chance to renegotiate on facts rather than feelings. Search the RICS register for a regulated firm.

Local authority searches are the single most common cause of delay. A polite weekly email keeps your file near the top of the pile.

You are usually liable for the building from exchange of contracts. Most people insure from completion and are technically uninsured for the gap in between.

Curtains, white goods, sheds, light fittings, TV brackets. The TA10 form should be completed and attached to the contract. Assume nothing stays unless it is written down.

Two days, not one. Completion day rarely runs to the hour anybody promised you.

Check the exact notice period and the day of the month it has to land. Serving a day late can cost you a full month's rent.

Date, arrival time, both addresses, access and parking, packing service, insurance level and the cancellation terms.

Double-wall boxes for books and kitchens, wardrobe boxes for hanging clothes, and proper packing tape. Supermarket boxes collapse when stacked.

Terraced streets and city centres need this booked with the council weeks ahead. Otherwise the lorry parks a hundred metres away and you pay for the walk.

Redirection takes up to five working days to start and costs from around £45 for three months to £95 for twelve. It catches the stragglers, which is how you find out who else needed telling. Set it up here.

New lines and full-fibre installations can take two to four weeks. Book the engineer for the day after you move, not the day itself. Check coverage first.

Do it before you need them. Some practices have catchment rules and waiting lists, and none of that is fun to discover at 8am on a Monday.

In-year admissions go through the local authority and can take weeks. Catchment distances change every year, so check rather than assume.

Council tax, DVLA, HMRC, bank, insurers, employer, subscriptions. Use our 37-point checklist so nothing gets missed.

Write the room it is going TO, on the SIDE of the box, with a one-line contents note. Removers stack boxes, so anything written on top is invisible.

Ten seconds now, an hour saved later. Bag each set of screws and tape the bag to the item it belongs to.

Frozen food rarely survives a move. Plan the last fortnight's meals from what you already own.

Good cleaners are booked out at month-end. If you are renting, this is what protects your deposit.

A few days between completions is common. Knowing your options now stops a panic decision at a panic price later.

Kettle, mugs, tea, milk, loo roll, soap, hand towel, bedding, phone chargers, medication, screwdriver, scissors, bin bags, painkillers. It travels in your car, not the van.

Label every key or leave it in its lock — windows, shed, garage. Leave appliance manuals, the boiler service history, and a note of where the stopcock, fuse box and meters are. You will want the same courtesy at the other end.

Who holds the keys, from what time, and what happens if the money lands late in the afternoon.

Gas, electricity and water, with the serial number in the shot. This is your only real defence against an estimated final bill.

The day before, not the week before. Get the driver's mobile number while you are at it.

Phones, banks and card readers all choose the worst possible day to fail.

Both take longer than anyone expects, and removers will not take a wet appliance or clear an unlit loft.

Every cupboard, the loft, the shed, behind the doors, the airing cupboard. Photograph the empty rooms as you go.

Before you boil a kettle or run a tap. Photograph each one with the serial number visible.

Damage has to be recorded on the removals paperwork before the crew leaves if you want to claim for it.

The single best piece of moving advice there is. Do it before you unpack anything else, while you still have the energy.

Locate them while it is light and there is still someone around to ask.

Seriously. The day falls apart when people are hungry and nobody can find the pans.

You have no idea how many keys exist for that front door. A euro cylinder is cheap and takes fifteen minutes with a screwdriver.

New batteries in all of them today, and replace anything you cannot put a date on.

In England and Northern Ireland the return and payment are due within 14 days of completion, and late returns attract penalties and interest. Scotland (LBTT) and Wales (LTT) allow 30 days. Your conveyancer usually files it on completion day, but the responsibility is yours, so ask for confirmation. GOV.UK guidance.

Tell both councils your moving date. The old one will send a final statement, which can mean a refund. Open each utility account with your photographed move-in readings so the very first bill is right. Find your council.

Do this after you move, not before — you may need your licence as ID or to hire a van. It is free, quick, and driving on an out-of-date licence or V5C is a fineable offence. Do it here.

Affects your credit file as well as your vote, because lenders check it. Register to vote.

Floors, decorating, rewiring and damp work are all faster, cheaper and less miserable before the furniture arrives.

Your certificate lists the improvements with the best payback for your specific house. Read it before you commit to insulation or a new boiler. How to improve your rating.