A moving house checklist for Adelaide, from eight weeks out to the week after

It comes from House Removalists Adelaide, a service of Moveall Australia Pty Ltd, a South Australian owned and operated removalist.

R1Eight weeks before

• Fix the moving date around settlement, the end of your lease or the day the keys to the new home are released.
• Book the removalist. Give them the bedrooms and living areas, the access at both homes and any heavy items, so the quote is built on a real inventory.
• Decide how much packing you want done for you: the whole house, the kitchen and fragile things, or none.
• Start sorting one room at a time: keep, give to family, sell, donate or dispose of.
• If you rent, check your lease for the notice you need to give and what the bond inspection expects.

R2Six weeks before

• Measure the large furniture and the doorways at the new home, and decide what fits.
• Sell or give away what is not coming, while there is still time.
• Book time off work for moving day and the day after.
• Ask the new building’s manager about lift bookings, loading docks and move times if you are moving into an apartment or unit.
• Start packing the rooms you use least: the spare room, the shed, books and the good glasses.

R3Four weeks before

• Arrange the power, gas, water and internet to be connected at the new address from moving day, and disconnected at the old one the day after.
• Arrange mail redirection from your old address.
• Tell the school, child care, the doctor, the dentist and the vet the date you are moving.
• Check your contents insurance covers the new address from moving day, and ask the removalist about transit insurance for the move itself.
• Use up the frozen food and the pantry, so there is less to move.

R4Two weeks before

• Confirm the move with your removalist: the date, the start time and both addresses.
• Tell them about anything added to the inventory since the quote. A fixed-price quote usually relies on that list.
• Arrange care for children and pets on moving day.
• Give your neighbours notice if a truck will block a shared driveway or the street.
• Dispose of fuel, gas bottles, paint and chemicals: they should not go on a removal truck.

R5The week before

• Pack everything except what you need for the last few days.
• Label every box on two sides with its room in the new home and a few words about what is inside.
• Empty drawers and wardrobes: most removalists ask for furniture to be emptied of loose items.
• Take down curtains, pictures and mirrors that are coming with you.
• Defrost the freezer if it is moving, and empty and clean the fridge on the last day.

R6The day before

• Pack the first-night box: bedding, towels, toiletries, the kettle, mugs, a few plates, chargers, toilet paper and medicines.
• Put documents, keys, jewellery, cash and medicines in a bag that travels with you.
• Charge your phone and keep the removalist’s number handy.
• Make sure the path from the front door to the street is clear, and that the bins, the car and the trailer are out of the way of the truck.

R7Moving day

• Be at the old house when the crew arrives, and walk through what is going and what is staying.
• Keep children, pets and other trades clear of the path between the house and the truck.
• Check every room, cupboard, the shed and the ceiling space before the truck leaves.
• Read the meters, lock up, and hand over or leave the keys as agreed.
• At the new house, show the crew which room is which, and have the beds placed first.

R8The first week, and the South Australian deadlines

• Within 14 days: update your address with Service SA. Service SA says you must update your address within 14 days of the change. One update changes the address on your driver’s licence or permit, vehicle and boat registrations, boat licence, proof of age card and disability parking permit. Do it online through a mySAGOV account in a web browser (not the app), or at a Service SA centre.
• Your licence card. The new address shows on the mySAGOV digital licence straight away; the plastic card shows it at the next renewal unless you order a replacement.
• After a month: update your enrolment. Enrolment is compulsory for Australian citizens aged 18 and over, and you must keep it up to date. Update it with the AEC once you have lived at the new address for a month.
• The rest of the list. Your bank, employer, insurers, Medicare and health fund, the tax office, subscriptions and the pet’s microchip and council registration.
• Unpack the kitchen and the bedrooms first, then one room a day.

R9Moving to South Australia from interstate

Arriving from another state adds three things to the list. Do not pack fresh fruit, vegetables or plants for a move into SA: PIRSA restricts many of them, and the Yamba quarantine station checks vehicles. Then, according to Service SA, you must transfer to a South Australian driver’s licence within 3 months, and register an interstate vehicle in SA within 3 months. A vehicle with interstate registration can be driven in SA for up to 90 days.

R10Handing part of the list to us

Much of this list is packing. If you would rather not do it, Moveall’s Wrap & Pack service packs all approved household items and supplies every box and material: see packing and moving services in Adelaide, or packers and movers in Adelaide for packing and moving run as one job. The complete move, from the quote to the first night, is on house removalists in Adelaide. Two things people most often forget are covered in our articles on the first-night box and what to keep off the truck.

R11Questions people ask