Decide what you want to move

One of the first things on the NYC moving checklist is to decide what you want to bring. Go through all of your belongings and see what you need for your new place, and decide what you want to part ways with. Believe it or not, there’s a lot of useless stuff in your house you don’t want to lug to your new place. If it’s nice outside, have a stoop sale! It’s a great way to get rid of all of your undesirables and to make a few dollars. If for whatever reason you can’t sell some of the items, go to Craigslist or donate it to your local Salvation Army.

Start using the rest of your perishables

Try and eat any perishable food you have around the house, this includes canned food, frozen food, or anything in your fridge. You’re going to end up throwing it away if you don’t, so you might as well make as big of a dent as possible. This is also a good time to use any old cleaning supplies you never bothered to touch over the last few years.

Obtain the exact measurements, even if it means doing it yourself

You should try and get some exact measurements of your new place. This will be important when trying to determine what furniture you should or shouldn’t bring. Spend some time in your new place and measure the doors, floor space, wall space, the width of your staircases, check to see if windows can be disassembled if needed. Share the measurements with your moving company and make sure that are prepared to disassemble any furniture piece that needs disassembling.

Establish a moving budget

Try and determine how much everything will cost. There are a variety of different expenses you should take into account when trying to move. You should determine whether or not you want or need a moving company involved because that will be a major expense. Movers in NYC can be a valuable resource, especially if you are moving into a high rise building with office movers, or to help maneuver your big furniture through traffic. If you do decide to hire a moving company, and you want to move during a busy season (generally, April-September) try and make proper arrangements 2-3 months in advance in hopes to securely book your date. Other expenses include any new furniture you buy, packing materials, transportation to your new place, any take-out food you’ll buy during the moving process, a storage unit, and more. This is all part of the NYC moving checklist from your local NYC movers.  Another question people have is how much to tips movers in NYC. Check out our guide to tipping movers in NYC.

If you do get a moving company, get at least 3 estimates

It might make sense for you to hire a Manhattan moving company to help you out during this transition period. If you do go down this route, try and get at least 3 estimates from different companies in order to ensure that you are getting the best possible deals.

Get a storage unit for things you might not need right away

Save some money during your move by getting a storage unit. You should store any non-necessities for the time being and pick them up at a later date. This could include off-season clothes or anything you will not be using for the next few months. It’ll save you money with the moving company and make the actual moving-in portion of the experience much less stressful. To learn more about storage units, check out our storage FAQ. Serenity Storage has you covered!

Put all your valuables in a safe location

Take any important items such as jewelry, passports, social security info, family heirlooms, and store it away in a safe place.  A safety deposit box and a portable lockbox are all good options on the day of the move. It’s best not to risk losing these items, so invest a little extra money to ensure these items are safe. Look into hiring a locksmith company as well.

Take care of your utilities

Make sure you turn on/off your utilities, it’s a pain in the neck to switch everything but you got to do it. Call up your electric, gas, heat, and internet provider and make sure you switch them all to your new apartment. It’s important to get this stuff out of the way as soon as you can. Nothing is worse than living your first few nights at your new apartment without electricity, gas or Internet.

Change the addresses

This is an important part of the NYC moving checklist. Make sure you go and change all your addresses with any number of services it applies to. Call up your bank, USPS, doctor’s office, medical providers, accountants, phone companies, any magazines or mailings you subscribe to etc. Also, alert your current HR department to let them know the change of address. If you have children in school, have all of the school’s records changed as well.

Start packing

Now you got all of that taken care of, it’s time to start packing. This is a long and stressful process, so you’re going to want to devise some sort of packing plan. Make sure you get some high-quality packing materials. Take your time trying to get everything in order. The more care you put into this process, the easier it’ll be for you in the long run. Load up on newspapers and packing peanuts, and start getting everything together. Hopefully, you found this NYC moving checklist useful. Check out things you should do on the first day you move into your new apartment.