Closing day is a time to celebrate. But before you open the champagne, there are some things you’ll want to do to make the day as stress-free as possible.

While discussing one of the team member’s blogs, Adrian and Ariel add their takes and reminiscences about closing day.

Contact your Home Insurance Provider

How many people take into consideration the possibility of increased insurance costs when moving to a new house? Probably not many.

A lot of people don’t realize all the questions the insurance company will have for them, such as:

• How old is the roof?
• Is the water heater owned or rented?
• Is there a sump pump?
• How old is the furnace?
• Is there a well and septic system if it’s a rural property?
• What type of plumbing system is it? Copper? PVC?
• Is there aluminum or knob and tube wiring?

PRO TIP: Did you know that most insurance companies won’t cover damage caused by a leaking water heater that’s more than eleven years old?

Contact a Moving Company

If hiring a mover, do it early because most reputable moving companies are booked well in advance.

Most moving companies will provide the service of packing your stuff if you don’t want to do it yourself.

We’ve lost count of how many homes we visit each year, but you can imagine the things we see.  We have some great stories, from valuables to things people probably didn’t intend to leave out.  The point of this is to ensure you be mindful of what you want to pack by yourself vs. having a moving company stumble across it.

Collect Moving Boxes

Amassing a large amount of different-sized boxes is something you want to start doing early.

Instead of recycling, start saving all those Amazon boxes. They’re sturdy, and purchasing boxes of comparable quality will start adding up.

Lots of people post on local Facebook groups when they’ve moved. You might get lucky; if someone in your circle of friends has recently moved, perhaps they will be happy to donate their boxes and other packing supplies they no longer need. It never hurts to let other people know you’re moving.

Label your boxes

Labelling every box by room or contents will make your life much easier. Don’t forget to add “fragile” or “this end up” for the movers.

If you’re using cardboard, a magic marker should suffice, but you could also use a label maker.

Seinfeld fan alert! Discussion of the episode where Jerry gets regifted a label maker that Elaine bought for Tim Whatley at 12:40.

PRO Tip: Cardboard boxes in an unfinished basement with concrete floors will retain moisture, leading to mould and mildew. Elevate them on a non-pourus surface like a bag, tarp or suitable shelf.

Contact a Cleaning Company

It’s not a requirement, but having the house cleaned before you move out is a nice gesture.

PRO Tip: Never close on the same day on two properties unless ABSOLUTELY necessary. There are a lot of moving pieces, and one delay or typo could lead to a delay for everyone involved.

Forward Your Mail

Visit the Canada Post website to sign up for mail forwarding, and contact all banks, retailers and companies you have memberships or accounts with to ensure your contact information gets updated. Commonly, we’re contacted after closing to be informed.

PRO Tip: Go through your last 90 days of billing in your chequing account and credit card statement and see where you’re spending your money, so you don’t miss any place you need to update your address.

Arrange for Child Care/Pet Care

It’s always a good idea to send pets to camp for a few days. When it comes to kids, older ones might want to be involved, and you can give them a job.

Adrian’s story about his childhood cat that disappeared during a move is a great example of why you should plan for things like this.

Keys and Changing Locks

Arrange to have the keys left in the lockbox. Key exchanges used to occur at the lawyer’s office, but buyers have been instructed to pick up their new keys using the real estate agent’s lockbox in recent years.  The lock box code is released to the buyer once the property is closed.

Label the keys so the new owners know what each key is for. If delivery isn’t to the house, ensure the new owners know where the mailbox is.

Reset digital and remote entries.

Happy Moving Day!

Do you have any fun moving stories?

Did you discover anything strange when you moved to your new home?

We’d love to hear about it in the comments.