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Building your new home or buying a newly built home is an incredible achievement in these times when everything seems to be getting painfully expensive. If you have built your home from scratch or you have bought a newly built home, you must be anxious to move into it. However, there are things you need to do before you move and we have prepared a highly inclusive list for you.
- Measure for curtains, flooring, and carpets.
- Get a WiFi/Internet connection.
- Arrange a packing and moving service.
- Arranging insurance.
- Get your utility connections, including water, gas, and electricity.
- Give sufficient notice to Cancel your tenancy (if applicable)
- Inform your family and friends about your new home and address.
- Redirecting your mail to your new postal address.
- Applying for sufficient leaves from work to pack, move, and settle down in your new home.
- Make a snagging checklist or hire professionals for a snagging survey.
Update Your Information and Address
Before you move into your new home, you should make sure to change your address with all the important places. These include:
- Your bank account, credit card correspondence address, pension, etc.
- The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA).
- Inland revenue
- Your children’s school.
- Local council
- Doctors/Dentists.
- Your office, business partners, etc.
- Change your correspondence address with your insurance providers.
- Utility providers – water, electricity, and gas.
- Mobile phone service provider
- Clubs
Home Demonstration
Once your new build is complete, the building company/builder should arrange a demonstration of the new home. They should also provide you with all the essential information and documents, including warranties, manuals, etc. This is usually carried out a week before your moving date. People usually become hasty when their new home is complete, and we highly recommend not rushing your demonstration. The demonstration should include:
- Operational guidance about how the heating system works.
- Operational guidance of all appliances.
- Location and operation of smoke alarms.
- Location of the water stopcock.
- Emergency information.
- Information about your new build’s drying process.
- Information about reporting defects.
Your builder should also provide you with a copy of the customer care manuals and procedures. He should also agree to a survey by professional snaggers if you have booked such services.
Basic Checks
You should carry out a few basic checks and note down any defects or flaws. You should also take photographs of any such defects and share them with your builder for rectification. Check the operations of:
- Doors & Windows
- Lights & Sockets
- Taps & Sinks
- Ovens & Appliances
- Kitchen and Other Cabinetry
- Shower Doors
Legal Checks
When your residential solicitors have completed the sale transaction, the on-site sales negotiator will give you a call for handing over your house keys. He should provide you with the following:
- All manuals, warranties, and guarantees for all appliances.
- Emergency procedure information.
- Electricity, water, and gas meter readings.
- All legal documentation related to rent or lease.
At this point, you should also check whether all the defects you identified during the demonstration have been rectified or not. If some work is remaining, make your builder agree to a future completion date.
Near Moving Day
If all the above steps have been completed, you have left little to worry about. If you have not conducted a professional snagging check, you still have time. Make sure everything works before you move in because once you do, it would be difficult to convince the building company that the problem existed before you moved in. Take pictures and make videos from your smartphone of every fault. Get your house removals company ready and confirm your booking.
Hire a Professional House Removals Company
House removals company can save you from a lot of hassle and stress. They can provide you with complete removal solutions, from supplying quality packing material to transporting all your belongings to your new build home. Make sure you do your homework before you hire a removal company. Look for a company which has experience of at least 5 years and provides comprehensive services. Read customer reviews on their website to learn what customers have to say about them. Ask them to provide you with a free quote for their services. Compare the quotes of two or three removals company before you decide which one to hire. Don’t make your decision on price alone and consider the services being offered. For instance, some companies will offer you furniture disassembly and reassembly as a part of their standard moving package. Some will also offer you special moving services for items like aquariums and pianos. Ask the removal company about their public liability insurance. Once you have decided which company to hire, book their services in advance to make sure that they are available on your moving date.
After Moving
When you finally move to your new home, you still have to do some important things. It will take a few months to completely settle down, so don’t rush things. Let your house dry down before you make all the decorations and carry out interior designing.
Can I Decorate My New Build Home Right Away?
Several construction materials are used when building a home. These include timber, plaster, concrete, and others. Some of these materials need curing/drying time before you carry out any decorations. Being hasty can result in cracks and shrinkage. A newly built structure should be given ample time to dry. This usually ranges between 6 to 12 months. However, if you cannot wait that long and you want to paint your walls, try breathable paints which are not affected by drying.
Snagging Checklist
You should have carried out a complete snagging survey before you start decorating your new home. You can prepare the snagging checklist yourself or you can hire professionals to do it for you. Below are a few ideas for snagging checklists about different sections of your home.
Snagging Checklist for the Exterior of Your Home
- Check the pathways and driveways for any damages and flaws.
- Check your landscaping.
- Check that the fencing has no flaws.
- Inspect the operations of your gate.
- There should not be any gap underneath your gate.
- Check for any damaged bricks.
- Check the windows and window sills.
- Check your fascia & soffits, guttering, and roof tiles for any damages
Snagging Checklist for the Interior of Your Garage
- Check your garage door and make sure it is working properly
- Make sure that there are no mortar droppings on the floor slabs and walls.
- Check all electric connections, lights, and sockets.
- Inspect the DPC behind the backboard
Indoor Checklist
- Starting from your front door, check all the doors in your home. Check their handles/knobs and locks. If they are wooden, check for any damage or peeled-off paint, etc. Open and close them to ensure that all doors are working properly.
- Going from room to room, check all the windows. Check their operations, locks, and latches.
- Going from room to room, check the wall paint and plaster for any peeling off, cracks, and damages.
- Check the flooring slabs of all rooms.
- Check your kitchen worktops, units, tiles, cabinetry, etc for any signs of damage.
- Check all your electric appliances.
- Check the entire electric circuit including lights and sockets.
Checklist for Roof and Loft
- Check roof and loft insulation. It should have no gaps
- The felt should be intact.
- The felt should not be damaged.
- Check the roof vents and ensure that the felt around them is sealed and is not too big.
