Step 9: Move in

Moving is the part everyone dreads and nobody plans. A little structure helps. Below is the checklist we hand every CGA buyer, organized by when to do it, plus a reminder that our clients can use the CGA moving truck at no charge. Ask your agent to reserve it as soon as you have a closing date.

Four to six weeks before closing

• Reserve the CGA moving truck through your agent, or book movers if you are hiring them
• Start purging. Every box you do not pack is a box you do not carry.
• Order boxes, tape, and packing paper, or start collecting them
• Schedule time off work for closing day and moving day
• Research schools and enrollment paperwork if you have kids
• Notify your landlord in writing if you are renting

Two weeks before

• File your change of address with the post office
• Set up electric, heating fuel, water if applicable, internet, and trash to start on closing day
• Update your address with your bank, employer, insurance, credit cards, and subscriptions
• Transfer prescriptions and find a new pharmacy if needed
• Pack everything you will not need in the next two weeks, labeled by room
• Confirm the closing time and place with your attorney

The week of

• Pack an essentials box: toilet paper, soap, towels, phone chargers, a change of clothes, basic tools, coffee
• Defrost the freezer and use up the fridge
• Confirm the truck or movers
• Do the final walkthrough with your agent
• Get your closing funds ready per your attorney's instructions, confirmed by phone

Moving day

• Close, get the keys, and take a quick photo of the meter readings when you arrive
• Change the locks or rekey them. You do not know who has a copy.
• Locate the main water shutoff, the electrical panel, and the furnace or boiler switch
• Set up beds first. Everything else can wait until tomorrow.
• Return the CGA truck on time so the next client can use it

Your first month

• Register to vote and update your driver's license and vehicle registration with the Connecticut DMV within the required window
• Test smoke and carbon monoxide detectors and replace batteries
• Find the septic tank access if you have one, and note when it was last pumped
• Schedule a furnace or boiler service before heating season if it was not done recently
• Look into the town's transfer station or trash pickup rules; they vary by town
• Introduce yourself to the neighbors. In a small Connecticut town, they are your best source of plumbers, plow guys, and everything else.

Stay in touch

We do not disappear after closing. Call your CGA agent for a contractor recommendation, a question about your taxes or assessment, or when a friend needs an agent. And when it is time to sell, the same agent who helped you buy knows the house better than anyone.