Looking for the 2024 Moving Home checklist? Find it here!
Moving into a new home is stressful, and with so much to arrange it can be easy to let essential registrations slip through the cracks. If you’re about to move in, use our home set-up checklist and detailed explainers below to make sure that you have everything you’ll need in your new home.
Moving can be overwhelming
We know! That’s why we’re here to help. *Anything in bold is something Please Connect Me can handle for you in as little as fifteen minutes by phone.* For everything else on this list, our Connections Experts will be able to guide you on what to do to get your home set up exactly as you would like it.
Your 2022 Home Set-Up Checklist
Utilities
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☐ Contact your local Council and set up Council Tax
☐ Register with your new water supplier
☐ Register with your new electricity supplier
☐ Register with your new gas supplier
☐ Send opening meter readings to your suppliers
Telecoms
☐ Set up your home internet
☐ Set up your landline phone – if you’d like one
☐ Decide if you’ll need a wi-fi signal booster
☐ Set up your TV services
☐ Pay your TV licence or register as exempt
Local services
☐ Arrange contents or property insurance
☐ Arrange a first clean of your new home
☐ Check which days your rubbish and recycling will be collected
☐ Register with a local GP
☐ Join the electoral roll
☐ Update the address on your car and other insurance
☐ Set up a postal redirect
Home maintenance
☐ Find your fusebox
☐ Find your water stopcock
☐ Check your thermostat and how to adjust your radiators
☐ Test your smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors
☐ Gather all your household manuals in one place
☐ Take date-stamped photos of any damage to the property
☐ Make a plan for if you get locked like a spare key with a friend or in a keyless lock box
Utilities
When you first arrive at your new home there will be water, electricity and heating available to you. The existing suppliers will continue your supply on credit, but you will need to reach out to each company to register for a new account. You may need to do a little research to find who the current suppliers at your property are so you can request to be placed on their standard variable tariff and benefit from the current energy price cap. Make sure to also include your opening meter readings in your registration or you could be paying for the previous occupant’s usage.
If that sounds like a headache then spare yourself and sign up for a free account with Please Connect Me. We can run comprehensive checks on your property to find your new suppliers and let them know all the important details of your move.
Telecoms
In the age of working from home, high-speed internet is almost as essential as your water and electricity. With dozens of independent fibre broadband suppliers entering the market and major suppliers offering hundreds of possible packages – your first step should be to research. While broadband comparison sites use your approximate address from your postcode to make suggestions broadband availability can actually vary between houses on the same street, and even between neighbours.
Make sure to use your full address when searching for packages, and include independent companies like Hyperoptic, Community Fibre, DirectSave Telecom and G.Network to make sure you aren’t missing out on your best options.
In the UK, if you are watching live TV at your address you will need to have a TV licence, but this doesn’t apply to streaming services or watching recorded programs on DVD. If you don’t need a licence, make sure to register as exempt from licensing online or you could find yourself visited by a team of Licensing enforcement officers, hoping to check your property for any illicit viewership.
For TV lovers, the channels available don’t start and end with a TV licence. If you’re a live sports lover, new movie obsessive or drama addict then you’ll want to add a digital TV package to your new address – after deciding which channels you want to receive.
If you’d prefer to spend your time dealing with the rest of your new home to-do list, let one of our agents find out who’s available and make a recommendation. Please Connect Me’s service is independent and our property checks are comprehensive, so we can let you know about every option available to you at your new address. Our agents will draw on years of industry experience to make a recommendation, but you’re free to set up the packages that you prefer. Plus, Please Connect Me regularly has access to promotions and offers which means we can help set up a package for less than going to the company direct.
Local Services
A key part of moving in is learning about the essential services in your local area – not least when you should be putting your bins out. Your local authority will usually be the best place to start, with websites listing key local information like how to join the library, report a problem, or arrange to have large items collected from your address. You can also use the NHS’s ‘Find a GP’ service to look for local doctor’s offices that are accepting new patients.
If you’re looking to set up an insurance policy at your new address then don’t miss out – comparison sites can be useful for getting an idea of policy costs, but using a specialist broker will make sure you’re paying the best price for the cover you actually need. Whether you are looking for cover for your laptop and wardrobe in the event of a disaster or a comprehensive insurance policy for your dream home, our expert partners can help you find the perfect policy.
Arranging home cleaning for your new property won’t be essential for everyone. After the dust has settled and the movers have tracked their boots through your hall a dozen times, however, you may be longing for a deep clean as part of your new start. If you aren’t able to get a local recommendation then Housekeep could be your new best friend, offering a range of local, fully vetted and professional cleaners from everything for a one-off clean after your move to regular weekly service. Even more good news – Please Connect Me readers can get their first two hours of cleaning for free, and you can cancel at any time.
Home Maintenance
It might not be the first thing you want to think about, but emergencies do happen. When your lights suddenly go out or you find water leaking out of your washing machine you’ll appreciate taking the extra time when you first arrive to familiarise yourself with your new property. Make sure you know where to find the fusebox including the mains power cut-off and the water stopcock in case you need to disconnect your supply in a hurry.
You can also make a plan now for the most common household emergency – getting locked out. Getting a spare set of keys cut to leave with a neighbour or in a secure lock-box could save you a fortune in emergency locksmith fees down the line.
On your first day on the property, you should also make sure you take time to check all your smoke alarms and your carbon monoxide detector and replace the batteries in any that aren’t working. Get spare batteries of the same size to keep in a safe place and you’ll be much less stressed when the inevitable low battery beep wakes you in the middle of the night. We’d suggest starting a home maintenance drawer, where you can keep spare batteries, a torch, any manuals or documents for your appliances and a copy of your move-in inventory report.
Enjoy your new home!
