8 Tips to Consider When Planning Your Move Date

In the whirlwind experience of buying or renting a new home and organizing your belongings in anticipation of moving, you might forget to nail down one major detail—your move date. 

Before you close your eyes and point to a random date on your wall calendar, consider these important factors to ensure the moving date is the best fit for you and your family.

1. Check Your Lease Agreement

If you’re a renter, the date your lease ends—and when you need to be out of there—is usually determined by your rental agreement. Read it carefully and ensure you give your landlord the proper amount of notice (30 days is standard) of your departure, and ask about the building’s moving rules and regulations. You should also double check that your new residence will be ready by your moving day.

2. Coordinate with the New Homeowners’ Move-In Date 

If you sold your current house, you’ll obviously need to move out before the new owners move in. Likewise, if you bought a new home, you’ll need to work with the current owners to coordinate when they’ll be ready for you to take over. 

If you sold your home before finalizing the purchase of a new one, you may have to arrange for temporary housing to fill the gap of time between your old home and your new one. Plan ahead so that you can move directly from your current home into your short-term housing situation.

3. Plan Around Your Job’s Start Date

If you’re moving to a new city or state to live closer to a new job, you’ll likely need to plan your move date around the first day of your new job. Make sure to allow ample time for you to settle into your new place before kicking off your new professional venture. Ideally, you should move into your new place about one week before your job’s start date.

4. Reference Your Child’s School Calendar 

Moving to a new house, a new town, and a new school can be a stressful experience for any kid. That’s why it’s essential to reference your child’s new school calendar when picking an appropriate moving date.

Try and minimize the impact of this big life change by moving at the end of a school year rather than mid-year. If that’s not an option, work with your child’s current and future teachers to make the transition as seamless as possible.

5. Consider Your Budget

Whether you’re moving on a tight budget or you just love a deal, you should avoid moving between Memorial Day and Labor Day, which is considered peak moving season in the U.S. During this window of time, movers’ rates usually increase higher than other times of the year. 

Winter is considered the least expensive season to move, if you don’t mind dealing with a little chill. Keep in mind that there can be weather-related setbacks if you live or move to a place where it regularly snows. 

You will also save money and face less competition in hiring movers, renting trucks, and using other services in the middle of the week and the middle of the month compared to weekends and the beginning or end of the month.

6. Check Your Moving Team’s Availability

Once you’ve found a reputable moving company you want to hire, ask them about their schedule and availability for your move. Note that movers typically book weekends very far in advance, in addition to the end of and beginning of every month. 

If you have some flexibility in your schedule, consider hiring them for a mid-month weekday; you’ll likely get the pick-up and delivery times you want (though most companies will prefer an early morning start time).

7. Review Your Personal Schedule

Of course, you also need to take your family’s schedule of events into consideration when picking a moving date. Check your calendar and consider any major events, like birthdays or weddings, as well as holidays. The bottom line: If you want to ensure that you’re settled into your home before you leave on vacation, plan ahead and give yourself enough time to unpack at least your swimsuits and luggage.

8. Be Flexible 

Whether you’re hiring movers or enlisting the help of a few loyal friends, it helps to be flexible with your schedule so that you can get the help you need to make your move as smooth as possible. Professional movers will be more likely to accommodate you if you have multiple move dates in mind or have different windows open for them, so they can fit you in if they’re slammed. The same can be said for friends who are helping out—giving them the option to help over a handful of dates versus one Saturday from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. is more likely to work in your favor.