Moving. One of the most exciting and most overwhelming tasks. It is a great time to purge and organize your belongings and usually marks a new chapter in one’s life. But there are a lot of things to organize (about from one’s personal belongings). Here, we have made an easy to follow checklist for anyone moving.` All these tasks are necessary for homeowners, but may not be necessary for all renters (make sure to check with your landlord what you are responsible for). This is also based on a move within Toronto. If moving to another city/area, the steps will most likely be the same, but the providers would be different. Not interested in taking on these tasks yourself? We are more than happy to help with any of these steps to make the moving process more seamless.
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Book your moving date as soon as you can. As many people tend to move at the beginning or end of the month, moving companies book up quickly. If you have any flexibility with your move-in time, moving companies are usually less expensive during the middle of the month versus at the beginning and end of the month.
There are a ton of moving companies and it can be tough to sort through all of them. We have worked with both Avenue Moving + Cargo Cabbie and have never had any complaints! Avenue Moving http://www.avenuemoving.com/ Cargo Cabbie https://www.cargocabbie.ca/
Order furniture. If you aren’t moving all your furniture from your current home, many large items usually take 6-8 weeks minimum to be delivered. If you're not worried about having all your furniture upon move-in, this is a less important step. You can also work with an interior designer to help choose and organize your furniture deliveries.
Start packing! It is very easy to procrastinate on the packing, but the sooner you start, the easier it will be to organize things properly and make unpacking easier. There will be things you can’t pack until the night before, but the majority of things can be packed 2-4 weeks before a move. It is also a great time to purge any unused items and start fresh in your new home. Not sure where to start? Working with an organizing company can be very beneficial to help you sort through your belongings. Check out Simply Spaces @simplyspaces - they do fantastic work!
Book a deep clean. We suggest booking a deep clean for your new home before moving in. It will definitely need a clean once everything has been moved, but when a space is empty, it is the best time to really get a good cleaning.
Set up your utilities: All the things necessary for your new home to function. As mentioned above, these are specific for Toronto, but other cities/areas will have equivalent services. It is important to call each of your utility companies upon move-in to ensure they have a correct meter reading for you. This will avoid any confusion with the previous owner/tenant on who is responsible for any in-between move costs.
Natural Gas (Enbridge) Go to https://www.enbridgegas.com/ and look for “New Customers” then “Setup Account”. You will need your date of birth, address, and move-in date. Once this is submitted you will get an email confirmation and login info within 24-48 hours.
Electricity (Toronto Hydro) Go to https://www.torontohydro.com/ and click “Set up New Service”. You will require your date of birth as well as one of the following: Canadian driver's license number, passport number, citizenship number, or place of employment. Once you have submitted your information, you should receive a confirmation email in a few days with instructions to set up an online account.
Internet/Cable/Home Phone(Bell or Rogers) Determine your needs are and reach out to either provider to see what they can offer you. If you currently have an account that you are happy with, you can transfer this to your new address. It is also a good time, to see what deals there are on offer. Booking a tech from Rogers or Bell should be done to coincide with your move-in date so you can have internet/cable/phone upon arrival. These guys can definitely get busy so booking ahead of time is highly recommended.
Property Taxes / Water & Solid waste management (Toronto Property Tax & Utilities): This process needs to be initiated by a lawyer. To update the ownership information for a property tax account, a lawyer’s letter must be submitted containing the following. (Most real estate lawyers will do this but doesn't hurt to check with yours to make sure): • new owner’s and previous owner’s full names (if a change of ownership is due to a sale/purchase)
• property address • Assessment Roll Number • mailing address of the new owner, including postal code • closing date of the sale (or date of transaction for name change) • lawyer’s signature • a copy of the deed may be required
Submit your request by fax or mail: City of Toronto Revenue Services, Account Administration PO Box 4300, STN A Toronto, ON M5W 3B5
Once your ownership information has been updated, a Property Tax Account Statement will be mailed to the mailing address provided, which should be your new home address (as this is where bills will continue to be forwarded). It will provide the necessary details to log in to your Property Tax & Utility Account Lookups on the Toronto.ca website.
It is also recommended, for safety, consulting with a lawyer about obtaining a Tax and/or Utility Certificate; a certificate will provide:
• current status of the property taxes and/or utility account • any upcoming property tax due dates or utility bill due date
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Moving can feel like a daunting task, but if you use this checklist you can make sure nothing is missed and the process is as easy as possible. Once you’ve moved in, the work does not stop there (sigh!) It is important to get your new home in tip-top shape! Booking regular maintenance of your furnace, air conditioner, and eavestroughs is a good place to start - but that is a whole other blog post;)
Park Road Concierge is happy to help with any step of a move - from packing to organizing your utilities, we are here to take the work out of your move!
