Sample output · default answers
Moving Day Checklist — full sample
This is the actual structure our generator produces from the default answers. When you buy, you fill in the form and your version reflects your household — rooms, timeline, province, and everything else.
Your move at a glance
- your current city → your new city on your move date
- Move type: Local (same city)
- Movers: Hiring movers
- Rooms to pack: 3 bedrooms, Living room, Kitchen, Bathroom(s)
8 weeks out
- Confirm move date (your move date) with landlord / lawyer / buyer
- Get 3 written moving quotes; verify insurance and Canadian Association of Movers membership
- Create a moving budget (movers, supplies, insurance, cleaning, deposits)
- Take photos of valuable items for insurance record
- If renting: schedule move-out inspection with landlord
Decluttering before you pack
- Go room by room, not all at once — a whole-house declutter in one weekend is how it never gets finished
- Sort into four piles: keep, donate, sell, toss — decide on the spot, don't create a fifth "maybe" pile
6 weeks out
- Collect boxes, tape, bubble wrap, markers
- Start using up freezer and pantry food
- Check municipal parking / permit rules for moving truck
- Book time off work for move day + day after
Smart packing techniques — the ways that actually work
- Dishes: pack vertically like records, not stacked flat — wrap each in paper first
- Clothes: leave folded clothes in dresser drawers if the dresser is being moved as-is; use the garbage-bag-over-hangers trick for closet clothes
- Books: small boxes only — a full box of books is too heavy to lift safely
- Electronics: photograph the cable setup before unplugging, and use original boxes if you kept them
- Mirrors and art: cardboard corner protectors plus bubble wrap, marked "fragile" on every side, never laid flat under other boxes
- Liquids (cleaning supplies, toiletries): tape lids shut and bag individually so a leak doesn't ruin a whole box
- Knives and sharp tools: wrap the blade separately from the handle and mark the box "sharp"
- Mattress: use a mattress bag even for a short move — it's the one item movers won't reload if it gets dirty
4 weeks out
- Start packing bedroom #1 — off-season clothes and books first
- Start packing bedroom #2 — off-season clothes and books first
- Start packing bedroom #3 — off-season clothes and books first
- Label every box: room + top 3 contents + priority
- Book cleaning service for old home (or block time for DIY)
- Confirm insurance covers items in transit
Room-by-room packing order
- Living room: Pack decor, books, and electronics first — keep one lamp and phone chargers out until the last day
- Living room: Photograph the entertainment/media cable setup before disconnecting anything
- Living room: Wrap picture frames and mirrors individually with corner protectors
- Kitchen: Pack a dedicated "first night" box: kettle, 2 mugs, basic cutlery, coffee or tea, a pot and pan
- Kitchen: Wrap dishes vertically like records, not stacked flat
- Kitchen: Empty and defrost the fridge/freezer at least 24 hours before move day
- Kitchen: Tape lids on anything liquid and bag them individually
- Bathroom(s): Pack a travel bag with the essentials you'll need the morning of and the morning after — this doesn't go in a box at all
- Bathroom(s): Bag and seal anything that could leak
- Bathroom(s): Pack medications separately and keep them with you, not on the truck
Your labeling system for helpers
- Color-code by room with dot stickers or coloured tape — tape one matching swatch on each room's door at the new place so helpers just match colours, no reading required
- Number every box and keep a master list (box # → room → contents) — the single best way to know if something's missing after the move
- Pack one "Open First" box per major room — toilet paper, a shower curtain, coffee + mugs, phone chargers, snacks, and a couple of hand towels; make it the last thing loaded and the first thing off the truck
- Mark "Fragile" and "This Side Up" boxes on the top AND at least one side — labels on top only get hidden the moment boxes stack
- Even without extra helpers, this system pays off the moment you're unpacking tired and want to find one specific box
2 weeks out — address changes
- CRA (My Account or MyBenefits) address updated
- Service Canada / EI / OAS / CPP updated
- Provincial health card address updated (same-province update)
- Driver's licence and vehicle registration — ON requires an update within 6 days of moving
- Auto insurance updated with new address
- Home / tenant insurance policy updated or replaced
- Bank, credit cards, investment accounts
- Employer HR + payroll
- Doctor, dentist, pharmacist — transfer prescriptions
- Canada Post mail forwarding activated
- Subscriptions / online shops
- For the full tracker of every account that needs your new address — banks, government, insurers, subscriptions — see the Change of Address Checklist; it's built for exactly this step
1 week out — utilities & services
- Hydro / electricity — stop at your current city, start at your new city
- Natural gas — transfer or set up new
- Water / sewer (if separately billed)
- Internet + streaming — schedule installation on move-in day
- Cell provider address updated
- Waste / recycling — check pickup day at new city
Move week
- Pack an essentials box: toilet paper, soap, phone chargers, cutlery, coffee, meds, one full change of clothes per person
- Snacks and water for move day
- Cash / tip envelope for movers
- Charge phone, cameras, and tools
- Confirm arrival window with movers or truck rental
- Print / save directions and lock combinations
Move day
- Walk-through of old home — take dated photos of every room + meter readings
- Hand keys to landlord or buyer
- Confirm inventory sheet with movers before loading
- Load essentials box and every "Open First" box in your own car, not the truck
- Walk-through of new home — photos of every room + condition
- Point out each box's destination room to movers using your colour/number system
- Test water, heat, and electricity
- Change or rekey exterior locks before sleeping
- Set up any priority room first
First week in new home
- Unpack kitchen, primary bathroom, and one bedroom per person
- Test smoke and CO alarms; replace batteries
- Find water main shutoff, panel, furnace filter
- Register with new family doctor if moved communities
- Update address on driver's licence if not done
- Explore neighbourhood: grocery, pharmacy, fire hall, park