How to organize your finances for a move

Moving four times in six years has taught me a lot. Mainly, changing addresses is utterly exhausting, but also that it’s a lot more complicated than just putting your stuff in boxes and transporting them from point A to point B. This is especially true when it comes to moving your money and payments along with you while also trying to stay on a budget.

Technically, all you need to keep track of your money during a move (and make sure all your payments come along with you) is a good ol’ spreadsheet. But the process can be tedious, so if paying for a fancy app, making a cool Notion dashboard, or even buying a new notebook and some pretty washi tape will make it better for you, go for it. On my last move, I wrote all the things I had to do on color-coded sticky notes and put them on one of the walls of my apartment. Visualizing everything at a glance was a bit stressful at first, but it helped me know what was left to do as moving day came closer. It was also extremely cathartic to yank notes from the wall, crumple them, and throw them away once I completed a task.

Coming up with a plan to deal with the financial aspects of your move ahead of time sounds like boring dad advice, but compartmentalizing the process into three big phases (before, during, and after) will save you some headaches on moving day.

Phase 1: So, you’re moving

The pre-moving part is the most challenging stage of the process, as it requires introspection, actually looking at your bank and credit card statements, and spending a fair amount of time talking (or waiting to talk) to customer service. It sounds awful, I know, but the good news is that if you put in the effort, you won’t have to wonder how much your move will cost or why you’re paying two electrical bills every month.

Determine what you’ll need

Take inventory of what you have (moving is a great time to get rid of stuff). Also, make a list of what you need to buy: boxes, tape, labels, etc. This will help you have a better idea of the total cost of the move, as well as how big a truck you’ll need to transport everything.

Depending on where you’re moving, your new place may already have some furniture, a fridge, a stove, and even other appliances like a washer and dryer — or it may not. If not, and the ones at your current place work well and are in good condition, ask your landlord whether they’d be willing to sell them to you. The same goes if you own appliances or furniture you won’t need at your new place — ask your landlord whether they’d be interested in buying them from you. You may strike up a pretty good deal for both of you.

Set up a paper trail of any services you contract for your move: trucks, movers, storage units, etc. Follow up on all agreements made on the phone with an email and use features like filters and labels to keep all moving-related messages in one place. If you’re using Gmail, use the star icons to keep up with whatever needs your urgent attention. All this sorting will help you have absolute clarity about what you already paid for and will help you find receipts later on if you’re filing for reimbursements with your employer, for example.

The last time I moved, I used Gemini, Gmail’s built-in AI tool, to summarize long email threads and cut straight to the important details. A warning, though — this is not a perfect feature, so while it might save you some time and energy, it could also miss some crucial information from time to time. If you notice something’s not quite right, make sure to go back to the thread and read carefully before you spend a whole hour on the phone yelling at someone.

For IRL shopping, ask for receipts to be sent to your email, if possible. If not, you can enter them into a spreadsheet or a money-tracking app, but that takes time you may not have. This is where your phone’s camera comes in handy — just snap pictures of physical receipts and try to include the time and date of the purchase, the full itemized list of products, and the name of the store. During my last move, I took pictures of all my receipts before I left the store and shoved them into my tote bag. Later, I just typed “Receipts” on Google Photos and found everything I needed.

Keep or ditch — utilities edition

At this stage, you should also decide which services will accompany you to your new place. Go through your bank and credit card statements, and note which companies are providing services for you and how much you’re paying for them.

Make sure to go back further than your last statement, as some bills might come in more sporadically than once a month. If you don’t feel like scrolling down ad nauseam, you can have an app do it for you. Most budgeting or money management apps (and even maybe your bank app) can sort your recurring expenses into categories and tell you where your payments are going at a glance.

Once you know what you’re paying for, you’ll need to decide what services you actually need: gas, electricity, internet, etc. This is important, because some companies only serve some states or even certain city areas where they already have the infrastructure — this is very common with telecoms. Find out from your new landlord (or management company if you’re moving into a co-op or condo) or join online neighborhood groups.

(A note: you may not be using Facebook anymore, and Nextdoor might give you the ick, but in my experience, these are two of the most popular platforms to connect at a neighborhood level. Older users like them better because they already know how to use them, and it’s easier for younger folks to adapt. If you don’t want to log into Facebook, you can always cast a wider net on the web or go the old-fashioned way — if possible, stop by your new place, knock on some doors, and ask some questions. Bringing cookies won’t hurt.)

You’ll need to notify your current providers. Most companies have online instructions on moving or canceling their services. (If you can’t immediately find the info, don’t waste your time using the built-in search feature on the website: I’ve found that using the “site:” operator on Google renders the best results.) Keep in mind that you might have to pay a moving or cancellation fee, and if you have any doubts, just call them. Pro tip: moving might be a good time to renegotiate your monthly payments, so don’t forget to ask about that if you already have them on the phone.

Delay or redirect your packages

While you were looking at your statements, you probably noticed those subscriptions for cat litter or exotic candy that arrive at your doorstep every few months. Check when the next order will ship and delay all nonessentials so you receive them at your new place. It’ll prevent packages from going missing, and it’ll also avoid the need to pack stuff you can actually send directly.

This is easy, inexpensive, and you can do it all online. Just follow the instructions on the USPS website, and your stuff should get to where you are. For $1.10 (a symbolic fee used to verify your address), you can get your mail forwarded for a year, which you can extend for up to 18 months. USPS recommends setting up the service at least two weeks before mail forwarding comes into effect, but if you want to get it off your plate, you can do it up to three months in advance.

Update your credit card’s e-bills and autopay features

If you use automatic payments to cover your mortgage, rent, or other recurring bills, go to your credit cards’ online dashboard and cancel or update them to reflect your move. Make sure you do this with all of your credit cards — even the ones you no longer carry with you. If you can’t find where to change these settings, you can always contact your bank directly.

Phase 2: It’s moving day!

That was exhausting! But planning ahead will leave you with the time, energy, and mental bandwidth to focus on packing and managing any unplanned nuisances that will surely arise on the day.

For those last-minute runs to the hardware store, get a plastic envelope for documents and put all your receipts in there so you can deal with them later. Keep it in your car or in a bag you know will be with you when you leave your place for the last time: your purse, tote bag, or backpack.

Phase 3: You moved! It’s over — sort of

Congrats on your new place. Now, shortly after you’ve unpacked your essentials, make some time to update your address on all the websites and platforms you usually shop at. Don’t forget to set your new location as the default in your address book so you don’t accidentally have packages sent to your old place. If you have a Netflix account (or any other type of subscription that monitors your location to avoid password-sharing), update your address there, as well. And don’t forget about your driver’s license and other official documents.

And that’s it! You’re now ready to enjoy your life at your new home. Give yourself a pat on the back and focus on enjoying your new living space. That is, after you’re done unpacking.