Moving Guide

Keep detailed records – some moving expenses can be tax deductible!

Keep detailed records of all moving expenses if your move is job related. Many expenses including house-hunting trips are tax deductible. If your move is 35 miles or more from your current home, you can deduct your family’s travel expenses, including meals and lodging; the cost of transportation furniture, other household goods and personal belongings; food and hotel bills for up to 30 days in the new city if you have to wait to move into your new home; and the costs associated with the selling your own home or leasing your new home.

Note: For detailed information and qualifications please consult with your tax professional. Also, there is a ceiling on deductions which is outlined in detail in the IRS’ Publication 521, “Tax Information on Moving Expenses”, available free from the IRS offices.

Two Months Before Moving

• Sort through your belongings to reduce the number of things to move.
• Have a garage sale or donate items you no longer want or need.
• Decide whether to move yourself or hire professionals. Make reservations with a moving company or truck rental company.
• Gather packing supplies: boxes, packing material, tape, marker, and scissors.
• If moving from a long distance, make travel arrangements with the airline, hotel, and/or rental car agency. If you are driving to your new home get maps and plan your travel route.
• Save all moving receipts.
• Place your legal, medical, financial, and insurance records in a safe and accessible place.
• Purchase insurance coverage for valuables to be moved.

One Month Before Moving

• Start packing items that aren’t regularly used such as off-season clothes and decorations and items in storage areas – garage, attic, and closets.
• Make travel arrangements for pets, if applicable.
• If you are driving, have your car tuned up.
• Get medical records from your doctors, dentist, optometrist, and veterinarian.
• Send items (rugs, drapes, clothing, quilts, bedding) to the cleaners.
• Back up important computer files before packing equipment.

Two Weeks Before Moving

• Contact your current utility companies and notify them of you impending move.
• Sign up for services at your new address.
• Call friends and family to recruit help for the moving day.
• Confirm your travel reservations.
• Arrange to close or transfer your bank account, if appropriate. Retrieve items in your safety deposit box.

One Week Before Moving

• Pick up items from the cleaners, repair shops, or friends.
• Pack a survival kit of clothes, medicines, special foods, et cetera to carry you through the day while you unpack.
• Finish packing all boxes except what you will need in the final week.
• Clearly label where each box should be going – living room, kitchen, master bedroom, et cetera.

Contact the following companies and service providers with your updated address:

Utilities				Insurance Companies
_______ Electric			_______ Auto
_______ Telephone			_______ Home/Renters
_______ Water				_______ Life
_______ Cable				_______ Health
_______ Gas							
_______ Phone/Internet		        Business Accounts
					_______ Banks
Professional Services			_______ Credit Cards	
_______ Broker		
_______ Accountant			Subscriptions
_______ Doctor(s)			_______ Newspaper
_______ Dentist				_______ Magazine
_______ Lawyer
					Miscellaneous
Government				_______ Friends/Family
_______ IRS				_______ Business Associates
_______ Post Office			_______ Church
_______ Schools				_______ Drugstore
_______ Library				_______ Veterinarian

The Day Before Moving

• Set aside moving materials such as tape measure, pocket knife, and rope.
• Pad corners and stairways of house.
• Lay down protective floor coverings in entry and hall ways.
• Remove hanging fixtures.
• If you are moving yourself, pick up rental truck and a dolly to move heavy objects.
• If you are driving, check oil, tire pressure, and gas in your car.
• If you are flying, make sure you have tickets, bank cards, and other essentials.

Moving Day – carry with you:

• The keys to your new home.
• A map of your new town and directions to your home.
• The telephone number of the moving company, if applicable.
• Cash, credit cards, and/or traveler’s checks.
• Documentation related to the sale of your home.
• Your insurance policies and agent’s phone number.
• Your current address book or personal planner.
• Prescription and non-prescription medicines.
• Enough clothing and toiletries to get by if the movers are late.
• Any items of great personal value that you could not replace.
• Back-up copies of important computer files.
• Sheets, towels, and toiletries for the first night in your new home.

Arrival Day

• Show movers where to place furniture and boxes.
• Check inventory to ensure that everything was delivered before signing delivery papers.
• Note any damages on the inventory sheet.
• Start unpacking!