Before You THINK of Moving,
Maybe You Should MOVE Your Stuff!

First and foremost, before you even think of packing, will your furniture fit size wise and aesthetically in your new home?

Will your large items fit through the doors and hallways?

Will your everyday dishware fit in to your new surroundings, or is it time to get rid of the set with the chipped plate or cup?

Do you want to unpack your old junk in your new home?

Have a garage sale; donate it to Charity and get a tax write off; give it away to friends or relatives.

Moving is expensive enough without having to pay to cart junk you are never going to use.

I am telling you from personal experience that the boxes of stuff that "might come in handy", NEVER DO. I still have some unopened boxes ten years down the line.

First off, you need to come to a decision as to how you plan on moving.
Are you using a professional mover, or are you doing it yourself?

If you are a real estate seller, then you need to start getting your estimates from the van lines immediately your house is under contract.

If you are a real estate buyer, then you need to get your estimates as soon as you have an accepted offer.

Transportation companies often require 4 to 6 weeks notice of your departure date.

If you are doing it yourself, start checking out the truck rental companies and if they accept reservations, provisionally book the truck you will need.

Check on, and arrange for the utilities, cable, satellite or whatever services you need, to be transferred to your name, or turned on, the morning you are supposed to take possession.
If the possession is delayed by a day, it is much better to pay a few dollars for utilities and have them working when you get there.
I would arrange to have your telephone turned on AFTER you move in, as you can always use your cell phone the first day.

Pack your small valuable items, like jewelry, family photos, documents etc. separately and take them in your car with you.

Put together a list of your credit card companies, magazine subscriptions, organizations you belong to etc. that will need your new address and notify them.

Submit a change of address form at your local Post Office.

Contact your auto insurance company to get set up for your new address.

Contact your medical and dental insurance companies and get referrals for new practitioners in the area you are going to.

Check that you will have cell phone and paging service in your new town and change your cell phone # to a local one.

Contact the DMV if you go to another State to see if there are any special requirements (especially California), smog certificates etc. for your vehicles.

If you have children, contact your school district to have the children's school records forwarded to their new school.

If you are packing your computer, make sure you back up all the files and take the disks with you personally.

Notify the utilities to come out to read the meters and send you a closing bill at your new address.