17 Things to do Before Handover Day
If this isn’t the most exciting day of the build process, we don’t know what is. Moving into a brand-new home is completely different to moving into an established home, so we have collected the most important things to do before handover day to help the transition.
We know that move-in day comes with lots of packing, shifting and lifting, but you should also expect time for paperwork and phone calls. And with this cheat sheet, you can be as organised as possible.
6 Months Prior to Handover
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Start ordering furniture and appliances
You are building a brand-new home and there is no better feeling than filling it with brand new furniture and appliances. Depending on where you plan to shop, you may have to wait months for items to be made or shipped to Australia.
To save you from settling on pieces that aren’t quite right or dragging in the fridge that has seen better days, this is your reminder to start shopping. Being super organised can also mean you grab a bargain at an end of season sale, leaving more room for styling pieces.
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Research your internet options
This might seem like an incredibly early step so far from handover day. If you are building in a new estate, this should be an easy step. If you are building on property, like lots of our customers do, a new line may be required. Getting this organised early will ensure you have internet ready to go on move-in day and you aren’t driving into town to check your notifications.
3 Months Prior to Handover
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Book your landscaping, driveway and perimeter paths and stormwater
These are common tasks that our customers look after themselves. See our blog post that discusses 12 Things You Need to Know About Building a New Home.
These trades need a few months’ notice to lock in your booking. And we can’t recommend organising your driveway and perimeter paths as soon as possible to assist with foundation maintenance, also part of our blog post. If you are moving in during any raining periods, perimeter paths and a driveway are a game changer and save the mud through your beautiful new home.
If you need to organise your own stormwater, you will know if this is you, then this is also a great time to lock this in as you won’t want to move in until this is complete. You will also need your stormwater sorted before your perimeter paths go down.
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Meet your neighbours
If you haven’t already, now is the perfect time to knock on a few doors and meet your neighbours. From boundary fencing to local advice, it is always helpful to be on the good side of your neighbours, even if you don’t quite agree with their colour palette.
4 Weeks Prior to Handover
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Book your removalists
Whether you have lined up your friends and family, or you are outsourcing the move, now is a good time to lock everyone and all of those utes and trailers in. While you are booking the muscle, organising boxes or tubs for your belongings can happen now too. Sure, you don’t need to start packing just yet, but those last few weeks will fly by.
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Lock in home and contents insurance
Just like quotes for internet, there are plenty of options for home and contents insurance. Your builder’s insurance will cover your home until handover day, then the responsibility falls to you.
Some insurance companies will require your home to be completed before they provide cover, however, they can still provide a quote in the meantime. Most quotes have a 30-day expiry, so this is a great time to understand your cover options. For those that do offer insurance in advance, you can have peace of mind that any waiting periods, like accidental fire and flood, will be over by move-in day.
1 Week Prior to Handover
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Set up a mail redirection
We live in a technology rich world, so most communication is available online. There are still those few letters that make it to your letterbox, mostly the pesky bills. Your local post office is the place to go for mail redirection to ensure you don’t miss anything important that you forget to change your address on.
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Sort a baby/pet sitter
Move-in days are stressful and high paced enough. If you have young children, we highly suggest organising a sitter to take care of them so you can focus on the move. If you will be away from home for a long time, particularly if your new home is far from your current home, don’t forget to organise someone to feed your pets.
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Connect your utilities
We look after your utilities throughout your build so our team can work efficiently. Once handover has taken place, this responsibility falls to the homeowners. You will absolutely need working utilities – electricity, water and gas – to enjoy your home, and to be able to use the toilet.
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Purchase a letterbox and house numbers
Any delivery drivers (including pizza) will need to be able to easily locate your home. Being organised with a letterbox and/or house numbers makes this process easy. And ensures your pizza is nice and hot when you need it on move-in day.
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Schedule your deliveries
If you ordered your new furniture and appliances months ago, see tip #1, now is the time to start scheduling those deliveries.
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Book measures and quotes
It is best to wait until you are in your home to have curtains and blinds measured and quoted. This is because your windows and doors can vary slightly from the original plan. We are only talking a few mm’s but this can make a big difference, especially for blinds.
If your chosen contractor can work with your plans for a quote, you will simply need to book their team to come back on handover day to do the final measure before they manufacture them. This can save a lot of time between quoting and measuring day.
Move-In Day
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Attend your handover
This is where we get to show you through your new home and run over all the final paperwork. Allow at least an hour for this process, depending on how many questions you may have for your site supervisor.
At this handover, we will leave you with a handy handover folder, AKA the handbook of your build. This will be your go-to for everything you’ll need to know about your house and is all kept together in a handy folder. From details about your wall and roof trusses, to every choice you made in your selections appointment, your appliance serial numbers, product information sheets and the certificates of compliance from our trades.
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Update your addresses
Now that you are officially in your new home, it is time to start the process of changing your addresses. Here is our list:
- Finance – banks, superannuation
- Government – MyGov, ATO, Electoral Roll, ServiceSA, My Health Record, Medicare, Centrelink
- Utilities – electricity, gas, water
- Insurance – car, health, life, business, boat
- Pets – insurance, DACO, microchip, vet
- Employment
- Communication – phone, internet
- Shopping – PayPal, eBay, Amazon, Australia Post
- Subscription – meal delivery, magazines
- Medical – doctor, dentist
- Education – school, secondary education
- Family and friends
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Bring the toilet paper
We really don’t need to explain this. You will need to go to the toilet at some point on move-in day. Better to be prepared!
Once You Are In
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Order your wheelie bins
Your local Council will require your Certificate of Completion before they issue any wheelie bins. This is a form that you will sign with us on handover day, and we will lodge with your Council. Calling your Council a few days later to book your bins will allow them time to process it.
Some Councils don’t provide the green waste bin, which is something that you can purchase prior to handover day so it is ready to go. Check on your local Council’s website to see their bin inclusions.
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Don’t forget us
Once we hand over your keys, and your handy handover folder, it won’t be the last time you see us. We are not one bit sorry about this, and you won’t be either.
All our homes run with a thirteen-week, three-month, maintenance period. This allows time for you to live in your home and find all the quirks that it came with. It could be a drawer that sticks, a light switch that has a mind of its own or a handle that looks like it has been on a night out that it couldn’t handle.
Jot these down on the maintenance list sheet, which you’ll find in your handover folder, and email it back to us at the thirteen-week mark. Our maintenance team will be in touch to organise to come and have a look at these items. Best place to keep this form is on the fridge or in the top drawer so it is easy to access.
Have we forgotten something from the list? We would love to hear from you.
Looking for other building inspiration? Check out blog posts for everything from the best white paint for your home, to the benefits of building with bricks or creating the Hamptons style in your new home.
By Amy Rosendale
