Moving House in Singapore: A Week-by-Week Checklist
Moves go wrong when the things with long lead times get booked late. Here's what to do in what order, from eight weeks out to the week after.
The short answer
- 8 weeksto plan your move, if you can
- Book firstmovers, a condo lift and your internet line
- 28 daysto report your new address to ICA
Give yourself eight weeks if you can. The tasks that go wrong are the ones with long lead times — movers during peak periods, condo lift bookings, and moving your internet line — so book those first. Pack from four weeks out, clean the new home before the furniture goes in, and report your new address to ICA within 28 days of moving.
If you'd rather not work out the dates yourself, the moving planner turns this checklist into a dated one for your move.
Moving out of Singapore, not within it? This checklist covers a move from one Singapore home to another. For the international side, see Relocado's leaving Singapore checklist.
Eight weeks before: fix the date and get quotes
- Settle your moving date. If it's flexible, avoid month-ends and weekends, which book out first, and the June and year-end school holidays. If you're renting, check the date against your tenancy's notice period; if you're moving into a BTO, against your key collection and renovation timeline.
- Get two or three moving quotes. A site survey — in person or over a video call — gives a far more accurate quote than describing your home over the phone.
- Decide what isn't coming with you. Everything you sell, donate or dispose of now is something you don't pay to pack, move and unpack. Junk to Clear has a good guide to decluttering before a move.
- If the new place is being renovated, get the contractor's completion date in writing, and build in slack. A renovation overrun is the most common reason a moving date slips.
What to ask movers when you compare quotes
- Is the price fixed, or charged by the hour or by the lorry trip?
- What's included — packing materials, dismantling and reassembling beds and wardrobes, wrapping furniture?
- What costs extra? Common add-ons are stairs, a long carry from the lorry to the lift, heavy items such as pianos and safes, and waiting time.
- How are breakages handled, and is there any cover for damage?
- How many crew and lorries will come on the day?
Four to six weeks before: book everything with a lead time
- Book your movers, and get the date, arrival window and price in writing.
- Book the lift if either home is a condo. Most condo management offices need notice, a form and a refundable deposit — for moving out as well as moving in. HDB blocks are generally simpler. Here's what each typically expects on move day.
- Arrange your internet. Installation appointments can take a while to get, and working off a phone hotspot for a fortnight is nobody's idea of fun.
- Open a utilities account for the new home, and arrange for the old one to be closed or transferred. For most households that's with SP Group; allow a few working days. Leaving a rental? Don't close that account yourself — under CEA's template tenancy agreement it stays open for the handover inspection, and the landlord closes it afterwards.
- Start packing the things you won't miss: books, out-of-season clothes, decorations, the kitchen gadgets you use twice a year.
Two weeks before: pack in earnest and book the clean
- Pack room by room, and label every box with its destination room and a one-line summary of what's inside. "Kitchen — pots and pans" saves a lot of opening boxes later.
- Pack an "open first" box for the new home: kettle, mugs, a few plates and some cutlery, scissors, toilet roll, bin bags, chargers and a torch.
- Book a clean of the new home for before the furniture arrives. An empty flat can be cleaned properly — inside cabinets, behind where the fridge and wardrobes will stand — in a fraction of the time. If you're leaving a rental, book the move-out clean for after your things are out, too.
- Arrange disposal for large items that aren't coming. Bulky items usually need a booked collection, not a same-day decision.
- Start updating your address with the private organisations that post things to you: banks, insurers, your employer, schools, your GP and any subscriptions.
- Confirm the details with your movers: access, parking, lift arrangements and the time window.
The week before
- Defrost and dry the fridge a day or two before, so it doesn't leak in the lorry. Run down what's in the freezer during the week.
- Photograph the cables behind the TV, computer and router, so you can set them up again without guessing.
- Pack a bag for the first night: documents, medication, chargers, toiletries, a change of clothes, and anything the children or pets can't do without.
- Take down curtains and wall-mounted items you're taking with you. Keep the screws and brackets in a labelled bag taped to each item.
- Set aside valuables — passports, jewellery, cash, laptops, keys — to travel with you rather than on the lorry.
Moving day
Be there when the movers arrive, and when they leave. Walk them through the old home at the start, pointing out anything fragile and anything that isn't going. Before they leave the new one:
- Check every room, cupboard and balcony in the old home is empty.
- Check the furniture for damage before you sign anything, and photograph anything you find.
- Have the beds reassembled first. Everything else can wait until tomorrow; sleep can't.
- Note down the meter readings at both homes, as a record.
Handing back a rental? Moving day isn't the end of it. The handover inspection, the move-out clean and your deposit are covered in our tenancy handover checklist.
The week after: the one legal deadline
- Report your change of address to ICA within 28 days of moving. It's a legal requirement, it's done online, and ICA shares the update with other government agencies.
- Finish updating your address with anyone you missed.
- Service the aircon if you don't know when it was last done — especially if the home stood empty for a while or has just been renovated. What servicing involves.
- Moved into a new BTO? Keep noting defects as they appear; some only show up after a few weeks of living in the flat. More on the defects period.
Common questions
How far in advance should I book movers in Singapore?
Four to six weeks is a sensible minimum. Book earlier if you are moving at the end of a month, on a weekend, or during the June or year-end school holidays, when the most popular slots go first.
Do I need to tell the government I have moved?
Yes. Report your change of address to ICA within 28 days of moving. It is done online, and ICA shares the update with other government agencies.
Should I clean the new place before or after the furniture arrives?
Before, if you possibly can. An empty home can be cleaned properly — inside cabinets, behind where the fridge and wardrobes will stand — in a fraction of the time it takes once everything is in.
What should I keep with me instead of letting the movers pack it?
Anything valuable, irreplaceable or needed on the first night: passports and documents, jewellery, cash, medication, laptops and chargers, keys, and a bag with toiletries and a change of clothes.