Things To Consider When Moving From Renting To Buying

Many people will spend years renting a house or flat while saving up a deposit to buy their own home. Once you have saved enough money, it can be a very exciting time looking through all the available properties on the market that could be your ...

Many people will spend years renting a house or flat while saving up a deposit to buy their own home. Once you have saved enough money, it can be a very exciting time looking through all the available properties on the market that could be your new home.

However, while you can hardly wait to get moved into your new home, there are a few essential pieces of housekeeping to take care of to make sure that your move goes smoothly and you have informed everyone that you should about your change of address.

Let's look at what you need to do when it is time to move from renting to owning your own home.

Give your landlord ample notice

Once your offer has been accepted, and the house buying process is officially in motion, it is your main priority to tell your landlord that you will be moving out. If you don't give your landlord enough notice about ending your tenancy agreement, then you may be liable for paying rent even after you have moved out.

Check your tenancy agreement because your notice period should be stated there. Make sure that after you call your landlord to give notice, you also confirm in writing. Your letter to your landlord should state the date that you want your tenancy to end.

Your landlord can then arrange to check the property and return your security deposit.

Inform your utility providers

You will be able to move home and transfer your utility providers over to your new home. You can usually find a 'moving home' section on their website that will allow you to notify them of your moving date, new address and to submit your final meter readings on the day of your move.

Remember to contact all of your contracted utility companies, including your TV, phone, and broadband suppliers. Most people will remember to notify their gas, electricity, and water companies, but often forget about TV licensing and their mobile phone company.

You must also inform your local council of your move to switch your council tax account to your new address if you stay in the same region. You don't want to risk missing any of your council tax or utility payments because it can negatively affect your credit score.

Redirect your mail

While most people are going paperless these days, you may still be on mailing lists that send you paper copies through the post. It can help capture all these stray subscriptions and forgotten mailing list sign-ups by using the Royal Mail redirection service.

There are so many people and places that you may forget to inform about your change of address, including your dentist or opticians, doctors surgery, DVLA, insurance companies, vets, old friends on your Christmas card list, etc. This mail redirection service will help you to update everyone you forgot with your new address once the dust has settled from your move.

Clean up your property and get your deposit back

When you move out of your rented home, you will want to get your security deposit back from your landlord. Make sure that you leave your property clean and tidy so that your landlord cannot find any reason to hold back some or all of your security deposit.

It can help you to bring in a professional cleaning company if you don't have the time to spend cleaning the house yourself. Check your tenancy agreement because your landlord may request you have the property professionally cleaned on your exit. You can provide a receipt from the cleaning company as proof.

If you are currently looking to buy a home, our team will be happy to assist.

You can view our current listing here.