Apartment moving checklist for leaving and arriving
Published 2026-10-16 · Updated 2026-10-16
An apartment move has two ends. At the old place, give the notice the lease names, walk through with the landlord or a manager, and write how the deposit is handled. At the new place, write the condition you found and the utility start dates before boxes hide the walls. Keep both ends on one list.
The U.S. Postal Service says to allow at least 7-10 business days after an approved change-of-address request before it takes effect. File it before you need mail at the new apartment.
Leaving one apartment and entering another
Old apartment, before moving day:
- Read the lease and copy the notice it names, the date you gave notice, and how you sent it. This article leaves the number of days to that lease.
- Ask for a walk-through on or near moving day. Write the date, who came, and what each of you noted about walls, floors, appliances, and keys.
- Copy the deposit terms the lease states: the amount, what the paper says about condition, and how you will hear about the return. If a line is blank, ask in writing and keep the reply.
- Schedule utility stops. Write each stop date and whether the provider confirmed it.
- On the last walk, open closets, cabinets, and the refrigerator. Return keys the way the lease describes, and write that date.
New apartment, before you unpack:
- Walk each room and write the condition you found, including marks, appliances, windows, and the keys you received.
- Write each utility start date and whether service was confirmed.
- File the postal change if it is still open, and tell the IRS the new address.
- Keep the move-in notes with the new lease.
Room-by-room cleaning for the old place is a separate list. See the move-out cleaning checklist. The wider timeline, including mover quotes, is the checklist for moving. A first move out of a family home is the moving out checklist.
Notice, walk-through, and deposit
These three are the renter move-out tasks. They are not a statewide script.
Record the notice period from your lease terms, and check local requirements or a local tenant resource. Write that period in your own words, then write the date you sent notice, and keep a copy.
A walk-through is a meeting. Ask the landlord or manager for a time. If they decline, write that you asked, the date, and what you saw on your own walk. Photographs record what you saw. Record your lease terms for the condition, and check local requirements or a local tenant resource.
Record the deposit lines in your lease terms, and check local requirements or a local tenant resource. If you need a place to take a consumer complaint, USAGov's state consumer protection page is the directory for that office. Record your lease terms for the deposit calendar, and check local requirements or a local tenant resource.
Two campus pages show how a housing office writes checkout. They are those schools' rules. Carnegie Mellon Housing tells residents to leave rooms completely clean and free of belongings and trash, to empty drawers and wipe them with a damp towel, to empty the refrigerator and wipe counters and ovens where there is a kitchen, and to complete a self checkout form. Berkeley Housing says the room should look as it did when you moved in. Its list includes cleaning the microwave and refrigerator, removing wall and window decorations, emptying drawers, removing trash, returning furniture to its original arrangement, turning off the heater and lights, and returning keys. Use them as examples of what to write down. Record your lease terms and check local requirements or a local tenant resource before treating a campus list as yours.
The first result, an Extra Space guide, was blocked in the browser and was not read. Colonial Van Lines, the second result, tells readers to review the lease for move-out requirements and the deposit, and to ask for an in-person walkthrough. The third result is an Australian move-in guide. The Fox Removals page has no deposit step.
Mail and the new address
Once a permanent change is active, USPS says standard mail forwarding lasts 12 months, and First-Class Mail is forwarded for free. Forwarding does not update the landlord, the utility, or the IRS.
When you file online, that USPS page says to pay the $1.25 identity verification fee. USAGov points to USPS.com/move and says a separate company is unnecessary for the postal change.
Tell the IRS directly. IRS Topic 157 says you need to notify the IRS so you receive refunds and correspondence, and it names Form 8822 when the change is for an individual. Keep a copy with the lease.
A record for both ends of the move
On an apartment move, the Moving Checklist & Planner is one fillable PDF, US Letter. The Moving Checklist & Planner lets you plan a household move in one file: work through a timeline, compare mover quotes, log when utilities stop and start, and track who still has your old address after an apartment move. The Moving Checklist & Planner includes a utilities and services log with four records, each with separate old-address stop and new-address start dates and confirmed boxes for an apartment move. Get the Moving Checklist & Planner for $3.00 for the apartment move records. On an apartment move, the Moving Checklist & Planner has typing tested only with pdf.js (Firefox's PDF engine); other apps not tested. Not legal advice. Not a will.
The printed prompts are not your lease. The Moving Checklist & Planner prints no deadlines, lead times or official requirements. You choose your own dates and check each mover and provider directly for the apartment.
Record lease terms and check locally
A general checklist can name the jobs: notice, walk-through, deposit notes, utility dates, and a move-in record. It cannot fill the number of days, the deposit amount, or the condition standard. Record your lease terms for those lines, and check local requirements or a local tenant resource. Write them down, then use the planner if you want the utility log and the address tracker in one file.
Questions
What to do when moving apartment?
Give the notice your lease names, book a walk-through, write what you and the landlord saw, and record how the deposit is handled. At the new apartment, write the condition and the utility start dates before you unpack.
What to check in an apartment before moving in?
Walk each room and write what you see: walls, floors, appliances, windows, and keys. Note the utility start dates the providers gave you, and keep those notes with the new lease.
What are some things I should do after moving into a new apartment?
Confirm the utilities you scheduled are on, file the postal change if it is still open, tell the IRS the new address, and file the move-in notes with the lease.
What do you need to do before moving into a new apartment?
Read the new lease, schedule utility starts, and finish the old apartment's notice, walk-through, and deposit notes so both ends are written down before moving day.
How do I pack my apartment for moving?
Pack room by room after the notice date is written and the walk-through is booked. Label boxes with the destination room. Carry the lease, keys, and deposit notes yourself.
What do I need to do before moving out of an apartment?
Read the lease for notice and deposit terms, send the notice the lease names, ask for a walk-through, and write the date and what was noted.
What do I need to do before moving out of my apartment?
Write the notice date, the walk-through notes, the deposit terms, the utility stop dates, and a last look at closets and cabinets before you return the keys.
