Only three days until I get on that plane, cross the Ocean and settle on my land in Guatemala!!!
As I am preparing the final details, I am trying not to forget anything before I go.
I am not talking about the material, people abroad eat, drink and dress just like you, so anything you forget, you can buy.
I am trying to prepare everything administratively, financially, etc. so I don’t have to call my mum for an emergency after a week. She is very kind and takes care of my mail while I am away, she scans the letters over to me, and I don’t want her to have much more to do.
Check-list for the ”old” country
Tell your landlord that you are moving
Sounds pretty obvious, but make sure you are early enough as some agreements require a couple of months’ notice. If not, try to negotiate with your landlord, if you find a replacement early enough, not to be penalized.
Close your accounts
Electricity, gas, internet, cable, phone providers, call them all to know the procedure. Again, it can take weeks, and you can be charged an early exit fee.
Keep your bank account
A bank account is hard to reopen should you come back, because you won’t have a proof of address or an employment contract anymore. So keep your account open, close any paying services, and ask about the fees you will be charged should you want to send money abroad, or use your credit/debit card in your new country.
Visit your doctor
You should still have a health coverage in your ”old” country, so go make sure everything is fine before you go, renew your prescriptions, and buy them all. Get the recommended shots for the new country. You will have a few months to start up a new policy, find a doctor and so on.
Moving your stuff
I have lived in five countries and usually get there with a bag of clothes and essentials, then buy furniture and sell when I move. If you want to bring your stuff with you, know that it will probably take weeks and be expensive. However it never hurts to check long distance moving companies for pricing because you might want the comforts of home while living abroad.
Consider getting rid of your basic furniture, and getting some over there. You can also leave the nicer pieces in storage if you are coming back.
Time to clear customs, and you may live in an empty house for a while, so anything essential, carry with you.
Renew your passport and get an international driving license
If your passport expires soon, get a new one, specially if you are not going to live in a city with a US consulate. Also consider getting an international driving license to rent and drive a car abroad.
Check-list for the ”new” country
Learn how much as you can
Browse forums and start learning about security, habits, rules… If the new country is known for tourist scams, be extra careful. The embassy usually has a good list of things to do and avoid. Learn the basics of the language if you can. Check how much the currency is worth to avoid confusion. Have in mind the price of a taxi from the airport and a few basic things in order to be charged a fair price.
Call immigration
BEFORE you go, depending on the purpose and length of your stay, you may need a certain type of visa. For example if I (French) go to the US as a tourist, I get 90 days to stay. Should I decide to start working, I have to go back to France, apply for a working visa, then come back. Make sure you take the best visa to avoid a trip home and back.
Get temporary accommodation
I committed the mistake when I moved to the UK to get a 6 months rental. After two weeks I didn’t get along with my roommates, the location was unpleasant and I wanted to move out, but was stuck. Find a place for a month, again via Airbnb or Craigslist, and start exploring all the neighborhoods. Where will you work? How far is the bus/train stop? How convenient is it to live there? This first month’s rental should be more expensive but you will know the market better and find a nicer place with more times on your hands.
What to do with your house?
It all comes down to whether you are coming back or not. If you are taking a sabbatical, or traveling the world for a year, do you want to keep your house?
As a homeowner, you can rent your house while you are away, long term or short term. Both have pros and cons. Long term, the tenants may not want to move out when you come back, and short term, you would need someone to cover the cleanup and the check-in and out of the renters. Make sure you are properly insured.
As a tenant, you should check your agreement and if it allows sublets (rare), you can list it on Airbnb or Craigslist. If not, talk to your landlord, he might agree to a temporary sublet.
In any case, you will probably want to rent a storage unit to keep your valuable items out of reach. Those are expensive and maybe a trip to your parents’ or friends’ before you go to drop your things off will be cheaper. I keep everything at my mum’s, because I never know how long I will be away for.
Set up your services
Get a pay as you go cellphone while you browse for a proper phone plan. Ask your employer to provide a reference to get utilities set up, and a bank account. Talking to other expats can help a great deal, they went through it too.
Bring your money
You will probably want to bring over a bit of savings to get setup at first. Usually when I open a foreign bank account I use currency exchange services to wire money, like Currency Online, as their commission is lower than normal banks (about 1% of the amount against 2%). it is also safer than carrying a lot of cash with you on your first day.
Make sure you have a nice emergency fund as there are many fees to cover when you first arrive somewhere. You need to fill up your fridge and cupboards, buy cleaning products, maybe bed sheets and towels, tuition for the kids, connecting fees for internet and your phone, buy a car, pay the first month and a month’s deposit on a rental, and so on. And if you are moving, like me, to a cheap country like Guatemala, you will be overcharged because you are foreign, until you learn the real price of things. Expect the first couple of months to be super expensive.
Do you have other things to add to a checklist before moving to a new house?
This post was featured on the Lifestyle Carnival 26th Edition, thank you!
Great tips! I especially like your point of just getting a temporary place to stay at your destination before committing to something long term. I can see how that could help avoid unpleasant situations plus allow you to get to know the area a little bit, which could help you determine where you want to live longer term. Have a great flight this week and great work on the Alexa score by the way!
Thank you and right back at you 🙂 Alexa is more loving than Google.. Is your Yakezie Challenge going to be shortened in this case?
I agree with John. Finding a short term place you you are going to be living with roommates is a good idea. If you are going blind into it you don;t want to have a situation like you had where you are stuck for months.
Absolutely. I signed a 6 months lease with a weird roommate in the UK at the beginning and really regretted it because I was stuck. Now I pay a bit more for a short term lease and have options.
I think the emergency fund would be a must. That certainly sounds daunting, but you must be a pro by now! Have a great move.
I am pretty used to moving but always marveled at the unexpected things life has in stock. Apparently someone stole the electric wiring from inside the house so no electricity for a bit :s Definitely need an emergency fund…
Are you planning on staying there? If so, do you anticipate to find a job, and just how difficult / easy might that be? Did you have to get extra vaccination shots this time?
My plan is to convert my little piece of land by the lake into a guest house by building either a big house with many rooms or a few bungalows. And to part the bigger piece of land 1 mile away into smaller plots, try to sell them and pay the building with those. So I am creating my own job! I worked in Guatemala before, in a luxury hotel and a law firm, and both jobs were pretty easy to get since I had qualifications many people lack over there (speak several languages, know other international business models…). No shots, just some mosquito repellent!
Good tips! I am jealous. I hope you have an awesome time and continue to update on what’s going on!
Thank you Holly, will do! When I get connected to the electric network… don’t even want to guess how long that may take!!
Crazy! Hope everything goes well with your move!
I agree with living somewhere temporarily while getting to know the city. When my family moved to the West Coast when I was younger, we relied on my uncle to set up permanent accomodation for us. As a result, we were stuck in a dingy basement suite for a year in a poor part of the city.
That must have been terrible! I have horror stories too, but mainly related to awful roommates. Choosing a nicer part of town can influence who you meet, how long you stay in that city, and in broader terms your whole experience of a new place.
Excellent list! How long will you be allowed to stay in Guatemala?
Many years ago I moved to the UK for a year to work. I had 3 days to do all of the stuff you listed above, plus pack my stuff.
3 days? That is insane! Can’t imagine in what state you got there after 3 super stressful days. I have done a lot of things already and have 3 days to finish, actually just two now… better get going!
All great/valid tips! I moved to live in Paris for a year and then back to San Francisco again, so all of these points are totally ringing a bell for me. The visa was the main hurdle for before I moved. Once I got there, finding an apartment, setting up a French bank account and cell phone plan, getting health insurance through my school, were all major adventures that I hadn’t completely thought through until I was there.
Good luck in Guatemala! I’m sure you will have an amazing time.
Thanks Kira! I have seen small leaflets for foreign students to find their way around Paris and its administrative hassles. Unfortunately you never cover everything by reading them, the best thing is probably to talk to a senior student who has gone through it all. Hope you still enjoyed Paris!
Good luck with the move! Moving in country is hard enough! It will be an amazing experience though! The other thing I would add is to contact your credit card companies and let them know of the move so they don’t see activity from random countries (stop-overs especially when travelling) and think it’s fraudulent activity!
Good one! I had totally forgotten about that one, they have blocked my card once, what a shame when you can’t pay!
I actually already moved there in 2010 and back to the States in 2011, so I figured it all out and had an amazing time in Paris 🙂 There were of course many administrative hurdles to jump over and the language barrier was a little rough, but I managed just fine.
I’m kind of stressed out just reading that! I thought it was hard to move to a new state, let alone a new country! You’re amazingly adventurous!
Haha! I have done it a few times so don’t really mind, plus I have a house ready, and housing has always been my main source of worry, so pretty relaxed right now. I know the country, the language, have friends there… The 48 hours travel is going to be tedious though!
This is so exciting! It seems like only yesterday you were considering a move and now you are so close.
Obviously one of the first things on the list to do when you arrive, is to organize internet access so you can continue posing on your blog 🙂
it went really, really fast… compared to the 6 months it took me to sell my flat, I am amazed at how quick it was to buy.
Internet is on my list, but need to get electricity first!
Good luck with the move! Moving house is stressful enough – I can’t imagine juggling all the logistics of shifting to an entirely new country.
thank you! so far so good, but so many things to take care of, I need to get more organized! making lists as we speak!
Good tips! I am jealous. I hope you have an awesome time and continue to update on what’s going on!
Each of these actions is important before making a long trip. We should be guided by this instruction to preserve our property and ourselves in safety.