Moving to Montana After Retirement

May 27, 2022

Moving After Retirement: How to Settle in Quickly and Easily

Moving to a new home may be part of your retirement planning process. Whether you're looking for a smaller home, a lower cost of living, or a new community, moving after retirement offers many benefits. Here are some tips for getting set up quickly after your post-retirement move.

Home Maintenance and Safety Precautions

As soon as you move from your current home into your new place, you'll want to make it feel like home. Walk through the house, and make a list of any necessary maintenance tasks, such as cleaning, changing light bulbs, replacing smoke detector batteries, and fixing loose cobblestones or floorboards.

Be extra careful to eliminate potential tripping hazards in the home, as falls pose a serious threat to older people. Ensure stairways have banisters on both sides and nonslip adhesive on each stair.

You may want to install additional safety features while you're at it. For example, handheld showerheads, grab bars, and shower seats in your washrooms further enhance the safety of your home.

Purchase the supplies you need if you plan to make the repairs yourself or hire a local contractor. You can find handyman service providers in Augusta, MT — or any other U.S. city — at HomeAdvisor.com.

Revitalize Your Kitchen for Added Safety and Cleanliness

Your kitchen offers another opportunity to introduce added safety measures. If you don't already have one, add an under-cabinet range hood to vent grease, smoke, and odors from your kitchen. This keeps the air cleaner in your home, making it easier to breathe and reducing the risk of inhaling toxic pollutants.

Make sure your kitchen gear includes a stool or stepladder for reaching higher shelves and a fire extinguisher.

Update Your Service Providers

Before your moving day, contact your service providers to give them your new address. You'll want to update your:

Utility companies
Internet/cable provider
Phone company
Bank
Insurance providers
Healthcare professionals

If you have a will, you may need to update your files to indicate a change in the location of your legal documents.

Put Your Personal Touch on Your Home

Make your new place feel like your home quickly, with a few inexpensive decorating tricks. Update old wooden furniture with a coat of stain or chalk paint. Add photos of your family members to surfaces and walls. Adding plants livens up any space, and many neighbors are willing to share plant cuttings for free. Look on Facebook Marketplace for free or cheap furniture and decor to create your indoor and outdoor living spaces.

Buy Yourself Peace of Mind With Home Insurance

If you own your home, you'll need homeowner's insurance to cover your home's structure, theft of belongings, or injuries that occur at your house. You may also want to invest in a home warranty — an annual, renewable contract — to cover appliances or home systems, such as plumbing, electrical, and HVAC, that could break down. Here’s how to choose the best home warranty company.