Moving into a house, you book a removalist and turn up. Moving into a Sydney apartment, there is a short list of approvals sitting between you and the front door, and discovering them on the morning is the expensive way to find out.
None of it is complicated. It just has to happen in the right order, and the right order starts earlier than most people expect.
Start with the by-laws, not the removalist
This is the step that determines everything else, including which days you can actually move.
In New South Wales, every strata scheme has registered by-laws that regulate the use and management of common property. Those by-laws are binding on owners, tenants and their visitors, and your removalist counts as a visitor.
There is a model by-law that deals with this specifically. Schedule 2 of the Strata Schemes Management Regulation 2016 includes a by-law on moving furniture and other objects through common property, which requires sufficient notice to the owners corporation or strata committee before you do it.
In practice, buildings turn that into a form, a booking and sometimes a refundable deposit. What varies enormously is the detail, so ask the building manager or strata manager these questions early.
- How much notice is required, and is there a form.
- Are moves restricted to weekdays or to particular hours.
- Is the service lift booked exclusively, and for how long.
- Is there a bond or deposit, and what returns it.
- Does the building require protective padding to be installed, and who installs it.
- Is there a loading dock, and does it have a height limit.
Where the truck is going to stand
The second question, and the one that quietly causes the most stress in inner Sydney.
If the building has a loading dock, measure the clearance. Removal trucks are taller than vans and a dock with a low height limit means your furniture is being carried a long way, which costs time.
No loading dock
If there is no dock, the truck has to stand on the street. The City of Sydney operates a works zone approval process for reserving kerb space, though it is designed for construction activity rather than ordinary residential removals. For a normal apartment move, the practical path is to ask your building manager what other residents do, and to check the parking restrictions on the specific street with the relevant council before the day.
Councils differ across Sydney, so confirm with the council that actually covers your address rather than assuming City of Sydney rules apply.
The insurance question nobody asks until afterwards
This is worth a few minutes because the assumptions people make here are usually wrong.
First, the legal position. NSW Government guidance on choosing a removalist notes that removalists are not legally required to hold insurance. Many do, and accredited members of the industry association are required to carry public liability cover, but it is not a given.
Two different kinds of cover
Second, the distinction. Public liability insurance covers the removalist’s liability, for example if they damage the building’s lift. It is not the same as cover for your belongings. Industry guidance on moving insurance sets out the different types of cover available for goods in transit, and a standard home contents policy may not cover your things while they are on a truck.
Most strata buildings will ask for a certificate of currency for public liability before they approve the booking, so request that from your removalist at the same time you book.
“The bookings and paperwork are rarely difficult, but they do have lead times. Confirming the building’s requirements a few weeks out is what turns moving day into a logistics exercise rather than a problem to solve on the spot.”
A realistic timeline
Working backwards from moving day.
| When | What to do | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Four to six weeks out | Request the by-laws and moving procedure from both buildings | Permitted days decide your whole schedule |
| Three to four weeks out | Book the removalist for a day the buildings allow | Good operators book out, particularly at month end |
| Two to three weeks out | Lodge lift and dock bookings at both ends, pay any bond | Only one booking per slot in most buildings |
| Two weeks out | Send the certificate of currency to both building managers | Approval can be withheld without it |
| One week out | Confirm parking, and check signage at both addresses | Restrictions change and signs get updated |
| Moving day | Complete your condition report with photos and video | It is your evidence at the end of the tenancy |
If you are renting, do the condition report properly
It takes twenty minutes and it is the single best protection for your bond.
Experienced renters go further and film a walkthrough before anything is carried in, capturing existing marks, stains and damage with the date visible. The common refrain from people who have been through a bond dispute is that the video is what settled it, and the second piece of advice is to back it up somewhere you will still have access to it in three years.
In short
- Every NSW strata scheme has registered by-laws that bind residents and their removalists.
- The model by-law on moving objects through common property requires sufficient notice to the owners corporation.
- Buildings turn that into a form, a booking and often a refundable bond.
- Confirm permitted days before you book the truck, as some buildings exclude weekends.
- Ask whether the service lift is booked exclusively and for how long.
- Check loading dock height limits, since removal trucks are taller than vans.
- The City of Sydney works zone process exists but is designed for construction, not removals.
- Check kerbside restrictions with the council that actually covers your address.
- Removalists are not legally required to hold insurance in NSW.
- Public liability covers the removalist’s liability, not your belongings.
- Home contents cover may not extend to goods in transit.
- Most buildings want a certificate of currency before approving the booking.
- Start the paperwork four to six weeks out.
- Complete the condition report and film a dated walkthrough before anything is moved in.
One call to each building manager answers most of this in ten minutes. Make that call before you lock in a date and the rest of the move falls into place.
Our Sydney removalists page explains how we handle apartment access, our guide to local moves covers what to expect on the day, and if the insurance question is on your mind, removals insurance sets out the options. It is also worth looking at the questions to ask a removalist before you book.
