Office Move Timeline: 6 to 12 Month Plan by Phase With Checklist

How long does an office move take by type of space?

The type of space changes the length of your office relocation timeline more than anything else. Hubble's guide to moving office timelines gives these ranges.

For a full move, Oktra's office move checklist says most successful moves begin at least 9 to 12 months in advance. That matches the 12-month plan above, which leaves room for the search, the notice period and any delay in fit-out.

Team size matters too. A small team can often pack in a day. A large team needs a seating plan, a move order by department and often a weekend move.

• Leased office: the lease agreement takes 2 to 8 weeks to complete, then fit-out and furnishing take between one and two months.
• Managed office: fit-out and furnishing usually take between one and two months.
• Serviced office: you can move in right after signing, and companies can usually sign up to 3 months ahead of the start date.
• Coworking: day passes can be booked the day before.

The 6-month version for a managed or serviced office

If the provider handles the fit-out, you can drop the long lease and build phases. Your plan becomes mostly IT, communication and the move itself.

The old office does not get shorter. Even if the new space is ready in weeks, your notice period and the reinstatement of the old space still set the end date.

• 6 months before: name the project lead, read the old lease for notice and reinstatement duties, agree requirements and budget.
• 5 to 4 months before: shortlist and visit spaces, check network options with IT, sign the agreement, serve notice.
• 4 to 3 months before: agree the layout with the provider, book the elevator in your old building, list what IT has to move.
• 2 to 1 months before: book movers, announce the move to staff, then clients and suppliers.
• Last 4 weeks to week 1 after: the same final preparation, move day and fix week as the full plan.

Who owns what: roles for each phase

Give every phase one owner, even when several people do the work. One named person makes decisions move.

Put these names on the roadmap itself. When leadership sees an owner and a milestone next to each phase, the plan becomes something they can approve.

• Project lead: owns the plan, the issues list and the weekly status. Name this person at the very start.
• Leadership sponsor: approves requirements, budget and the decision points.
• Finance: owns the budget, the contingency line and the deposits and fees of both leases.
• Facilities or office manager: owns the space search, fit-out, furniture, movers and building access.
• IT: owns the network, hardware, phones, data backup and the test before move day.
• HR: owns staff communication, seating, accessibility needs and commute changes.
• Legal: owns lease review, notice dates and reinstatement duties.

The critical path: dependencies that move your date

Some tasks can slip without moving the date. Others push everything back. Those are your critical path, and they run in this order.

Add a buffer to each of these chains, not to the plan as a whole. Then set three decision points with leadership: after the lease (is the date still realistic?), after fit-out starts (is the budget holding?), and one week before the move (is the network tested? If not, the move waits).

• Lease signed before fit-out can start.
• Fit-out finished before IT can install cabling and equipment.
• Network live and tested before staff move in. IT is often the longest chain, because providers set their own install dates.
• Elevator and loading dock booked in both buildings. Gentle Giant's office move timeline puts elevator service in the old and new locations at 3 to 4 months before the move, and choosing movers at 1 to 2 months before.
• Old lease exit with notice served on time and reinstatement work planned.

Office move budget and hidden costs

Rent and movers are the costs everyone plans for. The ones that hurt are the others. Oktra's checklist names dilapidations on the current lease, temporary workspace or phased moves, technology upgrades, staff training and contingency as costs that are often underestimated. Dilapidations means returning the old office to the state your lease requires.

Build your budget in lines that match the roadmap phases, and ask finance to report spending against each line at every decision point. A budget that is only checked at the end cannot change the plan.

• Legal fees and deposits for the new lease.
• Fit-out, furniture and signage.
• Network install, new hardware and any overlap of two internet contracts.
• Movers, crates, storage and disposal of old furniture.
• Reinstatement of the old space.
• Temporary workspace if the dates do not line up.
• Staff time and training on new systems or building access.
• A contingency line for what nobody saw coming.

Communication plan: staff, clients and suppliers

People handle a move well when they hear about it early and often. Tell staff first, before clients or suppliers hear it from someone else. Then send updates at each milestone: lease signed, seating plan ready, packing instructions, move day brief, first day guide.

A short first announcement can look like this: "We are moving to our new office in the spring. Here is why, what changes for your commute and desk, and when you will hear more. Questions go to the move project lead." Keep each later update just as short.

For clients and suppliers, send one clear notice with the new address and the date it applies. Then update your website, email signatures, invoices, contracts, delivery accounts and online business listings in the same week.

Office move checklist for move day and the week after

Move day should be pure execution. Work through it in this order.

The project does not end when the van leaves. Plan a fix week. Keep one shared list for broken items, missing crates and IT problems, and review it every day. Then finish the handover of the old space, settle the last invoices and hold a short review of what went well and what to change next time.

• Before the movers arrive: IT shuts down and labels equipment, and the project lead checks access in both buildings.
• Loading: crates and furniture go out by department, following the labels and the seating plan.
• Unloading: IT equipment goes in first, then furniture, then crates to labelled desks.
• Setup: IT connects and tests every desk, phone and meeting room.
• Final walk: the project lead walks both spaces with the movers before sign-off.