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A print-and-use NYC moving day checklist: the exact questions to ask your building’s management office about the certificate of insurance, elevator, permitted days and hours, truck parking, fees, and access, before moving day.
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The NYC Building-Rules Checklist: What to Ask Before Moving Day

Most move-day surprises are things your building would have told you, if you had known to ask. A move-in checklist is the set of questions to ask your building's management office before moving day, so its rules and fees do not catch you off guard. This is that list, organized the way a careful crew works a building, so you can run it past your management office a week or two out and hand the answers to your movers early.

It is a short list on purpose. Where you want the full story behind an answer, read your NYC move-in day playbook, the guide that walks the whole building side in one place and links to a deep dive on every topic below. Here, you just need the questions.

What to ask your building before moving day

Before moving day, call your building's management office and ask about six things: whether your movers need a certificate of insurance (COI), how to reserve the elevator, which days and hours moves are allowed, where the truck can park, whether there is a move-in fee or deposit, and which entrance and contact to use.

Key takeaways

  • Six questions cover it. The certificate of insurance, the elevator reservation, permitted days and hours, truck parking, any fee or deposit, and which entrance and contact to use.
  • Start with the certificate. Many NYC co-ops, condos and managed rentals require one from your movers before anyone carries a box inside.
  • Expect a co-op to be strictest. Co-ops usually hold the tightest rules on move logistics, so ask earlier there.
  • Ask in one call, not five. The management office can answer all six at once, which is why the list is worth having in front of you.
  • A certificate plus workers' comp is normal. No doorman building allows a move without both, and a good mover treats that as routine.
  • Your mover should ask first. Boxify raises the certificate question at quote time rather than waiting for the building to raise it.
  • Bring us the answers. Tell us what your building said when you take the free, upfront quote, and the crew plans around it.

The checklist: what to ask your building before moving day

Call your building's management office, usually the managing agent, super, or front desk, and work through the six groups below. Every line is a question to ask, not a rule to assume, because co-op, condo, and doorman buildings each set their own. Print it, save it, and get the answers in writing where you can.

1. Certificate of insurance (COI)

  • Does the building require a certificate of insurance (COI) from my movers?
  • Who needs to be named on it, for example the building or the managing agent as "additional insured"?
  • Does it need to show my movers' workers' compensation coverage?
  • How far ahead do you need it, and do you send back a written approval before move day?

Want the full picture on the COI? See what a certificate of insurance looks like.

2. Elevator and access

  • Is there a service (freight) elevator for moves, or do moves use the passenger elevator?
  • Do I need to reserve the elevator, and how far ahead?
  • How long is the reserved window, and which day and time can I book?
  • Are there padding or floor-protection rules I need to follow?

3. Move-in days and hours

  • Which days are moves allowed, and what are the permitted hours?
  • Are weekends or holidays blacked out, or allowed only by special arrangement?
  • Is there a time limit on the move itself?

4. Truck, parking, and loading

  • Where can the moving truck stand or load?
  • Is there a loading dock or a designated entrance the truck should use?
  • Are there any truck-size limits I should give my movers?

5. Move-in fees and deposits

  • Is there a move-in fee, a refundable deposit, or both?
  • How much is it, and how and when is it paid?
  • If there is a deposit, how and when is it returned?
  • Who is the payment made out to?

6. Building access and logistics

  • Which entrance should the crew use on move day?
  • Is floor, wall, or elevator protection required, and who arranges it?
  • Who is the point of contact on the day: the super, the doorman, or the managing agent?
  • Does the crew need to sign in or show ID to get in?

How to use this list (and when to ask)

Run this list past your management office about a week or two before moving day, and get the answers in writing where you can, especially the permitted day and hours and anything about the COI. Then hand the COI details and the access plan to your movers early, so nothing gets sprung the morning of the move.

This is the exact list a careful in-house crew runs past a building before every move.

At Boxify, asking whether your building requires a COI is part of the quote from the very start, and a COI and workers' comp are a routine, expected part of a NYC move: no doorman building allows a move without both, and they are day-to-day work that does not slow a move down.

That is the whole point of the list: the building side is knowable, and it is easier when someone treats it as part of the job rather than an afterthought. If you would rather not run it yourself, a crew can handle the building side for you.

Print this checklist and take it to your building

The whole list is right here on this page. Print it, or save it as a PDF from your browser, and bring it to your management office or keep it open on your phone when you call. Check off each answer as you get it, and you will have the building side of your move settled before the truck is anywhere near your door.

Frequently asked questions

What should be on a moving day checklist?

For a NYC building move, your checklist is the six groups of questions to ask your building: the certificate of insurance (COI), the elevator reservation, the permitted move-in days and hours, truck parking and loading, any move-in fee or deposit, and building access on the day. Work through them with your management office and you will have covered the building side.

When should I ask my building about the move?

About a week or two before moving day, and earlier if you are moving into a co-op, which is usually the strictest on move logistics. Ask the permitted day and hours and the COI details first, since those take the longest to sort out, and get the answers in writing where you can.

Who do I ask: the super, the doorman, or the managing agent?

Usually the managing agent or the management office for the rules, the COI, and any fees, and the super or doorman for day-of logistics like the loading entrance and elevator. If you are not sure who handles what, ask your management office to point you to the right person.

Do I need a certificate of insurance for my movers?

Ask your building. Many NYC co-op, condo, and doorman buildings require one before movers can carry anything inside, but it is your building's rule to state, not something to assume. For what a COI is and what it has to show, see what a certificate of insurance looks like.

What should I ask my building about move-in fees and deposits?

Ask what it charges, whether any part is a refundable deposit, and how and when a deposit is returned, since the amounts and terms vary from building to building. Your management office is the one to confirm what applies to your unit, so get it in writing before moving day. For which part is a non-refundable fee and which is a refundable deposit, see NYC move-in fees and deposits.

A short list of questions, asked ahead

The building side of a NYC move is not a mystery, it is a short list of questions asked at the right time. Run these six groups past your management office a week or two out, get the answers in writing where you can, and hand the COI and access details to your movers early. Do that, and moving day becomes ordinary.

Work your building's checklist with us

You can work this list yourself, and it will serve you well. If you would rather not, a crew that runs this exact list on every move can handle the building side for you. Boxify is a residential mover with its own in-house crew, and getting started is a free, upfront quote.

Get a free, upfront Boxify moving quote

A Boxify crew wheeling wrapped furniture into a New York City apartment building lobby on move-in day
A Boxify crew lead handing a certificate of insurance to building staff at a New York City lobby desk
A Boxify crew carrying wrapped furniture up a narrow pre-war walk-up staircase in New York City
A Boxify crew lead coordinating building access with a doorman at a New York City entrance
A Boxify crew wheeling wrapped furniture into a padded freight elevator in a New York City building
A Boxify moving truck parked at a New York City curb with crew loading wrapped items
A Boxify representative and a customer reviewing moving coverage options during a New York City move
A resident reviewing a move-in fee form with building management staff at a New York City building desk
A hand holding a building-rules checklist on a clipboard in a New York City apartment lobby
Sources

This is a questions-only checklist, so it states no deposit cap, no COI legal requirement, and no fee amount. Those are your building's to answer, and the reliable source is always your own building's house rules and management office. The general building-norm framing here, that many NYC co-op, condo, and doorman buildings require a mover's COI before letting movers in, that co-ops are usually the strictest on move logistics, and that a COI plus workers' comp are a routine, expected part of a NYC move, is public, well-sourced context, not a rule about your specific building.

The Boxify service details mentioned, an in-house crew, a free upfront quote, and asking up front whether your building requires a COI, are Boxify's own current practice, described as it works today.

Who wrote and reviewed this

Rita Penn, Author. Rita Penn is a copywriter with over eight years of experience writing for home service businesses and service providers. She specializes in the moving and storage industry and has created content for several moving companies, along with businesses across other service-based industries.

Eddie Torr, Editor. Eddie Torr is an AI content editor: the independent quality-and-compliance gate every draft passes before it advances. He checks each claim against its approved source, tests the piece against the editorial standards, ranks it, and returns a verdict. He never rewrites the piece himself and never approves delivery; a human reviewer does that.

Maya Ellison, Reviewer. Maya Ellison is an editorial lead with more than 11 years across copywriting, editing, content strategy, and editorial operations. She holds a bachelor's in Communications (Professional Writing and Digital Media) and a master's in Information and Knowledge Management. Those are the two sides of her work: creating clear content, and building the systems that produce it consistently. She gives every piece a final human review before it ships, confirming each claim is fairly represented, tied to a checked source, and dated.

Reviewed on this post: Maya confirmed that every checklist item stays a question and asserts no deposit cap, COI legal requirement, or fee amount, and that fees, deposits, and any legal figures are left for the reader's building to answer. She also checked that the "we run this list on every move" note reads as why to trust the list, not as a claim about the reader's own building, and that the two attributed building-norm facts stay general context, not a rule about the reader's building.