Quick answer
Start 90 days out. Confirm lease dates, get both buildings' move rules and certificate of insurance requirements, and walk the new space with a floor plan. Inventory furniture and equipment, assign an IT lead, label everything by room and desk number, and schedule the move for an evening or weekend to limit downtime.
A useful office move checklist for a small business comes down to three things: lock in the dates with both landlords, get every building requirement in writing, and label the new floor plan before a single box is packed. The heavy lifting is the easy part. The downtime, the missing network cable and the landlord who wanted a COI with different wording are what cost a business money.
In Coral Springs, most small office moves involve suites around the Corporate Park of Coral Springs, medical and professional offices along University Dr and Sample Rd, and retail units in strip centers. The checklist below is built for a team of roughly five to fifty people.
90 to 60 days out: lease, budget and a move lead
- Pick one move lead. One person owns the schedule, the vendor calls and the floor plan. Committees slow everything down.
- Confirm both lease dates. Know when you get keys to the new space and when you must be out of the old one. A few days of overlap is worth asking for.
- Read the move-out clause. Many commercial leases require the space returned in a set condition: patched walls, removed cabling, cleared signage.
- Walk the new space with a tape measure and a floor plan. Note outlets, data ports, door widths and where the loading entrance is.
- Decide what not to move. Old desks, dead printers and ten-year-old files cost labor to carry. Sell, donate, recycle or shred them now.
Building requirements: COIs, loading areas and elevators
Commercial buildings tend to control moves more tightly than homes. Ask the property manager at both addresses for their move rules in writing. Typical requirements:
| Requirement | What to confirm |
|---|---|
| Certificate of insurance (COI) | Exact names to list as additional insured, required coverage types and where to send it |
| Move hours | Whether moves must happen after hours or on weekends, and any noise rules |
| Loading area | Dock or curb location, truck height or length limits, how long a truck may stand |
| Elevator | Reservation process, padding requirements and a backup slot |
| Floor and wall protection | Whether runners, door jamb guards or a building walkthrough are required |
Send the COI wording to the mover as soon as you have it. The mover issues the certificate, and a wrong name on it can stop a crew at the door. Our guide to certificates of insurance and building move rules in Broward explains COIs in more detail.
60 to 30 days out: inventory, floor plan and labels
- Number every room and every workstation on the new floor plan.
- Inventory desks, chairs, cabinets, conference tables, printers, copiers and anything bolted down.
- Give each employee a number that matches their new desk. Their boxes, chair and monitor all get that number.
- Use colored labels by room or department so the crew can sort the truck at a glance.
- Order crates or boxes. Many movers rent plastic crates, which stack better than cardboard for files.
- Call to line up an office mover, share the inventory and floor plan, and get a written estimate.
Cubicles, desks and leased equipment
- Cubicle systems come apart in panels. Ask whether the crew will take them down and rebuild them, and photograph each layout first.
- Large desks and conference tables may need their tops removed to clear doorways. Measure the new doors.
- Leased copiers and medical equipment often must be moved by the leasing company's own technicians. Check those contracts before you schedule.
- Safes and heavy file cabinets need to be listed on the inventory so the right crew size and equipment show up.
The office movers page covers what a crew handles on a commercial job, from cubicle panels to file cabinets. A floor safe, a solid-wood executive desk or a reception counter that has to come apart is a job for furniture movers who handle safes and oversized pieces, so list those items separately.
IT, phones and records
This is where small businesses lose the most time. The crew moves hardware. Someone on your side, or your IT provider, owns everything that plugs in.
- Schedule internet and phone service at the new address weeks ahead. Installation dates fill up.
- Back up servers and critical files before anything is unplugged.
- Photograph cable setups and label each cable at both ends.
- Bag and label keyboards, mice and power cords with the desk number.
- Have the IT lead disconnect and reconnect servers and network gear.
Medical and legal offices: keep records secure
Patient charts, client files and anything with personal data need a chain of custody. Lock file cabinets, keep keys with a staff member, and have someone from the practice present while records are loaded and unloaded. Check your own compliance rules before move day.
Telling staff, clients and agencies about the new address
Address changes are easy to start late and slow to finish. Build one master list in the 60-to-30-day window and work down it, so the first Monday does not open with misdirected mail and a map pin at the old suite.
| Who | What to send or update | When |
|---|---|---|
| Employees | Move date, new address, parking and access cards, the deadline for packing each desk | When the lease is signed, then a weekly reminder |
| Clients and patients | New address, move date and how to reach you if phones are down on move day | About a month out, again in move week |
| Vendors and deliveries | New shipping address and a stop date for the old suite | Two to four weeks out |
| IRS, if you have an EIN | Form 8822-B, the business change of address form | Once the new address is final |
| Florida Division of Corporations | Principal and mailing address on Sunbiz | Right after the move |
| City of Coral Springs Business Tax Office | A business transfer application for a move inside the city, or closing the account if you leave | As soon as the new location is set |
Signs and walk-in traffic
Ask the new landlord about suite signs and directory listings early, since sign approval can take weeks. If the old lease allows it, leave a notice on the old door with the new address for a while.
Move week and move day
- Each employee packs their own desk by a set day and labels every box with the desk number.
- Empty kitchen refrigerators and the break room the day before.
- Post the floor plan at the new entrance and on each room door.
- Have the move lead on site at both ends, with keys, access cards and the property managers' numbers.
Plan the move for a Friday evening or Saturday so Monday is a working day. Ask about evening and weekend availability on the first call, because those slots book up quickly.
The first week in the new space
- Walk every workstation Monday morning and log missing items or damage the same day.
- Update your address with clients, vendors, your bank, your Google Business Profile and the state's business registration records.
- Return keys and access cards for the old space and schedule the landlord's walkthrough.
What coordinators learn from small office moves
The schedule is usually set by the building, not the mover. A loading dock that is only open after 6 pm, or a single freight elevator shared with three other tenants, decides how many hours the job takes. Get those answers before you pick a date.
Expect this most in the larger buildings down the Sawgrass Expressway. Businesses moving into offices near Sawgrass International Corporate Park often find the loading dock and elevator slot set the whole day; our page on office and condo moves in Sunrise, FL covers that area. In Coral Springs the one-story and low-rise suites are simpler, but the long carry from the curb to a back suite still adds time. Measure it.
Quick answers
How far ahead should a small business plan an office move?
About 60 to 90 days for a typical small office. That leaves time to confirm lease dates, collect building rules and certificate of insurance requirements, schedule internet installation and inventory furniture and equipment. Book the mover at least several weeks ahead, and earlier if you need an evening or weekend slot, since those fill first.
Can an office move be done outside business hours?
Usually, yes. Many small offices move on a Friday evening or over a weekend so employees lose little or no work time. Some commercial buildings require after-hours moves anyway. Ask about evening and weekend availability when you call, and check whether after-hours work changes the rate on the mover's written estimate.
Will the movers disconnect and reconnect our computers?
Movers typically pack, move and place hardware such as monitors, desktop towers and printers. Disconnecting and reconnecting servers, networks and phone systems is usually handled by your IT person or provider. Ask the mover what their crew will and will not handle, and get that scope written into the estimate.
Can a small office move be done over one weekend?
Many small offices can be moved in one evening or over a weekend once staff have packed their desks during the week. The building usually sets the pace: loading dock hours, a shared freight elevator and the length of the carry to the suite. Taking apart and rebuilding cubicles adds time. Share the inventory and floor plan so the mover can put crew size and hours on the written estimate.
Plan the office move around the buildings
Confirm leases, collect both buildings' rules, label the floor plan, assign IT, and move after hours. That is the core of the checklist. To be matched with a registered, insured local mover for a small office, medical suite or shop in Coral Springs, call (831) 293-1195. The mover reviews your inventory and gives you a written estimate before the move.
