Moving in together

What should you do before you move?

• Register your new address with the authorities, your bank, your employer and your doctor. In some countries there's a legal deadline.
• Go through energy, broadband and contents insurance. Should the contracts be in one name or both, and does the insurance now cover two?
• Find out whose name is on the lease or the deeds. It matters more than you think if something happens.

Who owns what when you move in together?

In many countries, unmarried partners each keep what they own, and the home belongs to whoever is on the deeds. A simple list of who brought what, and who paid for what, goes a long way.

How should you split the money?

Decide early what's shared and how you'll split it: equally, by income or through a joint account. The model matters less than both of you feeling it's fair.

The first few weeks

• A shopping list you can both see and edit.
• One place for plans: dinners, laundry, visits.
• A place for the paperwork – lease, insurance, receipts and warranties.
• And the measurements of the bed, the sofa and the windows. You'll need them in a furniture shop.