A hitch rack is the easiest way to move bikes between two houses and the easiest install to rush. The rack looks simple, but it carries weight, it changes how the car handles, and it can hide the license plate and the brake lights if it is set wrong. Take the time to do it in the right order, once, and you will not have to think about it again until the next season.
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Before you open the box
Look at your hitch receiver and confirm its size. The rack must match it exactly. Next, read the owner's manual for your car and find the rack or towing limit, which is the most weight the hitch can carry. Add up the weight of the rack and the bikes you plan to carry, and make sure the total stays under that limit. Check the rear clearance too: a rack can block a tailgate or a hatch, so open and close it with the rack in place before you decide. Finally, make sure the plate and the lights will still be visible with bikes on the rack.
Fit the frame to the receiver
Assemble the rack following the maker's steps, but do not fully tighten anything yet. Slide the main post into the receiver, line up the pin holes, and insert the locking pin. Set the rack square to the car. A rack that sits crooked will sway, and you will notice the sway more on the highway than in the driveway.
Tighten in the right order
Snug every bolt first, then go back and tighten them in the order the instructions give. Tightening one side fully before the other can pull the rack out of line. Once everything is tight, check the bike arms and cradles. They should fit each bike's frame and wheel without rubbing the paint or the brake lines. Use the tightening values in the manual rather than guessing.
Do the shake test
With the rack empty, grab it at the top and push it side to side and up and down. Any wobble that does not come from the pin or the receiver means something is loose. Tighten it, then test again. Repeat this check after you load the bikes, since the extra weight can reveal a looseness you missed.
Test it on the road before the bikes go on
Take the car on a short loop with the rack empty. Stop and look at the rack from the outside. Confirm the plate and the lights are visible and that nothing has shifted. Then load the bikes, strap them, and make one more short trip. Stop after that trip and check every strap, the cradles, and the pin again. Keep the owner's manual in the glove box so the limits are there the next time someone else loads the car.
Make it part of the week
Write down who checks the rack at each house and who loads the bikes. The rack is shared equipment, so a short check before the kids head out should belong to a named person, not to whoever happens to notice first.