Moving, whether across town or across the country, is always said to be one of the most stressful things you can go through.
Preparing and being strategic can alleviate some of the stress, as can the following specific tips and recommendations.
Make Lists
It sounds simple, but making lists to prepare for a move often gets overlooked. You want to ensure you don’t forget anything, and making lists can also help you figure out how to best allocate and manage your time.
There are a lot of steps that go into moving, so you might want to have a notebook dedicated entirely to the process.
If something comes into your mind, make a note of it as soon as you think about it.
Particular lists include disconnecting and reconnecting your utilities, dealing with your cable and internet, organizing pickups for donations, and scheduling movers.
If you can do a couple of tasks every day, it’s much better for your emotional health than waiting until the actual week of the move to do everything.
Start Packing As Soon As You Can
Think about the things in your home that you need to pack but that you don’t necessarily use every day. You can begin packing these things as soon as possible.
While you’re packing, create throw-away, sell and donate piles in every space you move into.
If you haven’t used something in the past six months, get rid of it.
The fewer things you’re bringing with you on the move, the better.
As you start packing, try to focus on one room at a time. This will help you set a goal and then feel less stressed when you achieve it. For example, start with your guest room or a smaller space that doesn’t get used as much and go from there.
When you’re labeling your boxes, be very specific. You want to label everything with not only the room, but you can also add a piece of paper to the top that has a list of everything in that box.
Try to pack similar items together if you can, instead of just putting whatever’s closest to you at any given time in a box.
Your goal should be to have everything packed and cleaned so that on actual moving day, the only thing being physically moved are boxes and furniture from one home to the other.
Use a Floor plan
Don’t operate under the assumption that all of your current belongings are going to fit perfectly into your new home.
Even if your new home is similar in overall size or bigger, that doesn’t mean the room sizes are going to mirror each other.
You should measure all of your furniture and make sure that it’s going to fit the way you plan.
Getting a copy of your new home’s floor plan is going to help you map out where things will go.
Then, if something isn’t going to fit, you’ll know to sell it or donate it before your move, so you’re not shuffling it from place to place for no reason.
You’ll also know ahead of time if you need to buy new things.
Have An Emergency Bag
When you get to a new house on moving day, you’re going to be tired, and you’ll want to have easy access to the things you have to have.
You can have a box or bag with everything you’ll need for at least a few nights.
For example, include your toiletries, a change of clothes, a towel, toilet paper, and your key medicines. You should also have chargers for the electronics you use every day.
Hire Professionals
Some people want to save money, so they try to avoid hiring professionals. If you have the option to include movers into your budget, it’s a cost you’ll find is well worth it.
Professional movers take so much of the physical and mental stress off your plate.
There are a lot of different types of moving services, so you can compare based on your needs and your budget.
Full-service movers will pack everything and handle the entire moving process, but they come at a cost. There are others who will transport and pack specialty items, or you can get a service that just takes care of the heavy items.
Finally, when you get to your new home, if you’ve labeled all of your boxes and you know what’s what, you should put them in their proper place.
For example, if something goes in the main bedroom, go ahead and put it there rather than dumping everything in the living room. This will help you as you start to unpack.
