So, moving day is around the corner, and it seems like more of a headache than a fun experience. Well, one survey shows that many others feel the exact same way. Luckily, there are a few things to consider that could make it more bearable.
Although moving an entire home is no easy feat, it is necessary for those families wanting to move into a new, bigger house or a different location. There may be no getting around all the hard work and effort, but the results are worth all of it.
With this said, below is an ultimate guide to packing and moving that homeowners can’t ignore. These tips and tricks will make moving an entire house quick and easy, leaving more time for the family to find their feet in their new environment:
Create a solid plan for the move
As mentioned above, moving to a new place can be stressful. Several things could go wrong. For example, leaving special items behind, not packing everything according to the movers specifications, forgetting some critical tasks, or becoming too overwhelmed to keep track of everything happening around them all at once.
These instances can be prevented by creating a checklist. Doing so could ease a lot of the pressure as the list serves as a visual representation of what you have completed and what is still left to do. However, it will vary from home to home depending on the items you need to pack or the tasks you need to complete. But movers can have different checklists according to their needs. Here’s a sample:
- Two weeks before the move.
- Start packing items you won’t use before the move and ensure to label them properly.
- Clean major appliances.
- Fill prescriptions.
- One day ahead of moving day.
- Carefully check that all the boxes are still in order.
- Walk through the home to make sure nothing is left behind.
- Clean the home.
- Throw out any leftover food.
- On the final day.
- Lock all windows and doors.
- Remember to return the keys to the landlord.
- Collect the mail.
You can also consider hiring a moving company to help with packing, storing, or transporting the home’s goods. They have certain guidelines or requirements for how homeowners should pack their belongings. Moreover, it could also serve as a reminder to properly schedule the date and time with them well in advance.
Prepare for packaging
As part of the checklist, there should be a space dedicated to packing. You can place here all your packaging materials and other things you’ll need to keep your belongings safe during the move-you wouldn’t want to get to your new home only to find some damaged items.
There are different methods of packing or wrapping your belongings. Here’s a short list of packaging materials and their purpose:
- Cardboard boxes or plastic crates for holding all the items.
- Bubble wrap to create a barrier between the items and the wall of the box.
- Cushioning sheets between fragile items like kitchenware.
- Plastic wrap or packaging tape to secure the boxes.
- Newspaper (whether shredded, crumpled, or as is).
- Cardboard covers for frame corners.
- Incorporate blankets and towels as extra protection inside boxes of precious goods.
If you plan to use cardboard boxes, you can buy new ones or find sturdy, used containers for sale. You can also ask a friend or the local grocery store for extra boxes or crates that can be repurposed. Either way, ensure that the cardboard boxes are in good shape, as some movers could otherwise refuse to load them.
When you begin packing, you can gather the things from the one room into one or two boxes, then label them accordingly. This will give you an idea of what’s inside before you open and unpack them. Not only will it ease the unpacking, but it can also help the movers systematically get each room ready.
Ultimately, you can save time and effort and prevent further overwhelm when you start packing weeks before the move. Moreover, it’s to best tackle one room at a time, working through the entire home before moving day, so no one has to rush to fit it in last minute.
Organize your goods
Moving day is always a chaotic mess of everyone running around, moving boxes, packing last-minute items, and just a general buzz of activities. As a result, it could be very taxing if everything isn’t packed and ready to go on the day. Movers can save themselves some of this stress by starting to load items in boxes well in advance, especially when they won’t need those items anytime soon.
Packing and storing items isn’t rocket science, but when it isn’t done correctly, you could open yourself up to lots of heartaches when you lose things or damage them.
After a while, you could get tired of wrapping and packing, and it could be easy just to start throwing everything into boxes. Unfortunately, this is the worst thing to do as some items require a little more finesse to get them to the other side intact:
- Carefully close the packaging of perishable food so they don’t attract rodents or insects. If possible, finish all unsealed food products before the move to avoid having to pack them at all.
- Valuable items like coins, jewelry, collectible items, cash, or anything similar could go missing when someone helps themself to it along the way. Consider buying a lock box or mini safe to have more peace of mind during the transport.
- All personal documents and records should be in a plastic sleeve or envelope to protect them from damage. For safety’s sake, the family can also make copies of them and keep them in a safe place, like the car cubbyhole or a handbag.
- Discard flammable items like paint, batteries, chemicals, pesticides, insecticides, solvents, or things that could see the whole load go up in flames. These are a fire hazard and could cause allergic reactions, poison everyone touching them, or cause injuries should they leak out onto other items.
Movers will often forget that the first night and the following day at their new home could be slightly disorganized in contrast to their current home. In your previous home, all your stuff-the toothbrush, makeup remover, pajamas, and slippers-are waiting for you after a long day. But after moving, you’ll have to unpack a few things before you can get some rest.
Luckily, there is a simple solution to prepare for this: pack a separate “moving day box.” You or each of your family members can do this and pack all of your essentials on hand, so you don’t have to go foraging through boxes for your necessities.
Other items to add to this box could be all the comforts the family would enjoy at bedtime or early in the morning. Whether it’s a stuffed animal, cell phone charger, lip balm, or book, these boxes are definitely worth packing and keeping aside. Hold out on loading these so they get packed onto the vehicle last, which will ensure that they are the first to be unloaded when arriving at the new destination.
Make use of every nook and cranny
If you’re short on boxes or have a few extra odds and ends that don’t fit anywhere else, you can store them inside the fridge, washing machine, or dryer. Doing so lets you use all the extra space that would otherwise be wasted. However, ensure that these items won’t damage the appliances and that they are securely wrapped or packaged to prevent them from rolling around during transport.
Another brilliant hack is to leave items inside a chest of drawers, but remember to tape them shut before loading them onto a moving truck, so every little thing remains in place. There are so many hidden spaces underutilized during a move, and all you need to do is find these hideaways.
Cover delicate items with plastic
You can avoid scratches, tears, dust, and dirt on delicate items like couches, lounge chairs, electronics, and similar items by wrapping them in plastic and securing them with packing tape.
Depending on the vehicle the family will use for the move, a few layers of plastic may be needed to prevent other items from pushing through just one. Furthermore, labeling the boxes or items as “fragile” could indicate to the moving crew that the items can easily break or be damaged.
Moving mattresses may seem straightforward, but along with the bed frame and headboard, they could be bulky and tend to take up a lot of space. Not only that, but their soft texture makes them very susceptible to tears that could become rather expensive to replace. As for the bedframe and headboard, it’s best to disassemble them to make sure they fit the doors and into the vehicle.
If you feel that the plastic coverings won’t be enough to keep your possessions in good order, you could add cardboard inlays between the items and the plastic sheet to strengthen the barrier.
Borrow or buy moving equipment
Even when it seems more than doable to carry items out of or into the home, it may have dire consequences for the body. You could end up pulling a muscle, putting your back out, or sustaining a more severe injury like dropping items onto your fingers or feet without the proper moving equipment.
For this reason, dollies, carts, and trolleys could help get heavy items from one place to another while minimizing the risk of injury. You can either borrow from someone you know who owns one or purchase one for yourself. Although the latter is not as advisable, especially if you’ll only use it for the move. Regardless, it’s best to keep everyone fit and ready for moving heavy furniture and to research specific lifting methods to prevent injuries.
On the other hand, if you’re considering the services of a professional moving company, this wouldn’t be a problem as they would already have all the necessary equipment.
Only move what you need
As time passes, you and your family will realize you have many unnecessary items you can get rid of before you pack for the move. Hence, only taking what you need will reduce the number of boxes and the space for transporting them.
You can consider donating or selling unwanted items to get them out of the way while making some extra money that you can spend to furnish your new home, pay for the movers, or buy the latest items instead. According to an article by Redfin, yard sales are perfect ways to get the items sold, while donating them will ensure that someone else will benefit from them as well.
Notify all significant parties
As part of the preparation for the move, you and your family can start to notify various creditors, relatives, friends, schools, and employers of your intentions. On the other hand, changing the address for bills and taking care of the new utilities could be something to do right after you’ve settled into your new home.
Moving cross-state or to another region could also require that the family reregister their vehicles, according to Realtor. There may be other obligations that the family would also need to look into and ensure they have in place, making it imperative to find out from the local municipality or authorities what will be required and get it into place as soon as possible.
Before moving, you can already start getting all the details of where they should go to get all your affairs in order. Doing this in advance will make it easier to navigate once you’re in a new, unfamiliar area, reassuring you that you haven’t forgotten something essential like the utilities.
Buy groceries after the move
Food items are tricky to manage during a move, so save the effort and only buy them once you have time to shop at your new place. Furthermore, perishables like milk could go sour, bread could become stale, and liquid items could make a huge mess of everything else in the moving vehicle should it fall over and spill.
A great way of getting to know the new neighborhood is to find the local grocer and meet others. But even so, the car will have more room to fit fresh, healthy ingredients that the family can stock up on in their new home.
Moreover, 58.4% of people move to a different location within the same region, but it doesn’t mean they will automatically be familiar with their surroundings. So, take advantage of the opportunity to cruise around and find the best places to shop, starting with the groceries.
To conclude
No one said that moving the entire house would be quick and easy, but with a comprehensive checklist, a well-organized plan, and the help of family, friends, or professional movers it would be much more bearable to get everything done.
Packing, unpacking. Arrangements. New experiences. A comfortable new home. These are all part of the moving process, and anyone deciding to make the big move should keep this in mind. Overall, it will be gratifying for the family to start a new chapter in their story after moving into their new dream home.
