Moving can be very stressful, especially if you’re doing interstate or long-distance moves. Apart from worrying about your belongings, you’d be wondering how to ship a car if you have multiple vehicles. But whether you’re moving to the next town or cross country, one thing’s certain—uprooting your life is overwhelming.
You’ll have a million things on your to-do list, such as decluttering, packing up your belongings, setting up utilities in your new address, and even enrolling your kids in a new school. But with a mindset shift, you can think of moving as detoxing and recalibrating your life. Check out these essential guides to stay organized and keep track of your stuff to make moving less of a headache.
Create a Game Plan
Whether you’re moving for work or feel like making a fresh start, make a game plan as soon as you know that there’s an impending move. Make a checklist of what needs to be done in your current home. This includes:
- Decluttering
- Packing up belongings in moving boxes
- Making minor renovations
- Selling your home (if applicable)
- Transporting the vehicles
Assess what you will need for your new home to get it as move-in-ready as possible. Make a preliminary budget and cost estimates to ensure you don’t overspend and get into debt for your move.
Make a Visible Working Schedule
You need a flexible schedule, preferably a big calendar you can see or on your phone app with reminders. This helps keep your sanity in check and prevents panic. Without this, you may end up forgetting something.
As the big move draws near, create a weekly schedule. A week leading up to the big day, make a daily plan. You can include things like:
- What room you will pack up
- When to contact the moving truck
- Contractors’ timetable for repairs
- Car shipping reminders
Figure Out If You’ll DIY or Hire a Pro
You must decide which option is best for you. There’s no right or wrong method as this hinges on your current lifestyle. If you have a reasonably sized house and are moving to a nearby district, you can do the move yourself. You just have to buy all the packing materials and rent a truck.
However, professional movers are worth hiring if you’re moving interstate with so much stuff and heirloom pieces. They’re trained to pack well, safely move, and unload everything for you. Although you pay more, they offer value because it saves your time and energy.
Declutter and Purge Your Stuff
You don’t want to bring junk to your new home. A big move is a perfect time to decide which things you want to throw, donate, sell, or keep. As a rule of thumb, if you haven’t used the item in the last six months, it’s better to let it go because it’s not essential.
Also, holding onto stuff you don’t need will just make your move cumbersome. You’ll have to unpack them once you get to your new place. Be decisive in getting rid of what you don’t need.
Pack Systematically
Even if you hire professional movers to pack, they usually take care of big appliances. And if they help with the more minor things, you still have to stay on top of everything. After all, you want to know which boxes your items end up in.
Packing and unpacking can be chaotic, so using color-coded boxes per room and writing what’s inside the box helps. Be generous with packing peanuts and bubble wrap for breakables. Alternatively, you can also use towels and linen as shock absorbers.
Document Everything
Leverage technology and use your smartphone to take pictures of your entertainment system or anything else disassembled. This will help you facilitate setup later on.
Moreover, you should also document all your items to know if something is missing or damaged in transit. These images are the proof you need if you have to file an insurance claim.
Keep a Separate Essentials Bag
Whether you’re moving near or far, it would help to create an essentials bag that includes important documents, jewelry, gadget chargers, medicines, basic toiletries, and a few sets of clothes.
Include things you will need for the first few days in your new abode in case your moving boxes are delayed. You need easy access to this bag because it may take you a while to settle into your new house.
