Moving to a new home can be a chaotic process filled with organizing, packing, and calling moving companies to expedite your transition. However, to make things a little less complicated, here are four smart things you can do before you move homes to cut down on stress and effort.
1. Make a Budget For Your Move
If you hate making budgets, you’re going to hate this crucial step. In order to manage your wallet and your time, it’s important to create a moving budget that details your entire relocating process. Although you may have some obvious costs, such as renting a moving truck, you’re going to have to hidden costs you never thought of, such as insurance for your belongings. Just make sure you account for your entire move and don’t leave anything out that may surprise you down the road.
2. Hire An Affordable Moving Company
Are you planning on hiring a moving company to transport your belongings? If you are, consider these steps to hire an affordable and reputable moving company:
- Look for Recommended Moving Companies in the Area
It’s important that you hire a reputable moving company that fits your planned budget and has plenty of good reviews. You can easily find these companies via Google Search, but we recommend asking around your friend group to see what kind of services they’ve used in the past. However, while searching, you should consider their service charges, service options, and testimonials.
- Request a Quote and Compare Your Options
Now that you’ve researched what companies you plan to use, ask them for quotes, which you should be able to get for free. Next, compare what quotes you are offered to find the right moving company that fits your budget. Although you shouldn’t necessarily use price as a deciding factor, it can help you stay on budget and stay on track with your move.
- Book Early On
After you’ve selected which service provider you want to use, make sure that you book your move as early as possible. Not only can this help lower the final cost of your move, but this can help you land availability on your move date, compared to booking at the last minute and not being able to book a timeslot until a week after the fact.
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Pack Smarter
Of course, you know that you need to pack before you move homes. However, it is crucial that you pack the smart way. This can help you to stay organized, cut down unpacking times, and even save you a little money. To give yourself enough time to pack up your entire home, start early. One of the first steps of the packing process is sorting through your belongings. Decide what stuff you want to bring and what you would like to donate or get rid of. The more stuff you donate, the less you have to pack, saving you time and money.
Once you determine what you want to pack, make an inventory of your large furniture pieces and boxes. Consider labeling or color coding your boxes so you know which room they belong in when you get to your new home. Begin packing in the rooms that you use less frequently like your garage, basement, and guest rooms. Don’t be afraid to get creative with your packing. Use clothing to provide cushioning for breakables, pack bedding in trash bags instead of boxes, and so on.
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Get Organized
With the all-encompassing tasks of staying on budget, hiring a professional moving company, and packing your entire house, it can be easy to forget about everything else you need to get down. This is why it is so important to stay organized. To help you become more organized, here is a quick list of a few other tasks that you need to do before your move.
- Shut off utilities at your old home and set them up at your new home.
- Change your address with the post office.
- Update your address on all financial accounts, memberships, newspaper and magazine subscriptions, and all other accounts.
- Transfer medical records to your new doctor, if need be.
- If you have children, transfer their school records.
