Apartment Moving Tips to Make Life Easier
Moving into a new space can be exciting. But the process of moving can be a miserable experience. Planning, forethought and time management will make the process much easier.
One of the simplest ways to ease the pain of packing up and moving is to give yourself plenty of time. The longer you’ve been at a residence, the more time you’ll need. Packing will always take longer than you think. With having to give notice on rentals, starting a new job, etc. taking your time isn’t always possible. But if you can give yourself at least two or three months to prepare you can break up the packing and sorting over several weeks. Don’t forget to budget time for cleaning your old place. If possible, take time off from work so you can pack and make arrangements. This will help cut down on the stress and grief.
A little planning goes a long way to smooth out moving arrangements. Start early on by developing an order of operations. Decide what needs to happen when. Usually, arrangements that necessitate relying on someone else should get made first. If you need to use a moving company, contact them ASAP to get an idea of dates, rates, etc. and what they can guarantee. If renting a truck, give the rental company a call several weeks in advance to get the reservation you want. When it comes to invoking family and friends, choose wisely. Not everyone is reliable. It isn’t much help if they cancel on you the day before the moving truck shows up. Ask someone you know you can work with. Everyone has a different philosophy of how to organize, pack and work efficiently. Be prepared to give lots of direction and delegate tasks to keep everyone organized and working. Again, don’t forget about cleaning! Landlords are notoriously stingy about giving back security deposits. A thorough, comprehensive cleaning gives them less to nitpick over.
When it comes to packing, think everything over carefully. You won’t need everything left out until the last minute, so pack up the non-essentials first. Books, extra bedding, hobby paraphernalia, knickknacks, out of season clothes and seldom-used kitchen implements can get boxed up early. Moving is also a great time to downsize and get rid of anything you don’t use. The more you sell, donate or throw out, the less you have to pack, move and unpack.
Moving into a new apartment should be fun and rewarding. There will always be stress involved but you have a lot of control over how much. By giving yourself plenty of time, planning out your packing and thinking through your move you can keep the hassle to a minimum. Please contact us for more information on moving.