Are you planning to move to a new city? Are you trying to get ready for the move but you just don't know where to get started? Moving can be a stressful experience, but it is also a task that is filled with rewards. Moving to a new place can mean a new job and all sorts of new experiences. But if packing up and moving seems to be too overwhelming at the moment, here are some tips that can help you get started:
Get rid of non-essentials: If you've been living in one location for a while, you've probably collected a lot of belongings that you either don't need or that would cost more to take with you than to buy again once you're done moving. For instance, if you bought a shelf from IKEA, it may be cute, but taking it apart so that the movers can put it in the moving van may actually cost more in labor than what the shelf is worth. Since it's not made of solid wood, it may not even survive the trip unless you have managed to hold onto the original packaging. Donate it to a thrift store, sell it at a yard sale, or otherwise get rid of it and buy a new one once you're in your new home. Depending on where you move to, it may turn out that the original shelf wouldn't have fit anyway.
Put essentials together: Purchase a couple of clear plastic totes and fill these things with items that you absolutely cannot do without in your new home. This includes things like a couple of towels, some soap, a pot or pan, and toilet paper. Even with the help of movers, moving into your new place may leave you too exhausted to figure out which box holds what stuff. Having a clear plastic tote or two with your most necessary items will make it easy to locate these things so that you don't have to make an emergency trip to the store to buy duplicates.
Have a storage room ready: Sometimes, when you get to your destination, it turns out that you don't actually have a place to live yet. This could be because the place isn't actually ready yet, because the landlord advertised something that wasn't available, or because you simply want to see the city for yourself before picking a place to live. Whatever the case, your belongings still need somewhere to stay. Some movers offer free storage for a month with long-distance moves, others will charge you if they have to hold onto your belongings for more than a couple days. Some may not have storage available at all. Make sure that you understand which will apply to the movers that you're planning on hiring and, if necessary, rent an extra storage room even if you don't think you'll need it. Paying for one month of storage that you find out that you don't actually need can be much less expensive in the long run than scrambling to find and pay for last-minute storage.
Contact local movers for more information and assistance.
