Moving can be one heck of a process and cause a lot of unwanted stress and anxiety. If you are moving to a new apartment, house, or getting your own place for the first time, here are some tips to help you have an easy move.
1. Start looking early
It might seem premature but you should start looking probably around 4 or 5 months before you actually plan to move. Yes, the pricing and availability will probably change, but you can see what places you are interested and keep them on your radar. It’s even nice to go an check them out so you can see which places you don’t like and won’t work and which ones might. Save a list in a word document or a notebook you won’t lose. Then when it gets closer to move time you will already have 3 or 4 places that you know you like.
2. Hire movers
The best thing I ever did when it came to moving was hire movers. It makes the process 1000x easier. Yes, they can be costly, but typically for 1 bedroom apartment I’ve paid around $300. It’s so worth it because they bring all the equipment for easy loading, they will take apart and rebuild your furniture, bring wardrobe boxes and they are professional so they know how to get big pieces of furniture into tight spaces or doorways. No more ruining your furniture over a door that’s too small!
You can hire movers that will bring their own truck and drive your stuff to your new place for you. The other option is to rent the truck yourself and just hire movers to load and unload the truck. I prefer the former, it’s so much easier not having to worry about driving the big moving truck. If you do hire movers just to load and unload, consider hiring your some friends or some college kids. They will usually work for cheap, sometimes they will even work for pizza and beer!
When hiring movers definitely do your research, especially if they will be bringing their own truck. Find a one with high reviews, straight forward pricing structure, insured, certified and responds quickly when you make an inquiry. Some places charge by the hours and some charge a “double drive time” which can be misleading if you don’t have it explained to you properly. Make sure to ask lots of questions so you don’t even up with hidden fees and charges.
3. Buy more supplies than you think you’ll need
If you only think you need 10 boxes, buy 15. If you think you only need 2 rolls of tape, buy 3. If you have leftover supplies great, you can save it for the next move. I’ve had to run back out to the store multiple times for supplies only to find that there are no more boxes left because I’m moving at the end of the month like everyone else.
4. Start packing sooner rather than later
Many people put off packing until the last minute and they are scrambling on moving day to pack everything. There is always something that you forgot to pack… an closet you rarely use, dishes in the very back of the cupboard, or maybe bottom cabinet of the bathroom. Start early with the stuff you rarely use. Then as you get closer pack things as you no longer need them. Pack clothes you won’t be wearing, all the books your not gonna read anytime soon, etc. There is always more to pack than you realize so get a head start.
5. Get rid of stuff you don’t need
While packing, make sure to get rid of anything you haven’t used since your last move or within the last year. All that stuff is just taking up space and making you carry more stuff to your new place. Not only is it nice to start fresh when you get to a new place and not have a ton of clutter, but save yourself the time and hassle of packing and unpacking all that stuff you don’t really want or use. Donate it, sell it or throw it away. Your choice will probably depend on the item but either way, you’ll be making more space in your life.