Three Movers's Guide for Preparing a Move
Published by Chris Townsend
We’ve all been there. You’re getting prepared for an upcoming move, and no matter how much time you spend calculating costs, time, and resources-needed, moving always becomes more complicated than you initially thought. Well, we’re here to eliminate as much uncertainty and help you have the best move. Here’s the Three Movers’s guide on how to have the best move possible before the actual move.
What should I do before moving?
Minimize, Minimize, Minimize
Something that we cannot stress enough is elimination and lightening your load. When is the last time you organized that catchall basket or drawer? Well, that is a great place to start. Go through those materials and decide what is pertinent to keep for your upcoming move and dispose of what isn’t.
Furniture
But don’t stop there. Yes, miscellaneous papers and such can build up to create a stressful move, but something else to consider is furniture. If you’re stepping out of a college apartment and know that your stained leather couch is something you want to leave behind, leave it behind. Donate it. Sell it. If it’s not something that will build a cohesive space in your next home, don’t bring it with you. Even if you don’t have any ideas on how you will design your new place, letting go of stained, ripped, and damaged furniture is always going to help you in the long run.
Clothing
Is fashion your kryptonite? Is your closet overflowing with different articles of clothing? Some you haven’t worn in years? This is your time to minimize. There are so many internet guides and how-to books on how to do this, and we are here to encourage you to simplify your load and donate or sell what you don’t need.
Meal Planning
Anywhere you can cut corners to try to relax your mind, do it. This includes meal planning. We recommend having a plan for meals 2-3 weeks before your move. If you want to go the extra mile, you can even meal prep so that your mind can focus on preparing for your upcoming move and only that. This is also a great time to look through your pantry to see if any non-perishable foods can be donated--again, to lighten your load.
Packing Equipment
Depending on the method you choose for your move, there may be just few steps you need to take or there may be many.
Do-It-Yourself Move
This moving style demands the most from you. You will need to gather all of your packing materials ahead of time, plan the time of day you will be moving, coordinate anyone who will be assisting you in the move, and pack and move every one of your belongings.
Here’s what we recommend: research how many boxes you will need for the size of your residence, and if you’re apprehensive of having too few boxes, buy more. U-Haul has various packing kits — the apartment kit, 1-2 bedrooms kit, 2-3 bedrooms kit, and the 4+ bedrooms kits to make your move as seamless as possible. And the good news with U-Haul? Any unused boxes you can return and receive money back. So, you really can’t lose if you have too many boxes.
If you can rent or buy any materials that can decrease the number of times you go back and forth from your residence to a car or truck, do that. This will help you decrease the amount of time spent physically moving and give you more time to unpack and organize in your next place.
Full-Service Movers
This is hands down the option we recommend to reduce your level of stress come move-in day. Full-service movers take all the stress of packing and moving from you and direct it onto themselves. Depending on the moving company, it might be more advantageous for you to purchase their packing materials as they may be discounted or free. However, if the company’s rates do not work for you, you can still purchase your own boxes. Maybe you also have an online shopping addiction that leaves you with many boxes? Use those if you can.
The best part about hiring a full-service mover is that you control what you pack and move and what they pack and move. If you have extremely fragile and sentimental china that you don’t trust anyone else to pack, then you have the authority to pack and move it yourself while your movers cover everything else. This still means that you spend less time packing and moving items and more time relaxing. And the best part is that your belongings are insured.
When you have full-service movers all you have to worry about is the condition of the residence you’re moving into. This means that you can give your place a deep clean before any foot traffic begins, and then you’ll only have to surface clean afterward.
Your Stress-Free Move Starts Here
When it comes to having the best move possible, we adamantly believe in asking for help.It really does take a village. Just because you can do it yourself does not mean you should. We’re here to help you breathe easy and to make move-in day as stress-free as imaginable. Get a free quote with us and worry about what matters most.
