With the recent economic changes, families shouldn’t be afraid to pack up their belongings and look for a new home. Regardless of the reason for your move, getting everything you own from one house to another can be challenging. So, instead of hoping that the moving process will go smoothly, you need to have a solid plan before you move.
After securing your new home, there are more hurdles you need to overcome before settling into a new neighborhood. Several critical items require your careful attention.
1. Expenses
Moving to a new house is a lot more expensive than you think. Aside from the down payment, mortgage payment, or rental, there are many other expenses to consider. They may seem like minor expenses until you add them all up.
Naturally, you’d opt for the cheapest way to move cross country. Instead of hiring a professional moving company, you could rent a truck to move your belongings. Aside from being an excellent do-it-yourself (DIY) way to save costs, it also allows you to control your residential move. You pack according to your timeline while ensuring the security of your belongings.
However, you need to reserve a moving truck in advance so you can get the size most suited for your needs, or you’ll end up paying more.
Additional expenses include the following:
- Gas for moving truck
- Boxes and other packing materials
- Moving insurance
- Cleaning costs
- Re-activation of utility services
- Installation of new door locks or home security system
- Home improvements
- New household items
2. Packing
Here are some tips to put some order into your packing:
- Have A Packing Schedule
To ensure you’ve got everything covered, it’s a wise idea to make a packing schedule. You should start preparing for your move at least eight weeks before the actual moving day. This keeps you from cramming all your tasks within a short time, which could be highly stressful and overwhelming.
- Declutter
Go from room to room and decide which items to bring to your new home. First-time movers usually make the mistake of bringing everything with them, only to end up paying more. The smart move is to dispose of items if the cost of moving them is almost the same as buying a new one once you get to your new home. Sell what you can online, donate your other stuff, and give away the rest to your friends or whoever’s willing to take them off your hands.
- Make A Checklist
Now that you’re down to the belongings you could not part with, determine how many boxes you’ll need to pack them all. Prepare a checklist of these items, so everything is accounted for.
- Label Your Boxes
A month before the move, you should have packed around 70% of your belongings, labeling each box correctly so you know where it goes and what it contains. You should have finished packing all your belongings two weeks before the move, except for essentials like toiletries and kitchen items.
- Prepare A ‘First Night Kit’
Pack a ‘first night kit’ consisting of a change of clothes, beddings, toiletries, cleaning supplies, kitchen items, snacks, a first-aid kit, and a box cutter for unpacking.
3. Improvements And Amenities
It’s also imperative to attend to home improvements, utilities, and security before moving in.
- Home Improvements
Although it entails additional expenses, completing some home improvements before moving in with your furniture and other stuff makes perfect sense. That said, you might want to consider sprucing up the following before moving.
- Flooring
Any flooring job—whether it’s replacing the carpet, installing floor tiles, or refinishing the hardwood floor—will be completed in less time if there’s no furniture or bulky equipment to move around. An updated flooring does wonders to any home and could make moving in a more exciting prospect for the family.
However, be sure to protect the floor with mats, rugs, or cardboard when you bring your boxes inside the house.
- Walls
As with a flooring job, painting the walls is more convenient if the rooms are empty. There are no draperies, furniture, or frames to get out of the way. Your family members will immediately feel right at home if their new room is painted with a color they love. A fresh coat of paint also brightens up your new space and makes it feel brand new.
- Kitchen
If you have money to spare, renovate your kitchen before moving in. Kitchen renovation is messy and disruptive because it prevents you from preparing meals. So, it’s better to get it done before you bring in your kitchen appliances. With a revamped kitchen, cooking in your new home will become an even more enjoyable experience.
- Utilities
It would be frustrating to move into a new home without heating or internet connection. So, to ensure your utility services are up and running when you move in, call the internet provider, gas, water, and power companies ahead of time for the activation and installation of your utilities. They’d advise you if the connections are already in place or if you need to contact a technician or a plumber to set up the utilities.
Also, remember to contact your previous providers to schedule the disconnection of utilities at your old home. As you’re about to change your address, don’t forget to change your postal address. You can conveniently do so online.
- Security
The security of your new home should never be overlooked. You don’t want to move into a new house where you can’t sleep the first night because you haven’t changed the door locks.
For better protection, install a smart home security system with security cameras and motion sensors on your doors and windows that trigger an alarm if an intruder tries to break in. With this smart technology, you can remotely control your door locks and monitor your home even before moving in.
However, if your budget is tight, you can simply change the door locks or rekey the locks so the previous occupant won’t be able to access your home.
Key Takeaway
Moving into a new home can be challenging. There are plenty of tasks to keep you busy weeks before the actual move. Knowing the essential things to consider and taking care of them based on a realistic timeline ensures a smoother transition. Also, the sooner you prepare, the less exhausting it will be for you, and the sooner your new place will feel like home.
