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Home > Blog > Don’t Forget These 4 Things When Planning to Move
Whether you’re moving across the country or across the street, there are many different aspects of the process to consider. Oftentimes during moving, things get forgotten or put on the back burner. To help ensure a smooth transition, there are a few items that you will want to take care of early on, these tips from Self Storage Plus will make moving day a breeze.
First, get organized right away. After securing a new home and establishing a moving date, now is the time to begin. Your first order of business should be going through your belongings and determining what you want to keep and what you will sell or donate. Go through and organize room-by-room to avoid taking on too large of a project that otherwise won’t get completed. Breaking it down this way can also help manage the stress of the job.
Once you’ve gone through your belongings and feel confident that everything you have will be moving to the new house it is time to begin packing. Depending on your moving plan this process can look different from person to person. If you’re planning to pack yourself this is the time where you will start getting boxes and packing things that you won’t need until after the move.
If you’re packing up yourself, labeling is key! One very effective way to ensure everything ends up where it belongs is to label each box based on the room it needs to be in post move. This way, whether you are physically moving yourself or you have hired someone to help you can rest assured knowing that you’ll be able to locate all of your belongings in the new house. Better yet, it makes unpacking much easier as well.
For those who plan to hire movers to pack up your belongings for you, the process will be made a bit easier, however, you will want to be sure to hire a reliable company. Begin doing research and reading reviews on moving companies to make sure your belongings are in good hands. A great way to do this is to ask friends, family, and co-workers who may have recommendations.
Your next step should be determining if you will need a storage unit for your move. Many people utilize self storage in various ways during the moving process. Storage can be used for:
Storage units can house items you may not want cluttering up your new home. It is also the perfect place to store all your seasonal décor pieces. You can use the time before the big move to slowly move items to storage that way come moving day you don’t have to worry about it. Regardless of what your reasoning may be, a storage unit can be a huge benefit during the moving process. Anything that reduces stress during a move is something worth considering.
For those who already have a storage unit, this is a good time to evaluate what you have in storage and determine what might need to make the move with you. If you have items that you no longer need, you can also use this time to declutter and downsize or upgrade your storage unit.
Either way, there are a handful of things to consider when looking for a storage unit. Doing this research will help you secure the best storage solution for you and will give you some peace of mind during your big move!
Be sure to check out our FAQ page to help answer any questions you may have.
Preparing not only yourself but also your children and pets is key to ensuring a smooth transition. Regardless of the age of your children, they will likely have a difficult time moving especially if you’re leaving the only home they’ve ever known. The same goes for pets so there are a few key tips to make this transition easier for everyone.
Unlike children, the emotions of pets are hard to gauge because they cannot communicate their feelings verbally. This makes it tricky to truly understand how they’re feeling and oftentimes can lead us to overlook them during a big life event, like the moving process. To help prevent this overlook, there are a few key tips to remember when moving.
Animals, like cats and dogs, need to be introduced to a new space gradually if possible. Your home is their whole world, especially for pets that stay indoors, and making that change drastically can lead to serious health issues. Try taking them to the new house for a few hours at a time, but bring them back to their home where they’re comfortable afterward. This will familiarize them with the space and reduce any stress or anxiety that may occur otherwise.
It’s understandable that this may not be possible in certain situations, such as if there is no overlap between homes or if your move is long distance. In this case, you can utilize the benefits of calming chews for pets to reduce anxiety that comes with moving. Another trick is to have on hand items from the old house that will have a familiar smell and give them to your cats and dogs to bring a sense of comfort or familiarity.
Lastly, planning the physical move of the pets is crucial to ensuring their safety. When it comes to driving from one house to the next, never let your animals roam freely in a vehicle. This is extremely dangerous to them in the case of an accident, it is also extremely dangerous to you, as roaming about the vehicle is an additional distraction. Always use crates and/or animal seatbelts as a way to keep both your pet and the passengers safe.
Accidents, however, can happen and it is smart to have an emergency plan in place should you need to use it. First, start by identifying emergency vets along the route of your move. If an accident happens you’ll want to know where you need to go to get the best medical care for your pets. Next, consider looking into how pet insurance works as an added protector. You never know what can occur during a move and it’s best to be safe rather than sorry. Insurance can help curve any major costs and make your decision easy in any emergency during a move or afterward. This is also a great way to reduce unnecessary stress and ensure you can focus your energy on getting to your destination and organizing your new home!
Like pets, kids need to take time to ease into a move. It can be a huge change regardless of how old your children are and you’ll want to do your best to make that change as easy for them as possible. One way to do this is by also taking them to the new house and letting them pick out their own rooms and talk about how they can set up their space to best suit their needs. This will make them feel included in the decision and ultimately brings excitement around the new house rather than fear or anxiety.
They will also have grief or sadness around leaving the current house and that is okay. Be sure to let them know it’s okay to feel sad and grieve the loss of the old house. It’s totally normal and validating their feelings will only help them get through that grief and come to love the new house just as much.
It is also crucial to keep them in the loop of the home buying process. As soon as you are seriously considering moving, let them know. The more time they have to prepare, the better. If you’re able to, bring them to showings, this can give them feelings of inclusivity and control to make the transition much easier for them. Allow them to be present for as many decisions as possible when appropriate.
For young children, there are a lot of resources available to help them understand this transition. Looking into children’s books about moving can help give them something or someone to relate this experience to. If this is their first time moving you want to be sure they have some frame of reference because it is a big change. Books can be a great way to make such a big transition comprehensible for little ones.
Last but not least, don’t forget to cancel and transfer your services! Many times people forget about these crucial pieces until they are already at the house which causes delays and potential overpayment. Services such as WiFi, electricity, water, etc. you’ll want to ensure are switched over for you when you get to the new house. Call your providers in advance to ensure this is taken care of in order to avoid being inconvenienced and added frustrations.
In the end, moving can include a lot of moving parts, and the most important thing is to do your best and plan early!
