Brilliant Advice For When You Move

In the process of purchasing a brand new home, it's often easy to neglect one of the most significant steps - the move! That's right, after you've dealt with the hassle of house hunting and mortgages and closing costs, you have to actually pack up your stuff and move them to your new home. It's a daunting undertaking, especially if you're moving yourself instead of working with a moving company. But if you keep these pointers in mind, you can make things easier on yourself.

Plan In Advance

The sooner you can get started on packing, the better. You don't want to be forced to pack up and move everything you own in a day or two. Weeks before the move, begin putting non-essential stuff in boxes. Be sure to get all your materials together - boxes, tape, bubble wrap, padding, dollies. Remember that it's better to be over-prepared than under-prepared.

Labels

Get yourself some mailing labels - or just a big sharpie - and clearly label every box that you pack. Let your future self know which boxes contain fragile things, which ones go to which rooms, which ones are very heavy. You may thank your past self when you get to your new house and don't have to open every box before you find what has to go into your kitchen.

Doing an Inventory

You might not have time for this when the move happens, but it is very useful to make an inventory of everything you have as you're packing to ensure that you know when you get to the house whether you've missed anything, or whether anything has gotten left behind along the way. If it's too much effort to make an inventory of everything, just make one for your boxes. You don't want to get to your new house and realize that you're lacking a box but you don't know which one.

Prepare Your Room Layout

When it comes to moving furniture, it's much easier to get an idea of exactly where everything will go before you've moved. Get good measurements of your furnishings and your rooms and make yourself a plan for exactly where everything will go. It really is much easier to place things in the correct spot the first time, than to move it after you've brought all of your stuff into your home.

Occupy the Youngsters

Three words: get a babysitter. You're going to have enough to deal with, you do not want to have to entertain the kids while you move as well. It will be so much less complicated for you if you hire a babysitter or get a friend or family member to keep an eye on them for the day. Then you'll get to bring them to their new, all-moved-in home at the end of the day! This goes for any furry, four-legged kids as well.

Set Up Your Services

Before you move in, you want to be sure that all of your utilities are active and operating in your new home. It would be difficult to move and unpack without lights. Getting the water turned on is also a priority. Cable and internet can wait a bit longer, but it's still simpler to get it set up before you move in so that you can have it ready the moment you get there.

Parking

Here's one which usually gets overlooked. Make sure that there is room to park the moving van in front of your home before you move. If you're moving into a house with a decent driveway, this generally isn't an issue. However, if you're moving into a condo or townhouse, you may discover that parking is limited. Most towns will offer a permit that allows you to temporarily block off some parking in front of the building for the moving van. Call 311 to get the information about what type of permit your city offers.

Once you've bought your new home, you want to be able to move in and enjoy it as quickly as possible with as little hassle as possible. If you follow these steps, you'll be well on your way!

Lee Cameron has been working in Orlando real estate for almost two decades. If you are thinking about buying or selling a home in Central Florida, contact Lee Cameron today!