A Smooth Move: 8 Tips for Stress-Free Moving!

Moving can be stressful. Here are some tips to make your upcoming move a stress-free success.

1. Research and Hire a Mover 6 Weeks Before Your Move.  If you have a lot of valuables and sentimental items, hiring a mover can end up paying for itself.  When hiring local movers, you want to make sure you do your research. Do they have excellent customer reviews? Do they provide service for the distance/area that you are requiring service for? Also, ensure that the moving company you hire is licensed and insured.
2. Pack The Items You Will Need First In a Clear Plastic Bin.  Moving is hard work. At the end of your moving day, you don’t want to search through endless moving boxes and storage to find your toothbrush, a fresh set of pajamas and other toiletries. Packing these items in a clear plastic tote will enable you to find all of those necessities easily.
3. Labels. Labels. Labels. In addition to labeling your moving boxes with a list of the contents, also list which room that box belongs to. Enlisting a color-coding system is also helpful for room-designation.  For example: ‘Kitchen’ ensures that all of those breakable dishes end up in the kitchen, making their travel to the destination more direct, and as a result, safer. Plus, who needs forks in the laundry room?
4. Buy a Roll of Stretch-Wrap and Plenty of Bubble-Wrap. Stretch-wrap works like Saran wrap, but on a bigger scale. This is great for wrapping furniture to protect against possible scuffs, and also for binding a set of boxes together for easier and more efficient moving.  When it comes to your valuables, don’t cheap-out with the moving supplies– you may end up wishing you hadn’t.
5. Take a Photo of How Your Electronics Are Connected. Nothing is worse than valuable time spent trying to remember which cord plugged in where– especially with computers, entertainment centers, and wireless routers. Use your cell phone to snap a photo of your electronic connections before disconnecting and packing them away. You may also want to label each cord.
6. Change Your Address At Least Two Weeks Prior To Moving. This usually goes without saying, but this doesn’t make it any less important. Make a list of all of your utilities/financial institutions/businesses, etc. and make sure you contact all of them with your new address in plenty of time.
7. Make Your Last Grocery Shopping Trip Two Weeks Prior to Moving. Doing your last shop two weeks before moving ensures that most of it will be consumed, leaving you with less to move. This removes the added stress of worrying about moving foods that require refrigeration.
8. If Moving a Short Distance, Hire a Sitter for Your Children or Pets. Moving is stressful no matter how well-planned it may be. Make your move that much easier by planning ahead for a trusted friend or family member to watch your little loved ones while you move into your new home. This ensures that they won’t be stepped on or lost amongst all the storage boxes.

Did you know that if you are closing on one house but there is a gap of time before you can move into your new home, we at Port City Movers offer a specialized option called Storage in Transit, or SIT? SIT is different from self-storage in that since we are moving the items into our storage facility temporarily, we take responsibility for those items that are being held. This is very important because until the goods are in your new home, you have no way of knowing if the items were damaged or lost. Even better, the cost for SIT is half that of self-storage because it is part of a move. We can offer SIT for up to 180 days, and in some special cases, as long as 9 months. Contact us today for more information!