Most people would agree that moving is one of the most stressful processes you can go through. Given that there are so many things to remember, the chances of missing something important are high. With enough advance preparation, however, you can avoid a few headaches. The following is a checklist with some important things to consider to help ease the burden of changing households.
1. Moving is the perfect opportunity to lighten your load. Go through your house and take note of anything that is broken or outdated. Now is the best time to purge. Sell any items of value that you no longer need or donate them to charity and take a tax deduction.
2. If you own any fine art or other special items that require extra care when packing, you will be doing yourself a favour to pack them in advance of moving day.
3. Measure your furniture and the doorways in your new home. You don’t need the added stress of finding out on moving day that your grandmother’s antique china cabinet won’t fit through the front door of your new place. If you would prefer to get rid of some furniture but don’t want the expense of having to buy replacements right away, you can easily secure new furniture rental for your home.
4. If you have children in school, arrange a transfer of their school records. You will need the names and addresses of their new schools.
5. In the month leading up to your move, either have your medical records forwarded to your new doctor or get copies if you haven’t yet found a physician in your new area. Have any prescription medications filled beforehand. Running out of any vital medications as soon as you get to your new home will only add to the chaos.
6. If you have pets, get copies of their veterinary records. Moving can be highly stressful on animals. Plan to have an appropriate-sized crate for them to stay in on moving day. If your pets have never used a crate before, you should give them a chance to get used to it. With all the commotion of moving, it is easy for doors and gates to be left open and pets to slip out without anyone noticing. The last thing you want on moving day is to have to track down a frightened or confused animal.
7. One month before the move, you can begin packing seldom used items and out-of-season clothing. This is also a good time to begin using up your perishable items, frozen foods and condiments that you don’t want to take with you.
8. Begin a moving binder. This is where you’ll keep mover’s estimates and important contact numbers. Keep an inventory of all the items you are taking with you. Take photographs of your valuables for insurance purposes.
9. Arrange to have the utilities turned off in the old home and turned on in the new home on moving day so you aren’t left (literally!) in the dark.
10. Buy or gather more boxes than you think you’ll need, and ensure you have plenty of packing tape and markers. Label every box with your Dymo label printer with the contents and the destination room so the movers will know where to place things and you won’t have to open twenty boxes to find what you’re looking for.
11. Fill a box of kitchen items with the essentials you’ll need to prepare your first few meals in the new house. This should be one of the final boxes to go on the moving truck.
12. Pack your jewellery and other small valuables in a special box that you’ll carry separately.
13. Have an overnight bag packed for everyone in the family. Be sure there are enough clothes to get you through the first couple of days so you don’t have to scramble to unpack everything on the first day. Don’t forget to put in essential toiletry items like toothbrushes and deodorant.
Moving can be a stressful time, but you can make it easier on yourself by doing as much as you can in advance of the actual moving day. With the help of this checklist, you should be able to concentrate on the excitement of beginning a life in your new home.