Preparations Before Moving

Get rid of everything before packing and movers start

1. Okay, maybe not everything, but the more unused and unnecessary items you eliminate from your home, the less stuff you'll have to pack up, haul across town, unload, and organize. That coat you think is cute but haven't worn in four months? Donate it. The very first coffee maker you ever bought that flavours your morning brew with little pieces of rust? Trash it. Doing a massive preliminary purge will have the single biggest impact on the efficiency and ease of your entire packing process.

Sort things by category.

2. Instead of spending a day cleaning out your entire bedroom, spend an afternoon sorting through every article of clothing you own.Scour every coat closet, dirty clothes hamper, and laundry room until you've got all your clothes in one place. Then sort. Do the same thing for books, shoes, important papers, and the like.

Donate.

3. If you'd like to donate your items.

Set aside stuff to sell.

4. You probably have a few items you no longer want, but would love to get a little money for. If that's the case, set these items aside and determine where you can sell them. For specialty items like a gently used Coach purse or your collection of 90's Beanie Babies, get on eBay.

Make Space.

5. For everything you don't want to take with you but can't say goodbye to yet.
6. We'll pick up all your stuff (yep, even your heavy furniture, bike, and luggage), store it in our secure and temperature-controlled storage facility, and create an online photo catalogue so you can see everything without having to visit a self-storage unit.

Research professional moving companies.

7. Research is never fun. Yelp and Google will overwhelm you with the sheer volume of choices for Relocation company to hire, but don't give in to the pressure and pick the first four-star rating you see.
8. A moving company can often make or break your entire moving experience, so it's important to get it right. The more effort you put into finding a reputable company with excellent customer service ahead of time, the less hassle you'll have on moving day. Find out the specifics so there are no unwelcome surprises come moving day.

Map out the best way to get to your new home.

9. Whether you're moving locally, across the country, or just to a neighbouring town, you're going to need an efficient travel route so you don't waste your move-in day sitting in traffic or pulling over multiple times to type an address into your GPS.
10. Figure out the easiest, most efficient way to get where you're going. Look up potential highway construction schedules ahead of time. And take traffic, detours, and necessary stops into account when you're making your plan.

Create a master moving to-do list

11. When you move homes, you inevitably end up having a lot of different things to do and remember. Don't let all these tasks and important reminders, no matter how seemingly obvious, slip your mind. Write them down somewhere. Put them in the Notes app on your phone, in the to-do list app. You stuck that extra screw from the broken drawer next to the sink? Take note.
12. You have to return your cable box to your provider at least one day before you leave? Right it down.

Put moving tasks on your calendar.

13. Take your organization a step further and spend an evening mapping out everything you have to do. Get an oversized calendar and mark the empty white boxes with important daily tasks to prepare for your move.
14. Tuesday: Call moving company.
15. Wednesday: Sort through toiletries.
16. Thursday: Buy new sheets.
17. An added bonus to using the calendar method is that breaking up your tasks by day makes them seem more manageable.
18. If you're relying on friends and family to help with your move, be courteous and give them a month's notice. Do the same with babysitters for your children.
19. Send out an email with the details of where to meet, what time, what to bring, and what to wear. So everyone is on the same page.