Moving can be one of the most stressful experiences of your life. This is especially true you’re moving to a completely different part of the country. More things can go wrong the further away you move, which makes it important that you take the necessary preparations seriously. Below we included a few tips for organizing a long distance move that will make your transition to your new home a lot smoother.
1.) Make lists of your possessions
Go through every room in your house and note down the stuff you want to take with you. While you don’t have to list down every single thing you own, it makes sense to keep a list of certain possessions by category. You can list and segregate items by function, such as clothes, kitchen equipment, personal files and records, memorabilia, electronics, and so forth. If you have some expensive items, you can make an itemized list of those. Making these lists can be handy for ensuring you buy enough of the right kinds of packaging materials and finding out which things you may want to donate, sell, give away, or otherwise dispose of.
2.) Take steps to notify the necessary people about your move
While it’s understandable that you may not always want to tell anyone you’re leaving town, there may be legal issues if you don’t disclose your move to certain people, such as the local and federal revenue services. Make sure to contact all the people you’re legally required to touch base with about your move. Don’t forget to give your forwarding address to a trusted neighbor so that mail and packages mistakenly sent to your home address can still find their way to you.
3.) Declutter your home
The fewer items you have to move, the easier your move will be. Use the list you compiled earlier to find items that you want to sell, donate, or throw away. This will allow you to get a bit more cash to help with the move and potentially bring down the cost of moving as well. Be sure to get in touch with your local waste disposal services to ask for their advice if you have hazardous waste that needs to be disposed of.
4.) Prioritize the following
Try to get started on these at least 2 months before moving:
- Contact and compare moving companies
- Notify your banks and insurance agents
- Tell relevant government offices about your move in your home state as well as in your new one, if needed.
- Ask for your medical and dental records, as well as those of your family members and pers.
- Sell or give away unneeded items.
- Take special care to pack fragile and awkward items.
- Make disconnection arrangements with utility providers at your current home as well as connection arrangements with the utility companies as at your new one.
- Make arrangements for storage unit rentals near your new home, if necessary.
- Inquire about driver’s license requirements in your new state.
- Make arrangements with your lawyer to transfer your domicile.
A week before moving time, you should already be more or less ready to go. Confirm arrangements with your movers so that you’re sure they will pick your stuff up on time.
You may also want to consume or throw away food items that won’t make sense to take with you on your trip. When that’s done, take the time to clean and secure your fridge if you plan on taking it with you.
5.) Allow as much prep time as possible
It’s almost always better to start your preparations sooner rather than later. Spreading things out will give you more breathing room to account for any potential issues that might come up. Doing everything all at once will almost certainly result in you overlooking a few things, which can give you a serious problem after you’ve already moved. Starting earlier will also make it easier to keep working while your moving preparations are in progress, which can mean less lost income.
We hope these tips will help your next move be your smoothest one yet. The key to avoiding unnecessary stress on a move is to plan ahead, give yourself plenty of time, and to find the best professional movers you can find. Good luck with your move!