Langley Moving Tips
Feature: “Moving Tips – Making your next move in Langley or Surrey as easy and stress free as possible”
How to plan for a successful move
The two best words of advice that I can suggest are “start early” – Even the simplest of moves can be a major ordeal. As a matter of fact, after the death of a loved one or a divorce, moving is considered to be the 3rd most stressful event that the average adult will face, and leaving your packing and planning to the last minute can turn things into a bit of a disaster.
One month before your actual moving day
This is a great time to begin getting organized. One thing you can begin doing at this point is to pick up the phone:
- Find and secure a good moving company in your area. Get 3 quotes. Ask for references. Feel free to do a quick check with your local Better Business Bureau
- Notify utilities of your impending change of residence
- Talk to your insurance company about transferring your home coverage
- Ask the post office to set up an auto forward for your mail commencing the day of the move
- Cancel subscriptions and deliveries or have them forwarded
Start to pack the stuff you don’t need right now – Is it the middle of August? If so then it’s a great time to start packing up ski equipment, Christmas decorations and any out of season cloths. Start chipping away at this stuff now and you will find yourself far less stressed as you get closer to your moving date.
Begin the ‘pre moving purge’ – call up local charities and have them collect old cloths or other reasonable items that you don’t want to lug over to your new home.
Consider having a garage sale (quick tip: remember that the purpose of the garage sale is to get rid of stuff – not to make buckets of cash. Price your stuff to sell so that you don’t have to figure out what to do with all that stuff that was supposed to sell at the garage sale but didn’t…
3 weeks before:
- Think about using up whatever is in the fridge and freezer so that you don’t have a bunch of food going to waste
- Start buying smaller portions so that there will be less to throw away
- Start some ‘general move out cleaning’ – you will be amazed at how dirty even the cleanest house will seem once cupboards and closets have been emptied. By starting now to do just a few minutes a day you will make your final clean much less of a Herculean task. This is especially important as the final clean is usually when even the most stalwart of individuals can unexpectedly find themselves holding a mop in their hands while having a small nervous breakdown…
- If you can afford it, spending a few hundred dollars to secure some quality house cleaning help for after the movers leave can be a sound investment for your mental health
2 weeks before:
- If you have pets you might want to think about where they can be boarded on moving day. Moving can be extremely stressful for some animals and having them boarded for a day or two until the move is complete can be a kindness to both yourself and your pet
- Packing should be beginning in earnest now – start packing all non-essentials.
- Make sure that you are stocked up on moving supplies like packing tape, scissors, marking pens and sturdy boxes – especially boxes. Even if you are an old pro at moving, have more boxes than you think you will need. It is very easy to underestimate how many boxes it will take to pack up your worldly possessions, and finding out the day before the movers arrive that you have run out of boxes is an unpleasant surprise best avoided.
- Most moving companies will be willing to sell you strong boxes at a reasonable price, and will often give you a partial refund on any boxes that are returned after the move. Some companies will even drop off and then pick up the empty boxes for you.
- If you decide to get your own boxes, do so early. Don’t wait till a few days before moving to go down to your local liquor store – at the end of the month everybody is looking for boxes and you may find yourself in a bit of a pickle.
- Most moving companies offer to loan you portable wardrobes. These are great! You can just move the contents of your closets on the hanger directly into these and presto… your wardrobe is packed!
- Boxes – make sure that every box is clearly lettered and numbered. The letter tells the movers which room to put the box in so that you don’t have to move everything twice (use pieces of paper with a letter marked on each - tape them onto the doors of each room to let the movers know what box goes where). The number tells you what’s in the box. Use a sheet to keep track of all the boxes. This way when you want to know where all of your CDs are, you can check the list and you instantly know that they are in box 12.
- Keep ‘like with like’ – don’t fall into the trap of packing random stuff together. You will not remember what went where and unpacking will become that much more difficult
- Centralize certain items – packing and cleaning supplies should go in one area. This way you won’t be constantly hunting to find the packing tape…
- Think about what needs to go into the truck last and out of the truck first. Set these items aside and alert the movers to the status of these items. If you have young children, setting aside the TV and DVD player as an ‘out last and in first’ item can be a great way to keep the children safely out of harms way while you tackle the heavy stuff.
Moving in – establish your base camp
- Set up an area for any you children where they can be safely occupied out of harms way
- Make sure that the stuff you will need immediately is placed nearby
- If you have a lot of items then don’t try to unpack the whole house all at once. It is far easier on your sanity to focus on getting the living room and kitchen unpacked first, and then you can chip away at other rooms over the next few days at your own pace
Act now and call Andrew at 778.862.5542 - Put his experience as a Langley real estate agent and condo expert to work for you, helping you find your dream town home or condominium in Langley while saving you thousands of dollars in the process!
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