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8 Tips for Moving to a New Home

You’ll never appreciate how much stuff you have until it’s time to move.

Whether you’re moving a studio apartment or an entire house, moving can be a stressful process—but there are measures that you can take to make the entire ordeal as smooth as possible. Here are 8 tips for moving to a new home.

Time, Labor, or Both
You’ll either need a lot of time to do everything yourself or a lot of hands if you’re working on a tight schedule. Trying to do everything alone in one day is setting yourself up for a disaster. Start as early as you can by getting rid of unwanted or unused items and by starting to pack items that you won’t need to use between now and move date.

Assemble a team of friends to help on the big day, and reward everyone with some drinks and pizza to keep spirits high. Always return the favor when it’s their turn to move!

Masking Tape, Sharpies and Ziploc Bags
If you’re dismantling furniture, keep these three ingredients on hand. Label every dismantled piece with a strip of tape, marked with its name (use something easy: “Book case #1”, “Bedroom Dresser”, etc.). Keep all the pieces together, and move them together, if possible. Put nails, screws, and other small moving parts in a Ziploc bag. Don’t forget to label the bag and tape it to one of the dismantled pieces.

Make a List, Check it Twice
Every moving box should be labeled with a list of its contents—this will be incredibly helpful in helping you prioritize when it comes time to unpack. Try to fill a box with contents that need to end up in the same room, so that you can label the box for its eventual destination.

Head to the Grocery Store
Moving is expensive enough without having to buy boxes that will just end up tossed into the recycling. Visit your local grocery store and head to the produce department. Check with an employee to see if you can have any of their spare produce boxes, which are typically quite sturdy. Check well before you need the boxes: a lot of people know about this secret, and most people move on the 1st or 15th of the month, so supplies might be limited when you need them most.

Choose Boxes Strategically
It’s better to have more small boxes than fewer large boxes. Boxes get heavy very quickly, so smaller boxes will force you to keep it to a manageable weight–you do NOT want to be pulling a back muscle right now! Smaller boxes are also easier to maneuver into a car or moving truck.

Clothing as Bubble Wrap
Forego expensive and wasteful bubble wrap by wrapping your fragile items in pieces of clothes, which you’ll need to pack anyway. Thick sweatshirts can provide the perfect amount of padding, while thin t-shirts layered between plates should be enough to prevent shattering.

Check the Calendar
If you’re moving to an apartment or condo, check to see if there are rules. You could need to book an elevator, and they might prohibit moving on certain high-traffic days.

If you’re getting new furniture delivered, have it delivered a day or two after you are scheduled to move in. That will give you a chance to start unpacking, and to get some items out of the way.

Unpack Quickly!
Yes, moving is exhausting, but don’t drag it out longer than you need to. Start unpacking and putting things away as soon as you can. Once your new place starts to feel like home, it’ll all be worth it!

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