10 Things to Do to Prepare for a Long-Distance Move
Know all of the important dates
It may seem silly, but knowing all of the dates around a long-distance move is very important. You will need to know the day you need to be out of your current home, the day you will be able to get keys to your new home, as well as the date you will be able to move in. This will help you coordinate and stay on track. We recommend printing out a blank calendar page that you can keep with you and write down information for each day as it applies. This is also a great place for you to write down any important numbers such as moving companies, utilities, and anything else that you may need in the process of coordinating your long-distance move.
Central Location for Important Documents
When people are moving, they typically have a filing cabinet where they keep all of their records. Ideally, you will wrap the entire filing cabinet in plastic wrap for transportation, keeping most of their important documents in the filing cabinet itself. The one caveat is that you should keep your most valuable items with you during the process of your move. If you need to go out and buy a folder to hold birth certificates, passports, ID cards, marriage and birth certificates, and anything else that is pertinent, we highly advise that you keep these items on you during your move. Other helpful information to keep on you, would be your service contract with your moving company, a list of any important numbers, and information about your new home including but not limited to how to obtain your new keys and who to call if you have issues doing so.
Utilities
Since we have now established that you need to know the dates you need to be out of your current home and into your new home, it is time to call your utility companies to arrange shut off at your old residence, which we recommend scheduling for a day or two after you need to be out, and then you will want the utilities to be turned on the earliest possible date at your new residence. When you arrive you will want to have power and water available at the very minimum. At the end of your day moving in, one of the things you’re going to want is a hot shower, so make sure you get this scheduled with enough time that you do not have to wait.
Measure
When you buy a new home, you typically receive a home report that gives you all of the measurements for each room in the house and the doorways. On your end, you should go to your home and measure any furniture or electronics to make sure that the moving company has the proper equipment to both wrap and carefully move your large items. These items include but are not limited to refrigerators, entertainment stands, coffee tables, couches, bed frames, and mattresses.
Hire a moving company
When hiring a moving company, it is important that you call at least three but no more than five. Before you make a call it’s helpful to have a good idea of the large items you will need to be transport as well as their measurements, which we have already gone over. When you are speaking to a moving company, first impressions matter, so if something seems off, be polite but move on. Ideally, even if a company you are hiring is not local to you, they will send somebody out to your home to give you an estimate. We often have people give us a call because they plan on moving to Tucson, Arizona, but they are coming from states away. We can arrange a time to do a video call where you can walk us through your home and we can advise you on what a rough estimate would be.
Declutter
Decluttering your current home is invaluable advice, that many people will give you. What better time to go through the items in your entire house and throw out anything you don’t need than ahead of a long-distance move?! Keep in mind, most moving estimates are charged by the weight of the load, so the less stuff you have to move, the better the price you will get. When going through your belongings take an inventory of the items you will take and then create two other piles, one for items you plan on donating, and the second, items that you will be throwing away.
Sort valuables into one section
Something helpful to do before movers arrive, is to sort your valuable and fragile items into one section of your home. This way you can easily document the current condition of these items and go over them with a moving company. this will also guarantee that none of your fragile items get overlooked because you have already let a moving company know that these are the important items to you, so they can take extra precautions when packing.
Label Boxes
If you take the time to properly label boxes when you are packing, it will help save you headaches when you arrive at your new home. Most people know to label boxes as kitchen, bathroom, living room, or master bedroom, but it might be best to use a color-coordinated system. Packing tape comes in a variety of colors and if you designate certain colors for certain rooms, you can easily create a key for the movers so that unloading the truck can go as quickly and seamlessly as possible. It may also be helpful to create a secondary label that tells you the importance of the items in each box. If you have a box full of old books that you won’t be needing right away, label it in a way that tells you this is not a first priority to open. On the flip side, you might want to put stars on boxes that need to be opened first for each room.
Pack a personal bag
You will want to keep your essential items with you at all times. We spoke about keeping your important documents with you but there are other items that you should have on hand in the event that you arrive at your new home before the moving truck. You will want to have clothes for at least a couple of days, toiletries, chargers for any electronics that you also will be keeping with you, as well as any medications that you may need.
Pack a box to keep with you for immediate essentials
Aside from packing a bag with your personal belongings, you should also pack a box of items that you will need immediately when you arrive. These items could include things like a shower curtain, trash bags, a few tools such as screwdrivers and hammers, a pair of scissors, extra tape, a blow-up mattress, a few blankets, and then a notepad and pen for any notes that you may need to make along the way.
Bonus Tip
If you are struggling to find information about moving, please feel free to reach out to us anytime, as we are happy the help! We wish you luck on your long-distance move.
