Your Ultimate Packing and Moving Checklist
Is it time to move?
Throughout the seasons of life, there are many reasons as to why we move from one home to another, and endless factors that can be taken into account when making the decision.
Whether it’s time to exit the rental market and purchase your first home, you need something a little bigger as your family continues to grow, or it’s finally time to downsize after the kids have moved out and retirement has begun! I have worked with many clients who are selling and/or buying, with many factors impacting their decision to move.
What is most important to consider at the end of the day, is how you prepare and execute the move. Moving isn’t always a walk in the park, which is why the right plan and approach is so important!
In this article, I’m going to break down the different stages of packing and moving, outlining all of the things that should absolutely be taken into consideration. With the right strategy, you can enjoy a seamless and hassle-free move that is free of unnecessary stress!
Getting Started
Schedule Time to Pack and Moving Dates
Once you have purchased a home and secured a move-in date, ensure that your schedule accounts for packing and moving.
This can range from a few nights a week or solid weekends dedicated to packing your home, to scheduling a week away from work to move and settle into your new home.
Set a Realistic Moving Budget
With packing and moving, you will need to set a short-term and long-term budget to cover your costs. This will help to ensure a comfortable and transparent experience for you, your family and your moving team.
Some costs that you may want to consider include:
Packing supplies, such as boxes or bins, labels, and storage fees.
Moving costs, such as hiring a moving company or payment for friends and family
Mail forwarding to your new home while address changes are implemented
Relocation fees for certain service providers
Don’t forget to set aside money in your budget for water, coffee and pizza on moving day! Your moving team will forever thank you for your consideration!
Renting? Speak With Your Landlord
If you are currently renting, you will need to provide your landlord with appropriate notice. Generally, 60 days of notice is required, but this may differ depending on your lease or agreement.
Communication with your landlord is also important as you may need to work together to coordinate viewings for potential tenants, have service providers visit your home or even renovations to be planned after you have vacated the unit or property.
With the right approach and notice, you can leave your rental property on great terms with your landlord. Not only is this generally a great general practice in life, but it can also leave you with a glowing review!
Notify Your Service Providers
I can’t stress enough how important notifying your service providers is when you are planning to move. How much time your service providers need ahead of the moving date may differ from one to the next, which is why it’s so important to check in with them earlier on.
This can include the following service providers:
Insurance
Utilities
Cable and Internet
Phone
Home Security
Generally, your service providers won’t need more than a week, if not a couple of days, prior to the move to be notified, but this isn’t always the case! Once you know your moving date, give each provider a call to be sure.
Gather Packing and Moving Supplies
Before you can begin packing, you will need to have the right supplies on hand.
Consider the following moving supplies:
Boxes
Bins
Tape
Permanent Markers
Labels
Bubble Wrap
Moving Blankets
Reusable Bags
Garbage Bags
Please keep in mind that if you are working with a moving company, they may provide you with certain moving supplies or request that you use one type or brand over another.
Hire a Moving Company
Once you have determined your moving date, I suggest hiring a moving company right away. This will help to ensure that the right team and company are booked for your moving date well ahead of time.
Not only can this help to reduce the risk of not finding a moving company for your preferred date, but also that it’s a company that is trusted and reputable.
Decluttering and Cleaning
Dispose of Hazardous Items
The fewer hazardous items that you need to pack and account for, the easier your move will be. From cleaning products to paint, I suggest taking inventory of the hazardous items in your home and making a plan to dispose of them accordingly.
Clearing Out Your Fridge, Cabinets and Pantry
Once your moving date is set, it’s time to start eating!
The less you have to pack or throw away, the better. I suggest starting with items in your freezer, as these can prove to be a little more difficult to move without affecting the quality or safety. Once the freezer is looking a little bare, move onto the pantry items!
Fresh food generally has a shorter shelf life, so you won’t necessarily have to worry too much about consuming more fresh products than usual.
About a week before your moving date, consider starting to pack pantry items that won’t be eaten prior to the move. As your fridge, cabinets and pantry are emptied, take time to give each area a proper cleaning.
Sorting All Household and Personal Items
Before you can pack your items, it can be helpful to first sort through them. This is an essential step in the decluttering process, as there will likely be a number of personal and household items that won’t come with you to your new home.
When sorting your items, aim to place them in one of the following categories:
Keep
Donate
Sell
Toss
Not only can this help to declutter your items prior to packing, it can also help to ensure that there is an action item for each piece.
Sell, Donate and Toss What You Don’t Need
The key to success when sorting your personal and household items? Ensuring that each piece in the donate, sell or toss piles are actioned immediately! If you wait too long, you might not have enough time once your moving day arrives.
Cleaning Your Current Home
Cleaning is one of the best ways to prepare your home for packing and moving.
Not only can a good clean make it easier to sort and pack your items, it can also provide you with an opportunity to identify and address any damage.
Above all, taking the time to clean your home prior to moving can take away a lot of hassle and stress that many experience on moving day.
While this doesn’t mean that no cleaning will be needed on moving day, it does mean that a lot less will be required. Taking away unnecessary stress from an already overwhelming day!
Cleaning Your New Home
If you have the opportunity to enter your new home prior to your move-in date, this is a great opportunity to perform certain cleaning duties! While many sellers will ensure that the house is cleaned once they have moved out, it may not be up to your standard.
By taking the time to ensure that the floors, cabinets and countertops are clean within your new home, it can help to create a more seamless transition on moving day.
Packing and Preparing to Move
Change Your Address
As you prepare to move, it’s essential that you take some time to change your address. The areas where your address needs to be changed can differ from one person to the next.
This list can include: Service Ontario, Service Canada, your employment, home service providers (such as insurance and utilities), your bank, and various accounts, among others!
Schedule a Pest Inspection
Nothing can put a damper on moving into a new home quite like pests. To help reduce the risk of dealing with a pest problem after you’ve moved into your new home, I suggest scheduling a pest inspection.
If anything is discovered during the inspection, it can be dealt with quickly and accordingly prior to moving day.
Moving With Children or Pets?
Do you have children or pets? Be sure to account for them when planning, packing and moving. This can include sorting through their belongings and planning care for moving day.
You may want to consider having a discussion with your children about moving to a new home sooner rather than later. This can help to prepare them for the transition, and even get them involved in the preparation process!
Packing and Labeling Boxes
Once the items have been sorted and your space is clean, it’s time to pack! How you pack the items in your home is completely up to you. Some choose to take it one room at a time, while others do a little bit at a time.
Once you have packed each box, bin or bag, be sure to label it accordingly and tuck it into a corner or designated area.
Moving Day!
Getting Ready
Congratulations, it’s your moving day!
All your hard work has paid off, it’s finally time to move into your new home. To help set yourself up for success on this day, take some time to wake up, get ready and get organized. Take a shower, eat a good breakfast, and have a cup of coffee, water or tea!
On moving day, you will want to wear something comfortable that you can move around in. This could range from shorts or leggings, to a t-shirt or long-sleeved shirt, but should always include comfortable shoes. Such as running or walking shoes!
Getting Organized
Once you are ready for the day, it’s time to make a plan:
Confirm the members of your moving team
Account for where children and/or pets will be
Set a start and estimated finish time
Designate people to be at the old and new house
Organize drinks and food for your moving team
Pack a bag of essential items, including your keys, wallet, phone, charger, grooming and hygiene products, and medication.
With the right approach, you can enjoy a seamless moving experience!
Communicating With Your Moving Team
Once you have a plan in place, get in touch with your moving team. Take time to confirm when you will be getting started, the addresses and timelines for the day.
This is also a great time to confirm the plan for payment.
Cleaning
As items are removed from your old home and each room is cleared, it’s time to begin the final cleaning. If you cleaned each space while packing, this should be a fairly straightforward process.
Wipe down cabinets and countertops, ensure the bathroom has been cleaned and sanitized, sweep and mop the floor, and remove all garbage. To take things one step further, consider also running the cleaning mode on your oven, washing machine and/or dishwasher!
Final Walk-Through and Leaving the Keys
Your bags are packed. The moving van has left. It’s finally time to say goodbye.
Saying goodbye to your old home can be an emotional experience. But it’s important to remember that with this goodbye, comes the new memories to be had in your new home.
Take some time to say goodbye, do a final walk-through to ensure that all spaced have been cleared and cleaned, and leave the keys.
Now, your new journey begins!
Real Estate Made Easy With Sonia Oliveira
Is it time to buy, sell or invest? Whether you’re a first-time home buyer or you have owned several properties, I am here to help! I can help you navigate the local real estate market, from Kitchener, Cambridge and Waterloo, throughout Guelph, Brantford and surrounding communities!
To get started, contact me today! I would be more than happy to meet with you, discuss your goals and create a plan that meets all of your needs and expectations.
