This week is 10 tips for moving! Something I know a little about (2 moves in 4 months after 21 years in one spot ;)
1. Declutter - been meaning to go through that full closet/garage/etc. Do it early! Donate, throw away, or have a yard sale!
2. Have a portable file and/or box for all your valuable papers close at hand. In our instance, we were moved mostly by professional movers so none of our personal paperwork could go with them. We had to move it ourselves.
3. Make lists - let me tell you, it saved me many times! By the end, my mind was fried....
4. If you have precious, irreplaceable things, take pictures & inventory them. Case in point, the cradle my FIL made for my kids. The moving company just put a blanket around it. I figured it was ok, you know they "know" what they are doing...
Dunno what happened, but they paid for the repair. I don't have a picture, but it's a great repair.
5. If you are packing your own boxes, do a room at a time. Keep some tape/markers in a bag to carry from room to room. I read where you start labeling your boxes by numbers. The largest numbers will be the stuff you use a lot, meaning stuff you don't pack until the end. I used towels, sheets, and fabric in addition to some bubble wrap for padding. When I packed my wheel, I used a wardrobe box, put it in the center, and packed fiber/yarn around it. Worked great.
6. If you can, take at least a week or two off before the move. The smartest thing I ever did....of course besides packing for our own little truck of things we were taking for temporary housing, um..er...I had some touch up painting and other cleaning to do.
7. Gather all your medical records if possible(some charge $$ for copies) or at least cards from your doctors, dentist, vets, etc. so that you have their addresses on hand at your new home, makes it easier to fill out all that new paperwork.
8. Keep at least the last bill of all your utilities so that when you get to the new place, they can contact (or have you) for proof of good standing. Often times, they waive a deposit.
9. If you have children, make sure you have copies of their school records!! If necessary, a sealed transcript (for high schoolers) will make registration easier.....or should I say it would have made it easier...someone who wasn't supposed to open it, did (not me!) and the school required another transcript to be sent...yeah, just because a volunteer didn't know what she was doing!!
10. MOST IMPORTANT!!!!
If you are moving across the country like we did, please inform your bank and if you use credit cards, those company's too! Most have a travel number you can call to warn them of your upcoming activity that is out of the ordinary. How do I know this....well...after buying so much diesel fuel for the moving truck (our personal stuff) they froze 2 credit cards, and our bank debit card. Thankfully, not all at the same time. (*note to self, trip coming up in May, don't forget to call!!)
It's frustrating being at a rest stop in Texas, trying to get a signal on your cell phone, approving transactions so they can lift the hold on your account. Also embarrassing when you have to let the front desk of the hotel know that...um...can you please use this card instead when we check out....or....after you have filled the humongous diesel tank and you have to pay...yeah, like I said, thankfully not all cards at the same time ;)
After all that time in one home, what did we learn? We aren't moving ourselves again fully or partially.....if the company doesn't pay for it, then Pods it will be!!! Has to be cheaper than diesel!
5 comments:
Pods are more expensive than I thought they'd be. We used UPack for a couple of moves. I'd love to be able to use professionals, but it's too costly. With UPack, you don't have to drive it at least!
Good tips! Somebody once told me 'Clean your house once a year as if you were preparing for a move'. It makes sense, and keeps me from accumulating so much STUFF. Well, except yarn. (Shhh!)
GREAT list! Especially the tips about doctors contacts and school records. Details like that are probably the last thing on your mind when you're making a big move like you did.
Woah, say what on the cards??? Who on earth are you banking with? I've moved AK to CO, CO to MI, MI to TX and TX to NJ all in the last 12 years and I've never had my banks/cc companies pull that malarky with me! I've heard of calling them when you're going to be heading out of the country, but yikes to the moving freeze! That sucks!
Good to know, I've never heard of UPack. I agree, professionals is expensive, so glad they paid the bill, we never could.
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