Moving is a time-consuming and stressful process, but it’s also an opportunity to declutter and get organized. In addition to packing up your things, you can prepare for your move by purging unnecessary items, organizing paperwork and creating a digital inventory of belongings. The more organized you are before moving day, the less stressful it will be when you arrive at your new home!
Get rid of things you don’t need
- Donate items that you no longer need. If you have too many things, and some of them are in good condition, consider donating them to charity. You can also sell your unwanted stuff on eBay or Craigslist.
- Recycle items that won’t be reused. If something is broken or damaged beyond repair, recycle it by throwing the item away responsibly at a local recycling center or taking it to a household hazardous waste facility (local government offices may have details on where these facilities are located).
- Throw away expired medications: When possible, try not to leave expired medications lying around your house–they could be dangerous if they fall into the wrong hands!
Make a photo album of your old home
· Take pictures of every room in your house. You can do this with a smartphone or camera, but it’s best if you have a decent DSLR camera.
· Include pictures of your furniture, decorations and favorite things. This will help you remember how you decorated your home over the years, so that when it comes time to decorate again (and it will), you’ll know what worked for you before!
· Use these photos as inspiration for future projects or redecorating ideas–in fact, we recommend making an album out of them so they’re easy to reference later on down the road!
Sort through (and toss) paperwork
Now is the time to sort through your paperwork. You’ll want to keep important documents like tax records and pension statements, bank statements and insurance policies. You should also hold onto medical records, school records and birth certificates–and any legal documents such as birth certificates or marriage licenses.
If you have too much paper that isn’t essential for your needs after moving on from this home (or even if you don’t), consider shredding or recycling it before packing up the rest of your belongings.
Create a digital inventory of your belongings
Creating a digital inventory of your belongings is one of the best ways to prepare for a move. It’s also an excellent way to declutter and minimize your life, because it forces you to decide what items are truly important enough to keep.
You can use an app like Evernote or Google Drive to create this spreadsheet. The first step is importing photos of each item–you should take pictures front-on and from all sides so that the app can identify them correctly when scanning barcodes or other identifying marks on their surface (this will help prevent mistakes). Once you’ve done this with all of your stuff, add extra details such as size, material type, purchase date/location/price paid (if applicable), etc…
Plan for the unexpected during your move
It’s important to have a plan for the unexpected during your move. You may think you have everything under control, but there could be some things that come up that you didn’t expect. It’s better to be prepared than not, so here are some tips on how you can prepare yourself for the unexpected:
Have a backup plan in case something goes wrong with your original plan. For example, if your moving truck is late or breaks down on its way to pick up your stuff at home and deliver it at its new destination (or vice versa), then having another option like renting another truck or hiring 2 Men Removals who can transport everything by hand would be helpful!
You can prepare for a move by decluttering, sorting your belongings and making a plan for the unexpected
Decluttering is the process of getting rid of all the stuff you don’t need and organizing what’s left. It can be overwhelming, but it’s important to consider how much space your belongings take up and whether they’re worth it.
For example, if you want to declutter before moving into a new house or apartment, start by going through each room individually and asking yourself: Do I really need this? If not, get rid of it! When deciding what to keep and what to toss out, ask yourself these questions:
· Can I use this item again in the future? If so, put it in storage until then or give it away now (and make sure there are no sentimental attachments).
· Will anyone else want this item when I’m done with it? If so–and even if not–it may be worth holding onto for others’ benefit rather than donating or selling outright; consider giving away/selling items at garage sales instead.
We hope you found these tips helpful and that they will help you prepare for your next move. Remember that the best way to keep things organized is by keeping them simple. If something isn’t working for you, try something else! And if all else fails? Just remember: there’s always room in our hearts for another box or two…
Andrew Parker