Your Checklist From Now Until Moving Day
Question: My husband and I are planning to downsize from our current 4-bedroom home to a townhouse. This seems like a huge job, since we haven’t moved for over 20 years. What do you suggest to make it easier?
Moving to a new home after many years is difficult for a variety of reasons. You have accumulated a generation’s worth of household items and memories, and as you age it gets harder to lug boxes out to moving vans. It’s even more difficult to decide what to take with you in the first place! Here is a look at the tasks that lie ahead:
1. Have a support team in place. Your support can be as simple as a grown son or daughter who can help you coordinate the move, or perhaps a close friend or neighbour. Identify who is available to help, and be sure that they will be around for the whole process, which could take several weeks or even months to complete.
2. Book a moving company immediately for the day that you plan to move. Most reputable moving firms are busy and booking far in advance. Discuss with them the services they can provide, and how much it will cost at each level of service.
3. Have a scaled floor plan of your new home. One of trickiest parts of downsizing is deciding what will come with you to your new home. Large furniture ensembles that look right at home in your current place may not be suitable for a cozier living arrangement. A moving assistant can help you determine what will fit, and what to pass along.
4. Make a list of the items you plan to bring with you. Much of the work in downsizing involves organizing what you currently have into categories: to keep, to give to family and friends, to donate. Again, a professional downsizing company will help you through these sometimes overwhelming and emotional decisions.
5. Identify people who may appreciate items you don’t take with you. Whether it is children, neighbours, or even a local charity, you will want to feel like the items you no longer need are going to a good home. Decide in advance who may benefit from your donations, and discuss their needs in advance… or delegate this task if it seems to difficult.
6. Start clearing your home – in baby steps. This task should be broken into two-hour segments, as it is all too easy to lose objectivity if you take on a marathon clearing-out project. Do one shelf, one closet, one room at a time, and take extra care with your clothes and kitchen items.
7. Recycle and dispose of unwanted items without letting them hang around. Here is a job to plan around garbage, recycling and charitable pickup days. Once you have decided to let things go, it’s best to have them out of the house quickly!
8. Collect packing materials and start packing items while you sort and recycle. The moving task will be made quicker and more efficient if you sort and pack at the same time.
9. Remember the administrative details, such as changing your addresses, utilities, mail forwarding.
It takes an organized, objective and energetic person to manage all of the above! If you feel unable to tackle all of the above, GET HELP. Contact a relocation service, such as Changing Places, and ask for a consultation. We are happy to provide estimates, and can work alongside family and friends, or pack specialty items.
Give Changing Places a call at 250-721-4490 for a free consultation. We’re always happy to hear from you!
