How to prepare for moving day?

The preparation for moving day is notorious for its palpable stress, hectic activities and somewhat characteristic moving day mistakes. Ideally, the relocation preparation should start the moment the residential move is confirmed and, under ideal conditions, it should end just before moving day itself knocks on your door.

Now here comes the key element that often proves to be the difference between a problem-free move to another home and a chaotic one where money, time and nerves are put to the test. And of course, that key element is organization. In fact, proper organization when moving house can save you a world of troubles and should make things go as smoothly as they ever can go.

To help you prepare for moving day in the best possible way, here are the 8 most important jobs you are strongly recommended to complete in order to have the perfect move you want.

#1: Decision time: professional movers or DIY?
The preparation for moving day checklist starts with arguably the most important decision you need to make in the very beginning: should you hire the professional services of a top rated moving company or should you try to move on your own? You should know that this essential decision of yours will ultimately determine how the entire residential move will play out. Therefore, you must know how to recognize the specific indicators that will give you a hint which way is best for you in terms of money, time, safety, and peace of mind.

SEE ALSO: Why should I hire professional movers?


#2: Set your own moving calendar
While getting ready for moving day, it’s important to follow a good schedule where the tasks you are expected to do are presented in a logical and sensible manner. With the help of your personal moving calendar, you will be able to organize your pre-move time in a way so that you don’t waste a single day. Now that you know whether you will move by yourself or use an experienced moving company, you are ready to start filling up your calendar with 1) personalized and 2) prioritized move related jobs that make perfect sense for you and you alone.

MUST READ: How to create a personal moving calendar?

#3: Inventory your entire home
To best prepare for moving out, one of the first tasks in your moving checklist should be to inventory your house or apartment. Now, before you ask why you should even consider doing that potentially time-consuming task, let’s quickly point out its benefits for you. A detailed inventory list will help you 1) sort out your possessions before the packing marathon starts, 2) create a packing list to know what each moving box contains, 3) keep constant track of your belongings throughout the move, 4) have your moving costs estimated by sending the ready inventory over to a cross country moving company.

READ ALSO: How to make a moving inventory?

#4: Get rid of unwanted stuff
While preparing for moving day, one thing should be perfectly clear to you – the weight of the overall shipment will have a great impact on the final relocation bill. In other words, the fewer items you decide to move to your new residence, the less money you will have to pay in the end. Which is not a bad thing, is it? Mark down in your inventory sheet all the household items that are not worth moving for one reason or another, and then just get rid of them. You have good options here – sell some of them online or at a pre-move sale, gift them to friends or family, donate them to charity, or simply throw them for recycling.

GOOD TO KNOW: How to organize a moving sale?

#5: Initiate the packing process
Here comes the most important pre-move task ahead of you – packing up your home for a move. If you don’t realize its tremendous important for the success of your own move, you will soon do so. The three most essential things to remember before you roll up your sleeves are 1) start thinking about packing as early in your preparation for moving day as possible, 2) the rooms you take care of first should be the hardest ones to pack, and 3) packing an entire household is not a job for a single person, so get help at all costs – from your good friends or from professional packers.

MUST READ: How to start packing to move out?

#6: Take care of your kids and pets
If you’re moving house with a child (baby, toddler, school-aged child, or teenager), things can suddenly get more complicated than you need them to be. In addition to worrying about their safety, you want to make sure than they are your allies and will cooperate with the tough preparation for moving day. And although there are many things to keep in mind when moving with children, their safety and well-being remains your number one priority. And of course, the same goes for any pets you might own – dogs, cats, birds, fish, rabbits, etc. After all, they are part of your family as well. The number one safety rule on Moving day is to keep both small kids and pets away from the relocation action.

#7: Get the friendly help you need
If you have reached the conclusion that the best course of action for you will be to organize and execute a self-move, then you’re going to need some assistance from your good pals – moving assistance either during the packing marathon, or on moving day itself, or even on both occasions. You might forget the most fundamental principle when asking friends to help you move in your attempt to prepare for moving day on time. And that principle states that your buddies are probably juggling busy schedules themselves, so 1) you need to reach out to them early enough, and 2) they are under no obligation to give you a hand, so treat the whole matter as delicately as you can.

ESSENTIAL: How to get friends to help me move?

#8: Prepare for moving day itself
Still not sure how to prepare for moving day? There are so many things to do on moving day that you will probably soon find yourself overwhelmed and partly confused. Make sure you familiarize yourself with this detailed moving day checklist to help you organize your time and guide your actions during the Big day. Also, you are strongly recommend to take a look at our extensive list of things you will need on moving day so that everything goes smoothly from start to finish.