While looking at houses for sale and choosing the one you want can be very exciting, when you get down to the nitty gritty of packing up your household and moving it to the new place, most likely all you'll be feeling is stress. Moving brings out the worst in everybody - it takes a lot of time and effort and money and the whole process can leave your family relations in shambles if you let it. To help prevent this from happening to you, we've got a few tips for packing and moving that should smooth out the process. Many thanks to Lunafarms.ca for their support.
Budget for the Move
Many people, when they're looking at a condo for sale, think only of how much it would cost to purchase the property and not any of the associated costs of moving. You'll need to budget for the moving truck rental, boxes, packing tape, markers, packing material such as peanuts or bubble wrap, and storage and hotel costs if you can't move straight in. Call the moving company and get estimates beforehand so you won't lose your cool when the bills start rolling in.
Give Yourself Enough Time
The temptation to get out of your current real estate and into your new real estate right away will be very great, but you need to resist for the sake of your sanity. Unless you've got a great offer that's conditional on your immediate removal, program your sale contract with a move-out date that gives everyone a reasonable amount of time to pack and arrange for the removal of their belongings. For large homes, this means something on the order of two weeks at least.
Don't Skimp on Protection
When you're looking at the shelf prices of bubble wrap and packing peanuts, it can be very tempting to just stick your things in a box unprotected and hope they get to the location in one piece. Don't do this. You will hate yourself for it later when all your things turn up broken. If you don't want to shell out for bubble wrap or boxes, speak to a friend or neighbor who works a retail store. He or she can probably save you some of the material that would otherwise be thrown away, or alternatively, save your newspapers and crumple them up for cushioning.
Tie Up Loose Ends
And finally, before you take off for good for new home, make sure everything's closed down. Cancel your newspaper subscription, your cable, your electricity and other utilities. Give important people like family, doctors, and banks your new address, and make the rounds of your friends saying farewell so you can start again without being constantly dragged back to deal with things from your old life.
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