Your Moving Checklist
Are you planning a move? Whether you have recently sold your home, bought a new one, or are making a change in apartments, Good Haul has got you covered!
Moving is stressful no matter how you slice it, but there are things you can do to make the process go more smoothly. We checked with the experts at moving.com for a moving check list to keep you organized and prepared for your big move, and they recommend the following things:
- Eight weeks before the move, determine if you will be moving everything yourself, or if you will be hiring a professional. For those who will be hiring a moving company, prepare a list of questions to ask ahead of time, like cancelation policies and liability coverage. And, of course, prepare a budget: how much are you able to spend on moving costs?
- Seven weeks before the move, you will need to get estimates and schedule your professional moving company if you plan to hire someone. If you are doing a DIY move, now is the time to book a truck rental and, if necessary, reserve a storage unit.
- Six weeks before the move, you will need take inventory of everything you own to get a sense of where it will fit into your new space, and what moving supplies you will need to get your items to your new home. Do you need boxes, bubble wrap, or other supplies?
- Five weeks before the move is when you want to start decluttering. Start using up the contents of your refrigerator and pantry, sort through your extra linens to determine what is still needed, take stock of clothing, shoes, and accessories that may no longer fit, and tag any furniture items that will not fit into the new space. You can start to donate, sell, or trash those items yourself, or you can start to gather them into one place for a hauling service, like Good Haul, to take ahead of the move.
- Four weeks before the move, you should start packing. Box up your non-essential and seasonal items first, and slowly move towards items you use more regularly. Be sure to take care with fragile items and label boxes clearly. We recommend holding space for the items you do not want or need to take with you in a separate area, to make it easy to visualize what you will need to get rid of.
- Three weeks before the move, you will need to notify service providers, forward your mail, and transfer utilities. If you own pets or plants, now is the time to determine how you will be moving them from your old home to the new home.
- Two weeks before the move, moving.com recommends that you order new furniture and décor. Big-ticket items can take up to six weeks to deliver, so ordering early ensures you will have it within your first month in your new home. Now is also the perfect time to contact a professional junk hauling service, like Good Haul, to set up an appointment to pick up all of the items you will not be moving with you on the big day.
- One week before the move, you should schedule trash, recycling, and donation removals at your old home. Luckily, Good Haul can handle all three in one trip!
Additional tips for a successful move are to have water bottles on-hand the day of your move, finish any last-minute errands before moving day, transferring your prescriptions and having a month’s supply on hand before the move, and securing a parking space for your moving truck ahead of the move.
We know that the last thing you want to do is spend time, effort, and money moving things to your new home that do not need to be there. Getting rid of these items on your own is also time intensive – donations require sorting and drop offs, selling things requires advertisements and coordination with potential buyers, and electronics, appliances, and furniture are not easy to trash.
Good Haul is here to do all of those things for you. We donate all useable items, including appliances, to our nonprofit partners, including the Philadelphia Furniture Bank. We will recycle what is reusable, and only trash the items that cannot be repurposed. You will be moving into your new home free of anything that does not need to make the move with you, which is the best way to start fresh in your new home.
