Moving Tips, Things to Avoid
It may come as a surprise, but many moving companies commonly refuse to relocate specific items. If you are planning a move in the near future, you should know what items you ought to plan on moving yourself, without the help of a professional moving company. Read on to learn more:
Heirlooms or Extremely High Value Items
Expensive property or items that are of extreme sentimental value are often not ideal to relocate via a moving company. These items include jewelry, cash reserves, stocks or other high value items. In addition, a moving company’s insurance will only cover lost or damaged items at their market value. Therefore, an item that holds immense sentimental value, perhaps something that has been passed down in your family, would not be something a moving company could adequately insure. If something happened to said item, the market value wouldn’t begin to cover the sentimental loss. Therefore, it’s wise to keep both high value items and those of sentimental nature with you during a move and not on a moving truck.
Plants And Pets
In some specific cases, moving companies will transport a certain type of plant, with a special permit. However, in most cases, plants are not considered transportable because pests can hitch a ride with them and be inadvertently transported to another area. Also, pets, being living beings, are not something you should transport via a moving company. Your pet should stay with you and make the trip to your new home by your side.
Hazardous, Flammable or Corrosive Materials
Anything that includes acid, flammables, such as lighter fluid, kerosene fuel, charcoal and paint remover cannot be moved via a moving truck. There are many household items that fall into this category. Therefore, you should check with your moving company before packing to determine their policy on these items. Often moving companies will have a list of items they will not transport, which often includes gasoline, batteries, pain thinner, fire extinguishers and aerosol cans.
Certain Types of Equipment
Fuel-powered equipment, like lawn mowers, weeding equipment, motorcycles and more must be drained of their fuel at least 24 hours before moving to be applicable for transport. If equipment still has traces of fuel inside the tanks, moving companies will often refuse to transport them for safety reasons.
Scuba And Diving Equipment
The pressurized oxygen that is housed in scuba tanks makes diving and scuba equipment a no-can-do for many moving companies. There is a risk of explosion due to the mixture of gases in these tanks, which is a liability movers don’t want.
Pianos
There are many moving companies that will not move a piano. This is usually because this item demands special equipment and experience in order to move properly. Often, it’s a much better to have the piano moved professionally by a piano moving company.
While the vast majority of your household possessions are easily handled by a moving company, there are a few specific items they often refuse to move. The items listed above are just a few. It’s a good idea to ask ahead of time what items cannot be moved and prepare alternative ways to get them relocated.
Moving Technology, Moving Tips
Let’s face it, completing a move is overwhelming and stressful to say the least. Thankfully, if you tap into the technology that is available to you in today’s tech-savvy industry, your move can be much less stressful, even fun. Read on to learn more about using tech to make your move easier:
Using Technology to Make Your Move Easier
- Schedule Smart: Scheduling is vital to substantiating a successful move. There are many apps available that help you organize necessary tasks. Apps like Wunderlist and Sortly are two examples. They allow you to set deadlines, reminders and create to-do lists. Using an app like these will enable you to focus on other things…not worry about remembering every single task.
- Organize and Downsize: One way to reduce your stress during a move is to cut down on the amount of gear, furnishings, decor, furniture, etc. that you have to move. You can go about this a couple of ways. One is to sell items. If furnishings are in good enough condition, this can be a great way to make some extra money and reduce the amount of stuff you have to move, simultaneously. Some apps that can help with this include LetGo and ThredUp. If you would rather avoid spending time pricing items or listing them and don’t mind not making any money off your items, you can always donate unwanted items instead. You can write off your donation on your taxes, which can be financially beneficial. Not to mention the feeling of satisfaction you get from knowing you helped someone with your donated items.
- Maintenance and Repairs: Another important task on your to-do list before moving is to make sure all necessary repairs are done, and complete various maintenance issues around your current home before you leave. Finding time to complete these repairs yourself can be impossible or you might not have the materials or knowledge needed to do the job. If this sounds like your situation, hiring a professional is wise. Finding the best one isn’t always easy, though. There are a few apps you can use to make this process a little simpler, such as TaskRabbit or Thumbtack. These apps allow you to contact professionals, share images and videos with them, schedule appointments, get instant quotes and then initiate the repair process.
- Don’t Forget Your Fuel: When all your pots and pans are packed up or in the process of being packed up or you haven’t had the time to run to the store, because of your move, cooking dinner can be a challenge. Thankfully, you can ensure you have the fuel you and your family need to get through the finish line of your move by utilizing a few helpful apps. These apps include GrubHub and Postmates. These apps allow you to order any type of food you desire, from restaurants to fast food and everything in between, all brought to your door at your convenience. No longer are you relegated to ordering pizza alone. Now every type of food is on the table…literally!
Orchestrating a move is no easy task. In fact, it’s often downright stressful. Thankfully, by using the technology apps listed above, you can make the process much easier by taking some of the load off your mind and schedule during the move. Try them and similar apps to successfully use tech to make your move easier.
Moving Tips
If you are relocating, you have a lot to think about and a lot to accomplish. Use this handy moving checklist to help you avoid forgetting any of the following 10 things.
1. Return Borrowed Items and Retrieve Ones That Belong to You
If you are like many people, you’ve loaned out a few tools or dishes or borrowed a couple of items from neighbors. Try and return these things or retrieve your items before you move. Do so the week before you move, so you have plenty of time.
2. Contact the Local Government
Depending on which state you live in, you might need to get a permit to park a moving van or pod on the street outside of your new home. If you have a driveway that you can use, then a permit isn’t necessary.
3. Change Your Address
Unless you want your mail being delivered at your old address, put in for a change of address with the United States Postal Service (USPS) at least two weeks before your move.
4. Obtain Medical and Dental Records
Unless you plan to continue using the same medical and dental providers, ask for copies of your records so that you can take them with you.
5. Obtain School Records
If your child is going to a new school, you might want to get copies from the old one. While it is possible to send some of these records electronically, it is often easier to do so the old-fashioned way.
6. Handling Insurance
Mortgage companies require homeowners to obtain insurance on their properties when they purchase them and take out a loan. Make sure that you not only have insurance on your new home, but that you cancel your old homeowner’s insurance as well. You should also check your coverage to see if it protects your possessions while they are in transport.
7. Contact Your Utilities and Service Companies
Unless you want to receive a bill for services that you aren’t using, contact all of the services (cable or satellite TV, Internet, and home phone) and utility companies (gas, electric, and water) and provide them with your last day of service. Don’t forget to contact the newspaper delivery person, trash service, and any other service (pool, lawn, or landscaping) that you receive.
8. Clean Up
Unless you leave your old home in the condition it was in when you sold it, your risk the sale. Make sure that you clean up!
9. Check the House One Final Time
Since you aren’t the only one taking belongings from your home to a pod, car, van, or moving truck, it is easy to leave something behind. Take a final sweep around your home to make sure that you have everything. Be sure to look in the attic, garage, and crawlspace.
10. Pay the Movers
Although some movers require payment in full up front, just as many are willing to take a percentage before the job and the remaining balance once it is completed. If your movers have done an exceptional job, tipping them is a nice gesture that shoes your appreciation for all of their hard work.
Moving Tips
Moving into a new place is supposed to be an enjoyable experience. However, sometimes, things just don’t work out as planned and you find yourself living in a nightmare moving scenario. Thankfully, you can take some steps to avoid these situations beforehand if you plan ahead…
Nightmare Moving Situations & How to Avoid Them
Nightmare Scenario: How Can You Possibly Pack Up All This Stuff?
You are overwhelmed with your stuff. How can you possibly get it all packed up and moved in a timely manner? You are, in essence, paralyzed because you don’t know what to do first.
Solution: Start small. Pack a duffel bag as if you are going out of town for a weekend. This will give you the necessities that you don’t want to pack away. Then, begin to gather materials you will need to pack up the rest of your belongings. This includes the following:
- Padding or bubble wrap.
- Scissors.
- Labels
- Tape
- Markers
- Boxes
After you have gathered everything you need, start with one room. Place items in boxes or bins within groups. Then, move to the next room and slowly make your way through your whole house. Remember, “the only way to eat an elephant is one bite at a time”. Don’t look at your house as a whole, just look at it as small sections.
Nightmare Scenario: Your Lease is Up Before Your New House is Ready
You find out your lease is up before your new place is ready. What can you do? Where do you go?
Solution: Talk to your landlord. Ask them is you can stay where you are and pay for a portion of the next month. Take the amount you pay monthly and divide it to see what you pay daily. Offer to pay for the days you need to stay. If this won’t work, you can stay with a friend or family member and move your stuff into a storage unit, moving pod or even someone’s garage. Just know this isn’t ideal as you will have to move everything twice. So, try to plan ahead and get your landlord to agree to let you stay the few extra days necessary.
Nightmare Scenario: Your Current Stuff Doesn’t Fit in Your New Place
You are so excited to get unpacked and in your new place. Unfortunately, you realize to your horror that your current furniture doesn’t fit in your new space, it won’t fit in the doorway or down a hallway. What can you do?
Solution: Before moving, measure the hallways and entries of your new place. Then, take the measurements of your largest pieces of furniture to ensure they will fit through the doorways and hallways. If possible, break your furniture down into smaller pieces to make them fit and then reassemble. If the worst happens and you still can’t get your furniture into your new place, you can always remove the doors in your new place to give just a bit more space. Try a window or balcony entrance if this still doesn’t give you enough space.
Nightmare scenarios as listed above sometimes do come up during a move. Thankfully, by thinking outside the box and preparing ahead of time, you can counteract most of these scenarios.
Moving Tips
Moving into your first house is an exciting time. However, the process of knowing what needs to be done as a first-time homeowner during, before and after a move can be downright overwhelming. Thankfully, the following five tips will ensure you get started on the right foot:
1.) Take Care of All Your Basics
Before going further, make sure you have looked over “The Top 10 things to do on Your First Day in Your New Home” this will ensure your basic stuff, like getting mail started/transferred and utilities switched, are taken care of, then move on to the following suggestions…
2.) Consider The Future When Furnishing
Furnishing your first house is almost as fun as finding it to begin with. Many new homeowners make the mistake of skimping on their furnishes, going second hand or simply buying cheaper furnishings. This is understandable. After all, home ownership isn’t cheap and it can be quite a shock for a first time homeowner. However, be sure to at least consider the future when furnishing your home. Buy some quality basic pieces that will grow with you as a family and will be multi-functional enough to serve their purpose for years to come. For example, consider pieces that can be expanded or arranged differently for more options down the road.
3.) Prepare to Embrace Challenges, Chaos and Eventual Conquests
Before owning a home, you were either be renting or living under your parent’s roof. This means the repair work to your home, when the need arose, as well as the regular maintenance that homes require was thankfully someone else’s responsibility. This is all about to change when you move into a place of your own. Be prepared for the chaos and challenges that will inevitably ensue. Thankfully, though, when you tackle the tasks at hand and come away more educated and experienced, you will be the better for it.
4.) Make a Maintenance Checklist/ Schedule
Speaking of the tasks that many homeowners face, most of them will either be prevented or at least minimized by regular maintenance. Your former landlord likely had a crew who performed regular maintenance on your place of residence. Now, you have to be that maintenance crew and keep your home in tip-top shape. The following are some tasks you should make sure to do on a regular basis:
Monthly:
- Check fire extinguishers.
- Clean garbage disposal.
- Clean range hood filter.
- Clean plumbing fixtures.
- Change HVAC filers.
- Clean drains
Every Six Months
- Test smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. ( Before completing this step, make sure you have enough alarms for your home. Also, note if you need a rope ladder for second floor rooms and get one.)
- Clean refrigerator coils.
Annually
- Have termite inspection performed.
- Clean exterior dryer vent.
- Have chimney professionally cleaned
- Inspect all plumbing.
- Have cooling/heating systems serviced.
- Clean gutters.
5.) Familiarize Yourself With Your Home
Now that you own a home, you want to make sure you are truly the master of your domain. To do this, you need to know where everything is so you can access it quickly. Locate your main water valve and fuse box now. In an emergency situation, you do not want to waste time finding these all-important locations.
By following the tips listed above, you will ensure your experience as a first time homeowner is a good one.
Sources:
https://www.mymove.com/moving/15-tips-moving-first-house
