How to Have a Stress-Free Local Move

Moving is time-consuming, exhausting and disorienting. Few people like to gather all their belongings and transport them to another place. But planning in advance and giving yourself as much time as possible will keep you organized and lessen your stress. Here are a few ideas for a successful, stress-free move.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

1. Start early. A couple of months before the move, start gathering boxes, going through closets and organizing. Get rid of as much as possible before you move, rather than after. Hold garage sales, make Goodwill and charity runs, or even just give things away to friends and family.

2. Pack up everything you do not use every day first. Winter or summer clothes, dishes and pans, books, toys and DVDs--you can pack all of these things weeks or even months before moving day and have less to do as it gets closer.

3. Make lists early and keep them handy. Think about everything you may need to take care of and write it down. From change-of-address forms, to calling utility and phone companies, to getting sedatives for stressed-out pets, write it down. Keep all lists somewhere handy so you can add to it and cross things off whenever they come to mind.

4. The best thing about moving locally is that you can organize cross-over time at your new place with your old place. A couple of days is great and a couple of weeks even better. If you can afford it, it is worth the money to pay double rent for two weeks or even a month. This will enable you to make runs with boxes and smaller furniture, and get things unpacked and in place early. This is especially helpful in setting up a kitchen. Other great things to move early are shelves and books, which always take up a lot of room when stacked on the floor, and linen closets. The more you can do early the better.

5. Hire help. After weeks of packing and moving boxes around, you owe it to yourself to have someone else help with the heavy stuff, especially if you have appliances and stairs. Most moving companies have a very reasonable hourly rate, and if you are prepared and packed ahead of time, you can usually move a two or three bedroom house in 5 to 6 hours.

6. Once everything is in your new place, plow through and unpack in the first couple days. It is tempting to avoid it by only unpacking the necessities. However, after all of your weeks of preparation, the sooner you get done, the sooner your new place will feel like home.