Top 3 Packing and Moving Tips

You’ll want an effective strategy when you decide it’s time to move. It’s a big job, and a well-thought-out plan is in order. Incorporate our Top 3 Moving and Packing Tips to save time and sanity.

Tip #1 Color Map Your Packing Boxes

This brilliant idea came from a Client, Karen Grant, from the Franklin, TN, area. She has six children and has survived many moves. Moving through these experiences, she has learned something about keeping your sanity when you move. Here’s how;

Step 1: Color Map

• Get a stack of different colored construction paper. Bright colors work well.
• On a sheet of paper, map out the rooms in your house.
• Select a color to assign to each room and color-label the map.
• Check your construction paper to estimate if you have enough color for each room.

Step 2: Box & Color

• As you box up a room, make sure to tape the corresponding color on each box for that room.
• Example: If you assigned yellow to the kitchen, then tape a yellow sheet on each box for the kitchen.
• When your movers arrive, give them a copy of your color map. Recommend that they load each color-coded room in groups onto the moving truck.

Step 3: Color Map Room Delivery

In your new home, place a colored sheet on each door or entrance to the room mapped for that colored group of boxes. Next, when the unloading crew arrives, give them a copy of your color map and explain that they will deliver each colored box to its matching room.

This strategy allows you to have your belongings delivered efficiently and organized. The color map makes the job a little more fun and easy. More importantly, no one will have to determine which room is which!

If you’re moving, this next tip is probably already on your roster, but you may feel like you’re on the verge of tears from trying to get it done.

Tip #2 Declutter

So, you’ve heard it a million times from friends, relatives, and your local real estate agent. You have to shiny-clean your house if you want it to sell for a decent price. This is true. How can buyers see themselves in your home enough to make an offer if they can’t see beyond your stuff?

Now, herein lies a major problem. This is not stuff to you. It’s your valuables, memories, the anchors to your soul, if you will. I know it’s tough. Here’s a method that will get you through this process of clearing away all of your “clutter.”

Step #1 – Organize

Go through one room at a time. Make three piles: trash, donations, and storage. As you go through each room, put every item in one of those three piles. Label each bin, box, or bag and stack them somewhere out of the way, such as in the garage. And yes, having a million bins labeled in a neat stack is fine, especially if they are out of the way in the garage.

Step #2 – Furniture

After you’ve cleared out a room, it’s time to assess your furniture situation. Get rid of old, unused items. A good way to do this is to list it on a local marketplace such as Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace. List it for a week at the price you think it’s worth. If it doesn’t sell, lower the price until it sells or until you have to haul it to the Goodwill or the dump. Get rid of as much furniture as you’re willing to part with. The more open and clean you can make your home at this point, the better.

Step #3 – Paint & Flooring

Now that you’ve cleared your clutter and outdated furniture, it’s time to paint and assess the flooring. Paint does wonders to make your home look new and smell new again. The same is true for your flooring. If you have hardwood, you may or may not want to refinish it. Buyers often want to refinish it according to their decor preference, so even if you think your hardwood could use a refinish, it may be best to hold off on it. If you have carpet, then, by all means, replace it. The carpet gets dirty quickly and smells, especially if you have pets. The cost to replace the carpet is fairly low, so this one will most definitely bring you a return.

Tip #3 Pack a Carry On

If you’re a traveler, you probably have a carry-on bag equipped with everything you have learned and need when traveling. I’m a world traveler, so I’ve learned to pack my carry-on to survive if my luggage goes missing. If I encounter an item I need not in my carry-on, I add it and make sure it’s there for the next trip. This same principle applies to moving.

Moving is one of the most stressful events in life. Every object is moved out of place, including your home base. Maybe you’re relocating out of the city, state, or country. Your brain will have to remap itself to adjust. This is a good, healthy thing to do, but it doesn’t feel like it now.

This is where your moving carry-on bag comes into play. This bag will be your go-to for every mission-critical item to ensure you function properly and not lose your mind. These are also items that you for sure do not want to lose in the move. The key to packing it properly is to start two weeks before your move.

Put the bag out on your dresser or somewhere in plain sight. Every time you come across something vital, add it to the bag. Pack it in such a way that you get comfortable with where everything is in it. As you move through each day, you’ll think of things you realize will be important to put in the bag. Here is a list of things you may want to pack;

• important documents
• spare car keys
• passports
• medications, especially headache medicine
• bottled water
• protein bars and small packaged snacks
• travel toiletries
• a change of clothes
• device chargers
• cash and an extra credit card
• spare pair of glasses

Get this bag organized before your move day so you don’t feel like forgetting something. There are many moving parts to a move, and it’s easy to feel like you’re leaving something undone.

We hope this list helps you with your next move. To make life a little easier for our Client, we’ve made a Make My Move Easy service. It’s included when we list your home. This is what’s included;

• Professional Move Out Cleaning
• Moving Company List
• Local Massage – Either at a salon you already use or a new one in your new location.

Give us a call or schedule an appointment if you’re looking to sell or buy a house.