Our Move PART-4


Here is a sneak peek of our new house!
Do you notice it? That crazy door knob in the MIDDLE of the door? Strange right?

Okay, so offers accepted on BOTH homes and now we're ready to move. This is where reality bites. Moving is expensive! I mean.... from home inspections, to closing permits, to repairs, to realtor and mortgage broker fees, to movers, to home insurance, it's not cheap! This is where my first moving tip comes in.

#1- DO NOT BUY BOXES! Just don't! There are plenty of boxes in the world. I had friends save me boxes, I went dumpster diving, asked supermarkets and pretty much ANY store I was in for boxes. MOST complied. What most people don't know about me is that I'm a bit of a tree hugger, so aside from the fact that boxes are a rip off, you are also destroying trees in the process. So DON'T! In the end we only bought a few wardrobe boxes. And the best place to get boxes for FREE? Ready? TUESDAY MORNING!  They have a huge crate full just waiting for you to rescue them. Michael stumbled upon this little secret. Photo of Tuesday Morning box crate. Your welcome! 
Photo courtesy of Michael Andrew
#2-Start packing NOW! You think you don't have a lot of stuff? Well, you'd be surprised! You realize how much you have when you're moving! I kept telling Michael that I felt like our house was like a clown car. Just when I thought I was done, I'd open a cabinet or drawer and BAM! More stuff! Start packing when you are even thinking of moving. Get rid of stuff. Donate, throw it out! 

#3- Buy colored duct tape! I read this little tidbit on Pinterest. I bought different rolls of colored tape on Amazon, and assigned a color to each room. Tommy's room was red (his favorite), the Living room was yellow, kitchen, blue etc. etc. That way when the movers were delivering our stuff it was a lot easier (and faster) for them to deliver each box to the correct room. You can even make a chart for the movers. See HERE. I put a strip from the top down to the side so they could see it from either direction. Now don't get me wrong, this technique is NOT foolproof! We still had boxes delivered to  the wrong rooms, but I'll equate that with laziness. There, I said it!


#4-Be organized! Moving companies charge by the hour, so being organized is key! If the movers are waiting around for you to continue to pack, you are wasting time and money. Mike and I did a good job packing, considering we lost 2 days of packing due to the stomach flu. We also kept all the colored boxes in groups. That way the movers literally could grab and go. Our entire house that Mike owned for 25 years was moved out in 3 hours! And ,everything was moved into our new house in 2 hours. That's FAST! But, there's more to that story in a future post, so don't be too impressed yet.

#5-Pack a suitcase with immediate needs! I packed one suitcase with clothes and toiletries for Mike, Tommy and myself. Tommy's section also included toys, snacks and any other need a toddler has because believe you me, you do NOT want to be dealing with a fussy toddler when moving! 

#6-Don't forget to forward your mail, and have the utilities turned on in your new place. Don't forget to turn OFF all utilities in your old place too. It takes USPS 8-10 business days to process your mail forward even after your request so make sure to do it on time. 

#7-Pack all bedding, blankets and pillows in Hefty bags. I called the moving company ahead of time to make sure this was okay. They said absolutely! Just not knives. I said,"Really?" They said,"Oh, yeah. We've seen it all!" You can pack clothes in bags too. Get the strong ones.

#8-Accept the help of friends! Not having any family in town for our move was hard. Especially with Tommy, and because our movers screwed up and couldn't fit all of our stuff on the truck, THANK GOD for friends. We had two good friends come over the night of our move at 12am to help Mike load his truck. I also had a good friend take off of work during our closings to watch Tommy. Thank God for friends!

#9-Get a hotel! Depending on what your situation is, it's nice to have a place to crash. Especially if you can't immediately move into your house. We got a hotel for 2 days with credit card points (so basically FREE) so we'd have a place to put our valuables, and sleep the night before our closing. We closed on BOTH homes in one day, so we couldn't stay in our old house waiting to move into the next.

#10-Order takeout and have a drink! There is no way you are cooking in a new home. It took me a few days just to find a drinking glass let alone cook. Order out, but make sure you have a bottle of champagne or an ice cold beer to celebrate!

Stay tuned!

1 comment

BMWcustomernot said...

All good suggestions. RE USPS forwarding, I am a snowbird and I forward the mail every 6 months.
The change of address can be done on-line and the local postoffices are immediately notified. It basically starts the day you input it. This should be backed up by taping a paper sign inside your old mailbox (if you have an outside mailbox) that reads: MAIL FORWARDED EFFECTIVE (DATE). If the postal carrier doesn't pay attention to the computer forwarding, when he/she opens your mailbox she will see the sign and not stick stuff in there.

Also, liquor stores always save boxes for people who are moving. These smaller sturdy boxes are perfect for books. If you use anything larger, it's way too heavy to lift.