10 Moving Mistakes and How to Avoid them

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10. Procrastination – This is the greatest moving mistake to over come. We found that there had to be some hard fast deadlines to get us to focus on the dreaded task.   Our real estate agent arranged to have a Home Stager come by and give us some helpful tips . Her first recommendation was to box and move roughly 70% of our belongings out of the house before listing it For Sale.  In total we had 4 months to prepare for our big move. The bulk of it was done early on, but we managed to procrastinate packing the remaining items until 2 weeks before we were scheduled to close.

Solution: Create mini deadlines for you and family members. ie.,Bring all items down from attic before we can get online.  Have all off-season clothes packed before we order a pizza. (see #2 before you store all your clothes away)

9. Boxing books– I have a ton of books.  In the past, I have boxed them up and labeled with a trusty sharpie.  The problem with this is that I tend to over pack the boxes making it impossible to carry and in some cases down right dangerous.

Solution: Use packing wrap to bind books together. You can stack them as tall as you like and you can see exactly what you have.  I’m looking forward to this come move in day!

8. Carrying Clutter – We have all done it.  We keep things for ungodly reasons with the excuse that it may be handy someday. The truth is we all have too much stuff.  I am not bold enough to say that I will ever go paperless (If you are bold enough, you can find out how here). But I was able to part with the deviled egg tray that I’ve had for years and used a total of zero times.

Solution: Really, do yourself a favor and ditch it. Give it to charity, make a buck at a garage sale or give it to a local college student. Not sure what to get rid of? Try the check list here.

7. Packing random items together – Of all the moving mistakes, this one seems most obvious, but I am surprised at how often I have unpacked boxes with unrelated items in them.  I am more likely to unpack essentials like kitchen items before craft boxes.  So you can imagine my disappointment when I had to replace my coffee maker only to find it in with my yarns months later. ‘

Solution: Go room by room and label everything. Even if it comes from the kitchen junk drawer…label it.

6. Storing your extra stuff at home – This moving mistake is counter intuitive.  I would never have paid for a storage unit if our Staging Professional had not suggested it.  The truth is, it paid for itself with the extra money we made on the sale of our home.  It also helped us to get a jump start on the packing while still living at home.

Solution: Shop around for local storage unit.  Ours was climate controlled because we lived in warm humid area, but this is not always necessary.  Many units include the use of a moving truck so shop around for the best deal.

5. Thinking you can do it alone – I have moved a total of 9 times in my life.  Most of the moves were done when I was younger and had less accumulation, so I moved most of my things in a couple of car trips.  As an adult, I had the good fortune of making two corporate moves and learned about the benefits of having help.  My belongings arrived before I did and they were all neatly categorized by the moving service.

Solution: If you can hire a moving company, by all means shop around and get referrals. If you are more of a DIYer, you can still enlist the help of your friends and family.  Most will do it for the price of a couple of beers and some pizza.  Be sure to ask early and be ready to go when they arrive.

4. Paying top dollar for moving supplies – This is another thing I learned from having professional movers.  They charged a large sum for what seemed like regular boxes and tape.

Solution: Check out local supermarkets for boxes, they generally throw them out on a regular basis and they can tell you exactly when to stop by.  I especially like boxes from a liquor store.  They have nice compartments that are perfect for moving fragile items. Another inexpensive suggestion is the moving wrap I used for my books. I also purchased some plastic tubs knowing that I could get use of them for storage at the new house.

3.Under estimating your stuff – The last of the move is always the hardest. We tend to find that we have waaay too much stuff. When faced with the hard choice of taking the kid’s favorite light up reindeer or the terra cotta planter that your grandmother gave you, you may wish you had sprung for the bigger moving van.

Solution: Take your time to calculate exactly what you will need.  Both in space and money. If you are moving to a place nearby this is not so bad a problem, but if you fail to plan you may be paying UPS to deliver your kids favorite Christmas decorations.

2. Putting everything in storage – I know what you are thinking, I said storage was a good idea, right? Well it is, until you realize that your house has been on the market for 3 months and the cool spring days have turned into melt-your-face-off days of summer and you have only cardigans and boots in your closet.  Or you find that all of your books and yarn are in storage and you have no choice but to add to your massive yarn stash just to keep your sanity. We all have addictions.  Be mindful.

Solution: Let every member of the family have a special bag that they fill as desired. My son, his laptop and mouse are must haves. His graduation cap and gown were on my list. I tried to pack like I was going on a long trip and all weather was a possibility.  I also have my craft bag. I carry it wherever I go. During the active selling period when we could be asked to leave our home for showings with only moments notice, I always knew I would have a good book and some knitting to kill time. The other bag I kept had all the paperwork related to the sell and purchase of both homes.

1. Packing important Documents – I’m wrapping up my list with a mistake I didn’t avoid. In our haste to pack everything away, I forgot to remind Jim to keep certain important documents handy. I kept my passport and banking statements in my bag. I tend to rely on hard copies while Jim is more paperless.  That is why I never thought twice to ask him for his Passport and Social Security card. As it turns out, he will need both before we can close on our new home.  We have tried to search the storage unit with no luck.

Solution:  This situation could have been avoided if we had asked our lender exactly what they required to get the loan.  Getting a mortgage loan requires a lot of patience and a long paper trail.  Be sure you have exactly what you need at your fingertips BEFORE you pack it away.  We will have to go to a couple separate locations to get the required docs. He will have to go to the Courthouse for a certified copy of his birth certificate so he can go to the Social Security office to get another copy of his Social Security card.  Thank goodness I will have a good book to read and some knitting for the wait.

So there you have it. My list of moving mistakes.  Do you have any to add?  Feel free to add it below.

~Eleanor