Category

Moving Tips

6 Tips to Juggle Selling Your House and Moving at the Same Time

April 7, 2021
Marie Nieves
0 Comments

Selling Your House and Moving

Selling a home and buying a new one can be hard enough, especially if you’re doing it by yourself. If you add relocation to that, the situation easily becomes too complicated and overwhelming. Luckily, there are tips that you can use to juggle all of these tasks successfully and to be fully prepared. Sell your home and move out the easiest way with our tips and the help of the right long-distance moving company.

Start on Time

What you’re going through right now can be stressful. That’s one more reason to do everything right. The key to that would be to allocate enough time to take care of every single task. Time management is crucial for buying and selling real estate. If you’re bad at it, use all the help you can get to make relocation less stressful. Just moving to another state can take up months of preparation, so when you have these two combined, use all the free time you have to deal with tasks that await you.

Selling Your House and Moving

There Will Be a Lot of Planning and Investigating

Prepare for that and start doing your homework – before you put a “For Sale” sign in your front yard, make sure you know the housing market in your area. Check whether some houses similar to yours are being sold now and for what price. You can also see how many potential buyers there are and how fast the homes are sold. That will help you estimate how soon your house will sell, and that way, you can organize your time.

Estimate the Value of Your Home

Getting an appraisal is another key part of planning. In order to sell your home, you need to know its worth and how much you should ask for it. Make your home look its best, fix all problems, and get all the paperwork that proves the worth. Then, you can find a local expert to help you get an estimate.

Selling Your House and Moving

 

Take Care of Your Finances

Moving to another state isn’t cheap, not to mention buying a new house and hiring a long-distance moving company. In order to have enough money for all that you’ve planned, start saving at least a year before the day of the move. Make sure you can afford to have two houses at the same time. You should have paid your first mortgage before getting the second one since not all lenders want to risk and provide a person with two unpaid mortgages. If you have to do things this way, you will have to prove that you can pay for these costs.

Find a Job in the Place Where You’re Relocating

Unless you’re self-employed, you will have another thing to cross out from your to-do list, and that is finding a new job in the new state. Let your friends and acquaintances know that you’re moving and looking for a position in your field of work. Start networking and use all the resources you can. 

Selling Your House and Moving

 

Consider Finding a Real Estate Agent

The person you hire should know the neighbourhood very well. That will help you save time you would otherwise spend researching the houses for sale in the area. This professional will also guide you through the process and make everything easier, especially if this is your first time selling a house.

Real Estate Agent

Hire a Professional Moving Company

With all of these tasks and stress on your shoulders, packing and doing the logistics of your move will only make things worse. Instead of spending time researching which truck you should rent, learning how to pack certain items, buying all the equipment and supplies you need, getting someone to help you carry the heavy objects, you can simply hire a professional moving company. Check out online reviews and choose the one that has the highest number of satisfied customers. 

 

Consider Renting for Some Time Until You Sign for Another Home

Since you’re coming to another state, it’s always better to spend some time there before you buy a property. Renting or staying in a hotel solves this problem. If you’ve visited that city multiple times and you already like it, make sure you don’t sign anything before you have a qualified and serious buyer for your first home. This will save you from a lot of potential financial problems. Again, having a good real estate agent to recommend an area in the new state is incredibly helpful.

Continue Reading

101 Storage Guide for New Movers: Making Life Easier

September 16, 2020
Chloe Taylor
0 Comments

Certain life events trigger visible changes in our life. Moving is one of them and probably the most frequent one too. An average person moves more than ten times in his/her life. With 31 million folks moving annually, no wonder it’s become a $86 billion industry in the United States. People of this beautiful country also like to hold on to their belongings. That’s why we’ll provide new movers with a storage guide that should make their lives easier.

STORAGE GUIDE FOR NEW MOVERS

The beginning of every successful journey requires the completion of specific necessary steps. Here we’ll break down the storage adventures of a mover in five convenient stages. They shall cover the beginning of your moving experience to its triumphant conclusion.

START PLANNING EARLY

It’s crucial to begin moving preparations before the actual event. Some experts suggest you should start making arrangements as early as a month before the day of moving to your new house for rent. You might think Moving will be a piece of cake for your family. But packing the entire house and shifting hundreds of objects is no vacation. Try to plan which rooms to get empty first and select the ones your family has the least use. Arrange friends for help prematurely, so you don’t have to bear their last-minute excuses.

COLLECT THE RIGHT SUPPLIES

Begin gathering some supplies to help you pack your belongings into nice little boxes and packages. Heavier items must go into smaller cartons. This trick makes these items more comfortable to lift, push, or carry. Your dishes and glassware belong inside cartons. Then you’re going to need some tape and a permanent marker to seal and designate each box. You can also use color-coding for the process. Categorizing the packages makes it easier for you to identify which items each of them contains. This classification saves you the frustration of unpacking. Moreover, designate a particular room to put all these boxes. Here’s a list of supplies for your convenience:

  • A pair of scissors
  • Some pens and markers
  • Many boxes and cartons
  • Bunch of bubble wraps
  • A few fillers and labels

TRY SELF-STORAGE

Hiring a storage unit helps you accommodate your excessive objects. Texans can try Amarillo self storage for climate-controlled units of different sizes. Sometimes, you can’t bring everything home. These storage spaces allow you to place unnecessary but difficult-to-replace items somewhere safe. The trick is to reserve a storage unit as soon as possible. It will help you start packing without wasting any moment. Here’s how you choose the best storage space for you:

  • Select the closest unit to your location to save some money on transportation.
  • Check if the premises are secure or not. What kind of anti-theft and anti-robbery measures do the proprietors take? Make sure to invest in moderately-guarded facilities.
  • The condition of the facility matters too. Be cautious about the humidity and temperature of the premises. Invest in humidity operators and thermostats or damp sticks. Hire only climate-controlled units and don’t take any risk with your expensive belongings.

JETTISON YOUR CLUTTER

Moving is an excellent excuse for you to start decluttering. A 2015 report revealed that people were hoarding dangerously as the country had more self-storage facilities than McDonald’s restaurants. You’ll find many junk mail, damped books, discarded artifacts, and smelly furniture in the house. It’s time to ditch all this garbage to lessen your storage and transportation expenditures. Hoarding is a hair’s length away from getting classified as a disorder! So, donate, recycle, or throw away your clutter. Wanna earn some decent bucks? Organize a garage sale and fund your house change. That’s a fun and easy way to get rid of useless items.

GET MOVING

In the end, it’s time to pack and move. Ask around to moving companies. Your friends might know professional movers. Labeling is the secret behind a seamless moving experience, we’ve explained before. Pack efficiently by putting similar items together. Don’t overload the cartons; it’ll just make them harder to push around. Use some bubble wrap to protect your breakable belongings. Make a list of all the items you had and have packed. This list will come quite handy while you unpack. Don’t let movers transport your entire household. Make a bag of necessities you and your family can carry on their person. This bag will contain your nighties, brushes, and toiletries.

INSURANCE

You can’t blindly trust your movers with all your expensive clothes, glassware, computer items, and furniture. Look around for a moving company that provides you insurance. Insurance helps you receive compensation for any broken/damaged item in the end. Storage facilities also offer insurance. Stay away from any insurance policy that is not FSA-approved. Insurance policies within storage companies can be expensive. Never underestimate how vital insurance is!

CONCLUSION

A recent survey asked people about the most stressful event in their lives. Reportedly Moving makes people more depressed than a breakup does. Even marriage and children cause less stress than changing houses. And it’s because Moving is more frequent than weddings or divorces. Experts estimate that, while 70% of moving revenue gets spent on shifting, 20% goes to storage facilities. Self-storage in the United States generates around $36 billion every year. These facilities allow people to safely store their precious items while they change residences without caution. The steps we’ve mentioned above will ensure that shifting ceases to become a bother for our readers.

Continue Reading

Packing and Moving Tricks for Hassle-free Shifting

August 13, 2020
Chloe Taylor
0 Comments

At times, shifting could come up with an emotional setback. Because when you bid farewell to an old house, you tend to miss everything about the place. It is part and parcel of human nature. From your favorite spot in the house to its surroundings, it might take time to get over the nitty-gritty eventually. However, another aspect of relocating could prove to be far more demanding, namely, packing and moving stuff.

It could be a stressful task, especially if someone is doing it for the first time. Luckily, various ways can take a lot of burden off your shoulders and make the shifting process entirely hassle-free. So let’s get to the bottom of reliable packing and moving tricks without further ado:

Declutter

Decluttering will save you from packing unwanted baggage. While getting on with purging, do not get carried away by the emotional attachment with household objects. Because it can stimulate you to carry unnecessary items such as a worn-out table you used to celebrate your child’s first birthday.

Instead of throwing everything away, you should consider donating things that are still in decent shape or require marginal fixes. Selling might serve the purpose as well.

If you want to shift in the span of a few days and don’t have enough time to pack everything, you may outsource a storage company. It will keep your items secure in their lockers temporarily. Unlike in the past, it is not difficult to find suitable storage capacity. For example, if you live in Texas, all you have to type is self storage in Fort Worth, TX, and that is about it.

Buy quality boxes

Indeed, it is quite tempting to reach out to a nearby supplier and score boxes cheaply or even for free cost. On the surface, this might sound like a budget-friendly technique, but it can backfire quite badly. The reason behind this is that these boxes often lack durability. Before you have access to them, they have already past their prime due to excessive traveling and usage.

Therefore, you are better off investing in high-quality boxes. By opting for compact cartons, you will attain peace of mind. For example, if it starts to rain out of nowhere, you will not have to worry about the moisture wreaking havoc on superior boxes.

Don’t forget other moving supplies

moving tricks

Boxes alone will not ensure reliable packing. You will require a variety of supplies such as adhesive bandages, cutters, paper towels, permanent markers, packing tape, etc. to get the job done. Sometimes utilizing packing material could be a tough to nut crack, more so, if the household items are easily breakable. In that case, calling a moving company is the best bet.

Start packing as early as possible

It is not uncommon for people to miss out on several important things when they relocate. The reason being, many of us try to assemble everything at the 11th hour. Shifting is no small event. The majority of us know months or at least weeks before we are about to move. One should exploit this time to pack stuff bit by bit. That way, you will not forget anything which must make it to your new destination.

Spare one hour daily to pack. If you get occupied during the weekdays, do it on the weekends for multiple hours.

Use plastic wrap to cover leaks

packing plastic wrap

You have to be more cautious while packing anything having the remotest possibility to spill. Take the case of your shampoo bottle. If a heavy substance squeezes it more, the shampoo will be leaked and eventually get wasted. You can get away with this issue by using plastic wraps. The internet is full of different methods that teach you how to put plastic wraps into practice like a pro.

Color code boxes

Once you finish the packing, there will be umpteen boxes at your disposal. And by the time all the boxes get shifted to the particular place, you will forget which box contains which items. Hence, you must put a unique color code on every cardboard box. For instance, you can go red for books, green for toiletries, yellow for kitchen appliances, etc. That way, you will save a lot of time during the arrangement process.

Get the details

A truck or any other type of vehicle is mandatory for moving all the essentials. It would be an excellent move to sort the details beforehand so that you can have a clear idea of the parking limitations and the parking spot convenient from your home.

The final verdict

You can readily come across homeowners who have faced nightmares while switching their living spaces. But you do not need to lose your sleep after listening to their stories. Just walk the tight line of the turns as mentioned earlier and tricks, and the shifting process will come to an end without any hiccup down the road whatsoever.

Continue Reading

How to Make Moving Out Budget-Friendly

August 11, 2020
Chloe Taylor
0 Comments

We all plan to move out of our house due to rent, or a new place, at least once. As much as we get excited to move to the new home, there is a hidden element of stress that later turns into the most nerve-wracking thing. If you ask people how they feel while moving out, they will answer that it is costly and tiring. People find moving out hectic or exhausting because they have to pack everything and plan their budget for carrying heavy material and furniture from one place to another.

It might surprise you, but if we get to look at the top five stressful events for human beings, moving-out ranks the third after death and divorce. For many people moving out is a life-changing event that brings a lot of panic and anxiety. It requires you to pack everything that you once bought and spent weeks in decorating your house. Imagine packing it first and then unpacking it again after reaching your new place. Double stress and more tiring days ahead till you finally get settled.

If you live in Seattle, then packing your stuff and moving out can be a real pain in the neck and on your wallet. Seattle has houses built on a large area; this means that an average home is big enough. Moving out of such a big house can cost a lot, and you cannot do it yourself. You will need to hire some moving companies in the Seattle area to assist you in moving your stuff.

Moving out of one place to another undoubtedly costs a lot. Therefore, let us explore how we can move out while staying in budget.

Plan wisely

Since you know that you will be moving out sooner or later, it is better to plan your budget. Before you start planning, get done with necessary and unavoidable payments. Be sure to pay your rent, cover all other bills, and not owe any debt to anyone. Once you tick off all the necessary fees, start planning the moving-out budget with the money you have. Check out the prices of various moving companies and compare what matches your budget.

Save on boxes

Moving box

The first thing that you need while packing your stuff is lots of boxes. Instead of paying for boxes, try to find some in usable conditions to get the job done. You can bring in boxes from the workplace such as printer paper boxes; they are strong enough and spacious. You can ask a friend or neighbor who has recently moved in. You can also ask at your local stores for empty boxes that they do not intend to use.

Cut a bit early on utility

Utility services are an integral part of living, and we only have to pay monthly bills. If the moving out date does not coincide with the bill payment date, it is wise to cut these services early. And if you are moving to a new location, search for services that can help you get the best deals from the utility services for the initial few months.

Declutter or donate some stuff

If the new house has the same area or a bit larger than the previous one, you might not need to declutter. If you move from a larger to a small house, you will have to let go of things. You can sell the stuff that might not fit in the new home or occupies a lot of space. Selling extra furniture or stuff can buy you some extra cash that you can use later. Try to pack the necessary stuff first and see if you need the unwanted material. You can sell old books that no one reads anymore at low prices and bag the money. Decluttering will also reduce the weight for which your movers will charge money. The lesser the weight, the minimum you will have to pay.

Plan your moving date wisely

Packing and moving

Many companies offer affordable rates at a specific time of year as compared to the rest of them. If you plan to move out, pick a date that can buy you around a 20-30% discount on moving services. Moving between October to April can save you money than moving in summers. Summers are usually a full swing moving season as many families wait for summer vacations to move without any hassle.

Conclusion

Moving out and packing every household item is indeed stressful and costly. There is a lot that drains you with the moving process, instead of making it complicated, start with one step at a time. You can also tap on your savings while planning your moving-out budget. Try to look for ways that can save you money instead of spending extra. You might be excited to buy new stuff; if you are moving around holidays, you can save a lot from sales and discounts offer.

Continue Reading

Key Reasons To Use A Self-storage Unit While Moving

June 14, 2020
Chloe Taylor
0 Comments

Shifting from one house to another could be emotionally distressing because you bid farewell to a familiar place and try to accommodate yourself in a new setting. Yet, regardless of how undesirable it may sound, sometimes moving becomes very critical for individuals due to a variety of professional and personal reasons.

Apart from suffering emotional anguish, another disturbing factor about moving is that you have to transfer all the belongings to the new place safe and sound. Well, it is an uphill task, to say the least. Thankfully, the current generation of homeowners has access to self-storage units to make this process far less painful than it would be otherwise. Self-storage facilities are available in abundance today, which speaks volumes about their growing popularity.

In case you do not know, here are the prominent reasons why you should get hooked up to a self-storage provider while moving:

Ensures safety of items

Despite all the guarantees offered by moving companies, accidents do occur. Naturally, they wreak havoc to your precious household items. Fragile objectives such as an antique piece of artwork, a coffee table, lampshades, mirrors, and suchlike will not have any chance to survive the mischief. That is where a self-storage unit can make a difference.

You can stock the delicate possessions in a self-storage facility as long as you want and withdraw them at your convenience. What is more, self-storage units are always on top of the security equipment. From CCTV cameras to the latest alarm systems, everything will be available to ensure maximum protection. So you do not need to lose your sleep worrying about burglary incidents one bit.

Unlike the past, today, one can find a self-storage unit in a breeze. For example, if you are living in Augusta, GA, all you need to is to type self storage in Augusta, Ga, and you will find an array of useful resources.

Allows you time sort household stuff

Once you step into the new living space, you would ideally want to organize everything at the earliest. But it is easier said than done. Because you need adequate time to figure out where precisely your sofa, bookshelf, and other furniture should be placed. If you position everything haphazardly, the house might lose visual appeal. A self-storage unit will enable homeowners to unpack things one by one. Narrowing down attention to one part of the house at a time is likely to keep you in control and will lead to better planning.

The new house might need a new look

In all likelihood, your new property may desperately require some decorative work. It could include stuff like changing wallpapers, installing new windows, trimming doors, and so on. The problem is that doing all these tasks may cause damage to the belongings that occupy the house. Something as minor as a few drops of paint could potentially ruin your laptop, tv, or other electronics. The self-storage capacity will keep your items secured until you have completed enhancing the beauty of the living space.

Free services

As mentioned earlier, self-storage companies are rapidly multiplying. So more and more self-storage providers have begun to provide additional free amnesties like moving trucks and protective furniture pads to stay competitive. Depending on the self-storage facility you opt for, the amenities might vary.

Get a head start

Packing all the essentials of the house is a time-consuming job. Therefore, the majority of the people get on with packing weeks before the moving date. Over time, the number of packed items keeps rising, and there comes the point when they are scattered all over the place. It is the time when homeowners can barely move freely in the house. Again, a self-storage facility will be useful in getting rid of these obstacles.

The concluding remarks

It is an overwhelming responsibility to bring everything to the shifting venue in one go. Worse yet, you have no chance to go wrong because it might invite drastic financial repercussions. That is why we highly recommend taking a helping hand from a well-established self-storage unit.

Continue Reading

Moving Tips To Make Relocation Less Stressful

December 16, 2019
Chloe Taylor
0 Comments

A home is where we seek shelter, make memories, and spend time with loved ones. And saying goodbye to this little heaven and moving to a new home is quite challenging. You come across feelings of excitement, sorrow, and stress about moving out. After all, relocating requires loads of packing, time, and attention. From clothes, furniture, electronics, and accessories, utensils, to wall hangings, you have to pack the entire house.

However, don’t let this stress overrule your moving out journey. Start collecting packing supplies beforehand – boxes, tapes, plastic bags, etc. Likewise, begin packing right after you sign the deal. You can pack your seasonal clothes, extra kitchen appliances, or unused furniture pieces. In addition to reducing the last-minute packing burden, it can significantly decrease stress.

Besides this, make necessary reservations with the moving companies to ensure there are no last-minute cancellations. If you are still feeling overwhelmed, let us help you out. Here are seven moving tips to make relocation less stressful.

 

1. Draft a moving checklist

When relocating to a new house, time management is the key because you have to look after many things. No matter how incredible your memory is, one can’t remember everything. Therefore, pen down a moving checklist to stay on top of all chores. Make a list of every task you have to do before the final moving day – disconnect utilities, drop donation box, book movers, etc. It will help you complete a couple of tasks every day instead of pilling everything for the last week.

 

2. Rent a storage unit

Every homeowner has a habit of stacking up things, regardless of space constraints. Unfortunately, all extra furniture pieces, artwork, and other belongings can create a mess in the new house. If you don’t want to donate your stuff, consider renting storage units to secure them adequately. These are temperature-controlled units, ensuring your furniture or artwork doesn’t lose its shine. Besides this, all units offer top-notch security, which means your belongings are in safe hands. Once you settle in the new place, make space, and get your items back from the storage.

 

3. Pack smartly 

Undoubtedly, packing can be an enormous challenge if you don’t do it right. Instead of stuffing things in boxes, smartly pack things to make unpacking simple. Here are some tips.

  1. Pay attention to one room at a time rather than packing everything together. Start from the least used room and gradually move to the living room, kitchen, and bedroom.
  2. Although the goal is to fit maximum things in minimal boxes, don’t overload them. Put spice jars inside pots and pans and knives inside the baking gloves. Similarly, use plastic bags to roll your clothes and cover the drawers to carry them as it is.
  3.  Label all the boxes. Firstly, give color to every room and color code the boxes. And secondly, write up what is inside the box. For instance – Sarah’s summer clothes or kitchen utensils. It will help you find things readily when unpacking.

 

4. Hire reliable movers

Are you on a tight budget? If not, see if you can make room for a moving company. After all, nothing relieves the stress of moving more than handing out tasks to professionals. They will take the responsibility of heavy lifting on a moving day, eliminating damage chances. Likewise, they can also help you pack fragile items like lamps, crockery. However, don’t settle for any company around the corner. Lookup for feedback and reviews to ensure you are hiring a credible company.

 

5. Prepare an essential bag 

Before the moving day, pack an essentials bag for your first few days in the house. It will contain necessary items – hairbrush, chargers, toiletries, snacks, medicines, etc. You can also add clothes to avoid the hassle of digging into boxes. Honestly, the moving day will be bustling and chaotic, not leaving you with any energy to unpack. An essential bag would come in handy, giving you easy access to supplies so you can fall asleep peacefully.

 

6. Organize utilities 

Usually, people forget to take the final meter readings, nor they disconnect utilities. As a result, the bills keep accumulating while you are long gone. Therefore, inform all service providers to cut your connection on a specific date. Organizing in advance means you can foot all the final bills without penalties. At the same time, register with new broadband and cable providers beforehand in the new place. Also, make sure your new home has adequate gas, electricity, and water connection.

 

7. Seek help 

At times, all you need is another lending hand to get things done. Your friends might be busy with work commitments, don’t mind hitting them up. After all, an extra set of hands can minimize the moving out stress. Ask them at least a week in advance so that they can adjust their schedule. And don’t forget to show them gratitude for the help you receive or treat them with lunch or dinner. Besides, if you are moving to another city town, it could be an ideal way to spend time together with friends.

 

Final thoughts

Unsurprisingly, moving day can get pretty exhausting, especially when you make last-minute plans. It is essential to have accurate expectations of how much you can achieve in one day. Once you know things can get messy, plan everything. From making bookings, renting storage, arranging utilities, to packing belongings – having everything in order can make moving stress-free.

Continue Reading

Our topics

About us

Smooth Decorator Logo

Smooth Decorator is a website dedicated to our little sanctuaries from the hustle and bustle of the outside world – to our homes, sweet homes. We believe that the foundation of a quality life needs to be set right there, in the place where we first dream things up, and that only when we organized our homes can we hope to organize the rest of our everyday existence.

Copyright, 2015