So you’re thinking about making a change, packing up and moving to another city or town for a new start. It’s an exciting time, when you’re contemplating starting over in a new place; so much hope and excitement!
But before you start packing that suitcase and calling the moving company, there are a few things you should do before making a final decision – especially if you have a family. Below, we’ve outlined a few things to check off the list before making that major move.
Check out the Area
You should definitely check out the area you’re thinking of moving to before taking the plunge. And not just a quick Google search, either. Book a weekend stay at the town/city in question, and go check it out. Investigate things like tax information, crime rates, what the local police are like, look into the schools to see if they have a good reputation, make sure it covers all the basic necessities as well as all the fun stuff you enjoy. You want to take the time to make sure this is a place you can live in for a long time to come, happily, with the needs of your family being met. Do you feel at home here? That’s the most important thing.
Finding a Place
Ideally, you want to have a place picked out and the lease or deed signed before you start packing those boxes. Taking the time to find a home is the most important part about a move, and you’d be surprised at how many people don’t actually secure a place to live first.
Nothing beats actually going to the city to look at houses or apartments, but if you can’t, there are plenty of realty and rental sites where you can peruse homes and even tour them from your own city. Look up houses for rent, luxury apartments, duplexes, condos, or whatever your family needs, and secure the perfect place before you ever pack a box.
Save Up a Bit
The aforementioned securing-of-the-place is going to require a deposit or down payment, whether you’re renting or buying. And you’re going to need money for moving costs. It’s best to wait on a move until you’ve got a little money in the bank, to cover these costs, as well as to pay for movers, transport for yourself, food and essential household items to stock the new place with, money for other utilities and services, and more.
A Secure Vehicle
If you’re moving a long distance, you need to make sure your car is safe and up to the task. Get it serviced before the move – stuff like an oil change, new tires, even get it detailed so it’s nice and clean and ready for transporting. If your car isn’t super reliable, renting a car or a moving vehicle might be your best bet. Don’t leave this till the last minute!
These are just a few guidelines to have checked off the list before any big move. If you take care of these details first, everything else will fall into place. Enjoy your new home!
Very nicely written and compiled. Someone who’s thinking of moving can use it as a checklist!!
Helpful!! I’m currently saving to buy a house with my husband and hoping to be in one by the end of this year or earlier! Thanks for this.
Moving is such a huge decision. Sometimes the simplest of tips are often times the ones we forget to think about.
These tips are very helpful, thank you for sharing!
thanks for sharing this, gonna be very helpful for me as am now packing for my moving house next month
cheers, siennylovesdrawing
I hope I don’t have to move for a long time, but thank you for your tips!
The saving up part is super helpful. We were not able to do that before our 1700 mile move and it was rough!
It is so important to check out the area before moving in with the package. You’ve covered it so well. 🙂
Moving is seriously hard when you are doing everything on your own. These tips are handy!
This is a great article. I am planning to move next month this helps me a lot
Moving to a new place is undoubtedly a challenging and thrilling decision. However, last year when I moved to my new apartment I have searched a lot about the surrounding place, and I am pretty happy here.
These are all such great tips! Really scoping out an area and doing a lot of research is super important. Such a useful post!
-Jennifer
Moving is such a big project. It helps to have all the right tools and to be organized and prepared!
packing and moving to a new house is not an easy task. But I am sure that this post will help many.
What great tips on deciding if you want to move or not! I hope those who are making the decision will look at this post!
Right in time for me, as I am planning to move. Thanks for this.
I am actually moving at the end of the month, from one country to another. All my belongings will need to fit in my car, which I’ll drive for 12 hours and then cross on a ferry for another 26. I’ll definitely get the car checked before leaving.
I have moved so much I just sell everything and start over lol
Thanks for the tips. We have only moved when we had to. Hopefully, we will not have to move again for a while!
These are great tips! I thought of moving to a bigger home but thought of packing and everything intimidates me lol
These are such great tips. We’ve been considering moving for a while but we are taking our time with the decision.
The last time we moved we sprung for paying for movers and it was the best decision. The days of doing it all ourselves is over.
This is a very useful article for me as I am planning to move house next month.
And of course, once you do pick out an area and make the decision to move…
Get rid of all your stuff around the house you don’t need rather than moving it all! If you plan in advance, you can take the months before the move to clear out your old things. There’s plenty of websites & apps to get rid of it all locally (and for free) these days. Nextdoor, Craigslist, FB marketplace, etc.
No need to pay movers to move extra stuff or get a truck bigger than necessary!