If your New Year’s resolution involves a real estate move, then it’s time to start thinking through all the details sooner, rather than later. Buying and selling real estate can be stressful in many ways, but the actual moving part of the journey doesn’t have to be when you plan ahead.
How do you get started organizing this upheaval in your life? If you aren’t sure where to start in your move navigation, keep these tips in mind to create a more seamless process.
Find Important Documents
Make sure to put all your important documents such as contracts, licenses, and identification cards into a plastic folder or tote to carry with you to a new location. Replacing these documents is time-consuming and if you need the items right away, then it can cause serious problems in your new home or job.
Call Local Moving Companies Right Away
Begin to call local moving companies right away to learn about the costs of moving. You may want to have the movers pack your bigger possessions to prevent damage, but if you are trying to save money, then you can complete this process on your own instead. Make sure to have a written contract concerning the move to ensure that the movers arrive at the correct time.
Work with a Real Estate Agent
When you work with a real estate agent, they are focused on the big things like finding your new home and/or securing a buyer to purchase your property, so that you can be focused on all the little things that need to be taken care of as well. Don’t get bogged down with the piles of paperwork and minutia of the real estate process. Let your agent handle the legal stuff and focus your time on moving your life.
Organize Your Current Home
When you know in advance that you are going to move, begin to organize your current home by getting rid of items you don’t want or need. When the professional movers arrive at your home, they will want to load your items onto a truck immediately. You should sort through everything you own to avoid moving any unneeded appliances, furniture, or clothing to your new home. Make sure your boxes are organized as well and ready to be put into a truck by order of when you’ll need them.
Have Your Vehicle Shipped Across Country
If you are worried about driving across the country during inclement weather conditions or for the wear it will take on your car, then have your vehicle shipped by experts. You can get Auto Shipping Quotes from a site like automobileshippingquotes.com to see the best prices and where you can save money. When having your possessions transported by professional movers, it is difficult to drive hundreds of miles to meet the movers at the correct time. By having your vehicle shipped instead, you can fly on an airplane to your new location to help the movers unpack your belongings.
Contact Utility Companies in Both Locations
You will need to have electricity, water, and natural gas in both locations during the move, so make sure to contact all the utility companies. Have the utilities in your new home turned on before you move in and keep them turned on in your old home until after you move.
Keep a Written List
By preparing ahead of time along with keeping a written list of things that you need to do before moving, you will enjoy a seamless relocation to a new home across the country.
Have fun on your next great adventure and be sure you have prepared and organized for every possible event!
This guest post is written by Eileen O’Shanassy, a freelance writer and blogger based out of Flagstaff, AZ. She writes on a variety of topics and loves to research and write. She enjoys baking, biking, and kayaking. Check out her Twitter @eileenoshanassy.
