This post is sponsored by Mt. Zion Moving and Storage, a moving company serving the Tampa, St. Petersburg, Clearwater, Sarasota, Bradenton and surrounding areas in Florida. Though I have been paid to write this post, all opinions below are my own.
I have written a lot about moving in this last year. Though my move was completed in January 2021, I still have so many thoughts about how the experience went. What went right, what went horribly wrong, and everything in between.
Aside from the emotions that surround a move, there were a lot of logistics that went into play that I honestly just didn’t think about when it came time to leave everything I knew for a completely new place…
With that in mind, here are 10 things to consider when moving. I hope they help you if you have a pending move and/or if you are thinking about moving.
1. You need more time than you think you do to prepare
We decided in January 2020 of last year that we were going to move. Though we didn’t find a place until December, we still were not ready to move. We still had a lot to declutter, so much packing to do, and a lot of logistics to work out.
2. Movers are critical – especially for the big things!
Before our move, we purchased our dining room and living room sets from my father in law because he too was moving up north and didn’t want to take those pieces with him. Now, those pieces are HUGE! We needed a mover to handle it because let me tell you – no amount of free pizza and beer would convince our friends to help us lift that crap. Especially in the middle of a pandemic.
Now, I’ve said before and will say again, we screwed up big time with who we chose to help us move our stuff in Florida – but we’ll get to that in a moment.
If we had chosen professions like the people at Mt. Zion Moving and Storage, we would have had a much better experience I’m sure. Not only are they the go-to Tampa hot tub moving company because they can handle the heavy lifting, but they have amazing reviews on both Google and Facebook.
3. Your movers matter
Don’t choose someone on price alone, and don’t feel like you can only choose from a recommended list from Uhaul. So – we had decided early on that we were going to drive our stuff ourselves from Tampa, Fla. to Richmond, Ky. That meant hiring a Uhaul. But, because we knew we needed movers to actually get the stuff onto the truck – that’s where hiring movers came into play.
We made two critical mistakes – choosing based on price, and only choosing from the list Uhaul provided. The Uhaul website only shows reviews of the company that people have left on their website. It doesn’t show Google or Facebook reviews. A little more research would have revealed to us that the people we chose were NOT the best choice. Oy! Hindsight is 20-20….
And, choosing based on price alone meant we weren’t guaranteeing quality work – and they nickeled and dimed us. But that is for another article.
Bottom line – do your research before choosing a mover!
Related: Learn more about Mt. Zion Moving and Storage LLC to see if they are the right movers for your family’s moving needs.
4. Start decluttering ASAP
Like I said, the time of the move crept up on us faster than expected. So, I recommend if you are even considering moving, you start selling stuff, throwing away, giving away, and downsizing everything possible as soon as you can. Otherwise, you will end up like us and give things away for free, and dropping off way more than you wanted to at the dump!
5. Make a bucket list for the place you are leaving
Okay, this one might seem silly, but there are lots of things I wanted to do before leaving Tampa that I didn’t do before we left. I wish we had thought it through a little more. In my case, many of the things I wanted to do before leaving were actually not possible because we got ready to leave during the pandemic. But still! I wish we could have done some of it differently. In truth, I’m writing a Tampa bucket list now so that we can visit on vacation someday and get some closure.
6. Get more boxes than you think you need
Just trust me on this one. And, get them all the same size. That is one thing we did do that we were actually grateful for because it at least made things slightly easier when packing the truck.
7. Wrap EVERYTHING
Don’t take chances. We got blankets to wrap our furniture and were talked out of wrapping it. BIG MISTAKE! There are scratches all over my furniture because we were told that it wasn’t that serious. If your stuff matters – oh yes it is that serious! Wrap stuff even if you feel like it’s overkill!
8. Don’t make your boxes too heavy
This one might seem silly too – especially if you have movers, but when you have to carry something even 5 feet, you will be glad you didn’t overload it. OY!
9. Make a plan for departure
Before you leave, plan out everything from the foods in your fridge you will consume before departure to where you have to go to drop off the cable box. The more planning – the better.
10. Make a plan for arrival
You will likely not have easy access to your kitchenware, let alone any food you have transported. And, you might not have access to toiletries or towels. Make a plan for how you will handle initial meals. And, I recommend packing a bag/box of essentials with clothes and stuff you will need when you first arrive – like toilet paper! We got this advice before we moved and I’m REALLY grateful we actually did this.
