Moving in to Your New Home

You’ve finalized the sale, packed your things and are ready to call your new house home. The road to moving is almost over (finally), but there are still some big tasks to accomplish before you can officially call yourself moved in. Now, the question is, what’s the best way to tackle the final stages of your move? Also known as, unpacking.

Don’t worry, you’re not the only one who’s dreading this last step in a usually hectic process. But with a little organization and some of these helpful tips, you can master both the packing and unpacking process to ensure you have a smooth move into your new home.

A Checklist to Unpacking

The most important step in moving is organizing before you move. Draw up a game plan and stick to it! Here’s what you should include in your moving game plan:

1. Pack a Day 1 Bag – Before you load up the truck and say goodbye to your old home, pack a special bag or box that contains all your essential living items. This includes, one day’s worth of clothes, pajamas, toiletries and anything else you’ll need to get you through the first 24 to 48 hours in your new place. Also include any necessary moving supplies, such as box cutters or scissors to help you get a jump start on unpacking.

2. Prep your New Place – Take some time before your stuff arrives to prepare your new living space. This includes a deep cleaning of floors, walls, doors, drawers and closets. You may want to pay a cleaning company to take care of this for you. Either way, you’ll want to make sure your home is spotless and just as ready for move-in day as you are.

3. Take Inventory Before and After You Move – Know how many boxes you have for each room before you have the movers load them into the truck. Upon arrival, have your moving crew stick around while you take a final inventory and give everything a once-over. You’ll want to check to make sure that no boxes were left behind and assess furniture for any potential damage before signing off on a job well done.

4. Do a Load of Laundry – As soon as you enter your new home, throw some towels and bed linens into the washing machine. That way you can wash and dry while handling other moving duties. You’ll appreciate this later when you have fresh towels and sheets that are warm and ready for your inaugural new-house shower and sleep.

5. Set up Your Bed – Now comes the unpacking. But before you start unpacking the kitchen or living room, take care of the bedroom first. Make sure all the beds that will be used on day one are set up and ready for a good night’s rest. Then start moving to other parts of the house.

6. Purge (If Necessary) – Ideally this step is done before you move, but it’s never too late to make space. Start a donation pile while you unpack so your old stuff doesn’t find a permanent space in your new home.

7. Create an ‘Elsewhere Bin’ – As you begin unpacking, you may realize that items that use to work in old rooms might need to be relocated to new rooms of the house. Rather than move from room to room as you unpack, create an elsewhere bin that you can take the item to once you’re ready to move on. You can do this for your gadgets too and save yourself some time and extra steps.

8. Unpack the Kitchen – The second most important room next to your bedroom. You’ll need to set up your kitchen so that you can use it shortly after you’re moved in. Start by unpacking daily used items such as cutlery and plates and then move on to the bigger items, such as pots and pans.

9. Tackle the Bathroom – First things first, you’ll want to set your shower up. There’s nothing better than a hot shower after a long day of moving. Start with your shower essentials and clean towels and worry about unpacking the rest of your bathroom gear later.

10. Don’t Stress Perfection – Rather than try and completely unpack and decorate each room one by one, loosely arrange each room by placing large, already-assembled items where you think they should go. If you have unpacked artwork, lean it against the wall where you think you might want to hang it and let it sit for a day or two before you start hanging and decorating for good.

11. Lastly, the Garage – Don’t stress yourself out by trying to get everything done all in one day. Especially when it comes to the garage. Leave this and other hardly used spaces in your home for last. That way you don’t rush through organizing and you can put everything in its rightful place.

Ready to Move?

If you’re still in the initial stages of your moving process, and need some help house hunting in Orange County, visit my search by lifestyle page to start seeing what’s available in your neighborhood. I can also help you find the home you’re looking for. I’ve lived and worked in Orange County for the last 30 years, so I know where to help you look. Recently named #10 in Coldwell Banker’s Top 50 agents in Orange County, I have the track record to prove it! Contact me today to get started.